Action potential

/ˈæk.ʃən pəˈtɛn.ʃəl/ noun

A rapid, temporary reversal of electrical charge along a neuron's membrane that propagates as a nerve impulse from cell body to axon terminal.

From Latin 'actio' (doing) + 'potentia' (power). Described by Hodgkin and Huxley in the 1950s.

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