Sunday 1 January 2023

Models and real things



The model lungs show us how the lungs work, but they are only a model and no substitute for looking at the real thing. Investigating the diaphragm and inflating the lungs of a sheep. The lungs are a pair of spongy, air-filled organs that are located on either side of the chest (thorax). The trachea (windpipe) carries air from the mouth and nose into the lungs through a series of tubes called bronchi. The bronchi branch off into smaller and smaller tubes called bronchioles, which end in clusters of tiny round air sacs called alveoli.

When you inhale, the diaphragm (a muscle located at the base of the lungs) contracts and moves downward, creating more space in the chest cavity. This increases the volume of the chest cavity and decreases the pressure inside it. As a result, air is drawn into the lungs through the trachea, bronchi, and bronchioles.

The air that enters the lungs is warm and moistened by the nose and tubes. It then passes through the alveoli, where oxygen and carbon dioxide exchange occurs. Oxygen from the air diffuses across the thin walls of the alveoli and into the blood vessels called capillaries that surround them. At the same time, carbon dioxide, a waste product of the body's cells, diffuses from the blood into the alveoli to be exhaled.

When you exhale, the diaphragm relaxes and moves upward, decreasing the volume of the chest cavity and increasing the pressure inside it. This forces the air out of the lungs through the trachea, bronchi, and bronchioles.

The lungs are essential for breathing and play a vital role in the body's respiratory system. They help to oxygenate the blood and remove waste products, such as carbon dioxide, from the body.

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