We really do have heartstrings. They’re called the chordae tendinae. Our hearts have four chambers. Two at the top and two the bottom. The two top chambers, the atria, collect blood. The right atrium gets oxygen-poor blood from the from the veins which is then sucked through three-leaf valve into the right ventricle then pumped into the lungs. The left atrium receives oxygen-rich blood from the lungs that blood gets sucked through a two-leaf valve into the left ventricle which pumps it, all rich and oxygenated, into the aorta and throughout the body. Helping to prevent the blood from regurgitating from either ventricle back into either atria are the chordae tendinae, our heart strings. As suspension lines help a parachute stay properly shaped to mechanically resist the downward pull of gravity the chordae tendinae help heart valves resist the upward pressure of the ventricles. When we are stimulated, our hearts beat faster and harder tugging ever more on our heartstrings.
Content Type: Video
The human brain is unique among animals for its size and for the cognitive power that it produces; it is the most remarkable trait that humans possess. The brain is not just the most complex organ in the human body – in fact, it is the most complex structure in the known universe. It has been a subject of study for thousands of years, but we have barely begun to glimpse how it works. Continue reading “What is the BRAIN Initiative?”
C2ST Artist in Residence Aaron Freeman talks with comics artist, pediatrician and allergist Dr. Alex Thomas about the importance of metaphor to his work as an asthma specialist and medical science communicator. The interview is a intro to the topic of graphic medicine leading up to Comic Nurse MK Czerwiec’s workshop, “A Picture is Worth 1000 Words – Teaching Science with Comics”. The workshop will be hosted on Tuesday 12 November at Northwestern University’s Hughes Auditorium 303 East Superior St. in Chicago.
C2ST Artist in Residence Aaron Freeman compares the neuro-recruiting approaches of the Islamic State and the US military. Which side want to stimulate the production of what hormone. Will the winner be ISIS oxytocin or Pentagon testosterone.
