Love means....

...sacrifice!

Pulmonary function....

...is simple.

The major work of breathing is INSPIRATION.
The way the lungs works on EXPIRATION, though, measures their true health.
Significant decreases in pulmonary capacity occur BEFORE they become symptomatic.
Smokers should get pulmonary function tests (PFTs)--
maybe the results will convince them to STOP NOW!
To borrow a phase, maybe this truth can set them free!
It's never too late to stop killing yourself!

Irrational fears?

To a degree.

As this chart shows, the majority (82%) of our ionizing (and therefore potentially mutagenic) radiation exposure is natural, i.e. unavoidable.
Nuclear reactor "accidents"--there is no such things as accidents, just events that are more or less probable in given circumstances--aren't even on the map.
We are still our own worst enemy; even the danger radon exposure (higher risk of lung cancer) is vastly potentiated by cigarette smoking.
Does this mean we all want a nuclear reactor in our back yards? No, but it does mean we need to focus on the more important risks that we can control--like smoking, drinking, and risky behaviors.
And that warm glow we all have? Natural!

Another bodily function...

...we take for granted--breathing.
Spirometry is s simple way to evaluate a person's lung function.
The biggest enemy, of course, to healthy respiration is smoking.
If in doubt, have it checked out!
It's never too late to quit!

Turkeys...

...have muscles (our first unit in A&P II), too!

Enjoy the holiday!

Ode to Carbon

Oh, Carbon, thou art lovely,
With thy magic valence four.
From that com'st all we are
And will be evermore.

With H and O you marry
To craft the ties that bind,
Thou makest oh so many things
With others of your kind.

Alkanes, alkenes, alkynes,
Benzene rings thou makest, too,
Alcohols and ethers come from thee,
And proteins ne'er a few.

And when I lay me down to rest,
Thy cycle it doth run,
Return to earth my solid parts-
My soul aims for the sun!

What's wrong with smoking?

You tell me!

Assessment!

"Hands on" assessments in science are called "practical exams". In Anatomy & Physiology this is the opportunity for the students to demonstrate mastery over the "stuff"--histology, models, and similar artifacts. The major obstacles to success are overconfidence and "underconfidence"!

Under the first, a student thinks that having "looked at" something once is sufficient. One of the reasons I require students to "draw what they see" when doing histology is so that they can utilize a different learning modality--kinesthetic--to assimilate the visual knowledge that they (unwittingly) think is easier to acquire than it is. Another source of overconfidence is forgetting that we are working on anatomy AND physiology--one needs to know not only what something looks like but what it does!

Underconfidence is manifested by "second guessing" one's self. We all have experience with this. I learned years ago that my first answer is usually my best--not always "right" but as right as I am going to get!

Between these two extremes lies--SUCCESS!

When it's good to be a bad-ass!

Killer T-cells! Whoa!

Thanks for the complement!

One of the more elegant non-specific immune defense mechanisms is the COMPLEMENT CASCADE.
Others include the skin, granulocytes, inflammation, macrophages...a whole host of protein-based (and therefore GENETIC) processes.
Evolution has resulted in our ability to rapidly respond to any and all "invaders", and through sexual reproduction to "keep up with the parasites" (the theory of the Red Queen) .
Fearfully and wonderfully made!