jueves, 29 de noviembre de 2012

vocabulary

Vocabulary



  1. Respiratory:  pertaining to or serving for respiration: respiratory system.
  2. System: A functionally related group of elements, especially:
    a. The human body regarded as a functional physiological unit.
  3. Airways: an air route equipped with emergency landing fields, beaconlights, radio beams, etc.
  4. Lungs: either of the two saclike respiratory organs in the thorax ofhumans and the higher vertebrates.
  5. Respiratory muscles: the skeletal muscles that increase and decrease the volume of the thorax during respiration.
  6. Oxygen: a colorless, odorless, gaseous element constituting about one-fifth ofthe volume of the atmosphere and present in a combined state innature.
  7. Carbon dioxide: a colorless, odorless, incombustible gas, CO 2  , present in theatmosphere and formed during respiration, usually obtained from coal,coke, or natural gas by combustion.
  8. Alveolar: Phonetics articulated with the tongue touching or close to thealveolar ridgeas English t, d, n;  gingival.
  9. Anatomical: of or pertaining to anatomy.
  10. Stomata: Also, stomateBotany any of various small apertures,especially one of the minute orifices or slits in the epidermis ofleaves, stems, etc., through which gases are exchanged.

miércoles, 14 de noviembre de 2012

Content




      Respiratory System                          

                                                                                                                           


 
The respiratory system (or ventilatory system) is the biological system of an organism that introduces respiratory gases to the interior and performs gas exchange.In humans and other mammals, the anatomical features of the respiratory system include airways,lungs, and the respiratory muscles. Molecules of oxygen and carbon dioxide are passively exchanged, by diffusion, between the gaseous external environment and the blood. This exchange process occurs in the alveolar region of the lungs. Other animals, such as insects, have respiratory systems with very simple anatomical features, and in amphibians even the skin plays a vital role in gas exchange. Plants also have respiratory systems but the directionality of gas exchange can be opposite to that in animals. The respiratory system in plants also includes anatomical features such as holes on the undersides of leaves known as stomata.

 

Horses

Horses are obligate nasal breathers which means that they are different from many other mammals because they do not have the option of breathing through their mouths and must take in oxygen through their noses.

 

 

 

Elephants

The elephant is the only animal known to have no pleural space. Rather, the parietal and visceral pleura are both composed of denseconnective tissue and joined to each other via loose connective tissue. This lack of a pleural space, along with an unusually thickdiaphragm, are thought to be evolutionary adaptations allowing the elephant to remain underwater for long periods of time while breathing through its trunk which emerges as a snorkel.

 

Birds

The respiratory system of birds differs significantly from that found in mammals, containing unique anatomical features such as air sacs. The lungs of birds also do not have the capacity to inflate as birds lack a diaphragm and a pleural cavity. Gas exchange in birds occurs between air capillaries and blood capillaries, rather than in alveoli.










Reptiles

The anatomical structure of the lungs is less complex in reptiles than in mammals, with reptiles lacking the very extensive airway tree structure found in mammalian lungs. Gas exchange in reptiles still occurs in alveoli however, reptiles do not possess a diaphragm. Thus, breathing occurs via a change in the volume of the body cavity which is controlled by contraction of intercostal muscles in all reptiles except turtles. In turtles, contraction of specific pairs of flank muscles governs inspiration or expiration.


 

Amphibians

Both the lungs and the skin serve as respiratory organs in amphibians. The skin of these animals is highly vascularized and moist, with moisture maintained via secretion of mucusfrom specialized cells. While the lungs are of primary importance to breathing control, the skin's unique properties aid rapid gas exchange when amphibians are submerged in oxygen-rich water.



 

 

 Fish

In most fish respiration takes place through gills. (See also aquatic respiration.) Lungfish, however, do possess one or two lungs. Thelabyrinth fish have developed a special organ that allows them to take advantage of the oxygen of the air.