0 a very sharp knife that is used for cutting through skin and flesh during an operation --
1 a small, very sharp knife used for exact cutting, esp. for an operation --
Perhaps the real problem is that taking a scalpel to dominant discourses but offering nothing in their place produces more negativity than we need right now.
The seeds were dissected on the stage of a binocular microscope, using a scalpel and forceps, into intact embryos and endosperms (with the aleurone layer and seed coat attached).
Samples scratched from the outer or inner layers of the endocarp by a scalpel were placed between two diamond windows that were mounted into a temperature-controlled holder.
For more detailed analysis the bands can be cut out of the gel with a scalpel.
After drying, the shells were opened and the adductor mussels were cut using a sterile scalpel.
A thin longitudinal section of each flower or bud was removed with a sharp scalpel to expose achenes.
I felt that the author was so severely constrained by the page limit that a scalpel had been ruthlessly applied.
It is only old age which comes under the scalpel.