MEMber conveys the idea of  "a part" and MEMory is one of the key parts of the MIND. This overview also explores MEMber in the sense of an "appendix". Other overviews explore MIND and MEMORY. To "go out  on a limb" is just about what is needed to make sense out of "limb" which formerly was referred to as "extremity" and in Latin derived tongues as "MEMbers" pointing toward MENinge.

Lower Limbs often end in a Clubfoot.

One idea is that limbs are "paired appendages for locomotion". In other tongues the idea includes limp appendices like a pendant, pensive or penis.

Limb also opens vistas toward limber, agile, limp, lax, lumber, lumbering, lame, and hobble.

Upper limb or arm opens an ARMamentarium of landscapes linked to arms and armories. In Greek arm is "hammos" and it rhymes with hARM and ARMaMENt.

Lower limb or leg or in Latin "PERna" rhymes with "PERson". Experts favor linking person with ideas of "masked face". However, to walk or deambulate on hind legs and confront face to face situations is another key human property.

Amelia or distal hypoplasia of limbs.

Limbs are members or part of organisms and like tree limbs can be trimmed, pruned, or amputated. Societies also like to dismember their enemies.

Thalidomide induced tetraphocomelia.

Limbs can be deformed or malformed. Club like foot (clubfoot) is a common limb deformation that no longer is a major source of disability. On the other hand, malformations of limbs or "melia" continue to be hard to remedy. However, with advances in Teratology (scientific study of causes of birth defects) prevention of malformations is increasingly possible. One landmark was the birth of countless victims, mostly in Germany and England, caused by a drug called Thalidomide. Among the many malformations induced were serious limb birth defects including amelia (no limbs), meromelia (parts missing), and phocomelia (seal like limbs) plus a myriad of other malformations in other organ systems. Since then, all pharmaceuticals must be tested for safety for the unborn, in other words, to determine if the remedies are teratogenic.

After being banned for decades, Thalidomide is back "on the market". The "rational" is that this drug is needed for the treatment of a handful of patients with leprosy but the true consumers will be AIDS victims. Thalidomide can "alleviate" the "ill feelings" of AIDS patients. On the other hand, new cases of Thalidomide caused malformations are already being noted in South America. One conclusion may be that the risk of future generations of children of being born with life-long Thalidomide-induced disabilities which are entirely preventable are deemed less important than marketing Thalidomide for consumption by adults suffering from a lethal disease. Perhaps Hermes who represents hermaphrodites and who as Mercury also represents mercenary merchants had a role in helping adults abandon the ideal of the need to  protect future generations of unborn children.

Short Limbs.

Finally, shorter arms and legs represent a characteristic of dwarfs and midgets, terms that  increasingly are considered to be offensive. Dwarf implies disproportional short limbs such as in the well known condition of achondroplasia. Midget, on the other hand, implies proportional reduction of size of all body parts. Leprechaun refers to legendary gnome like people, popularized by Irish folklore and rooted in beliefs that "little people" may be demons.

Disabled.