The knee jerk reflex can be tested by tapping just below the knee causing the lower leg to suddenly jerk forward. You are working the patella tendon. This is the tendon that runs down from the ...

Within each tendon one finds a stretch receptor. The latter can be stimulated by tapping the tendon with a rubber mallet, whereupon the associated muscle contracts slightly. This simple reflex forms ...

We are, I trust, all but universally familiar with the knee jerk, or patellar, reflex. A doctor taps the patellar tendon with a rubber mallet, and our leg kicks forward in response. The reaction is ...

You might have experienced the popular knee jerk in the doctors room or you may have heard of someone having an automatic 'knee-jerk response' to a situation without thinking. Strange, isn't it? Well, ...

Are reflexes different to reactions? Yes. An example of a reflex is when someone taps the knee (patella) tendon softly with a mallet. Your knee lurches forward and your brain has no control over its ...