Introduction
The Organ system project was my first engineering project of my Sophomore year. We were asked to create a project about two body system and how they work together. There are 11 different organ systems and they are made of all different cells, and we picked skeletal and muscular system. We first started out researching the project, researching how both organ systems work, what their system does, their organs, how their organized, and how the organ systems function. Once we had all our research done we had to put it into a proposal and we had to design and plan a model that shows how the two organ system work together, and how they work independently. Our model represents how the skeletal and muscular systems work independently and together. The wood in the model is a representation of bone, showing how independently it provides support. The clay on the bottom represents cartilage, and shows how cartilage can support weight. The nails in the wood are ligaments, and the nails show how ligaments provide joint stability. The rubber bands are muscle, both skeletal and smooth. The smooth muscle is represented by two rubber bands with a ball between them. When the rubber bands contract, the ball moves along. This represents how the digestive system acts independently to move food through the digestion system. Together, the skeletal and muscular system can allow humans to perform voluntary movement. The wood that moves with rubber bands acts as muscle and the wood acts as bone, to make the the muscle and bone move, showing voluntary action. (A picture is shown below)
Once my group finished our plan, we started working on the project. We went to the shed grabbed pieces of wood and got to building. We started with the frame and started screwing things in. We had one day to put all our information into our slide presentation, and then we added the lever to represent the muscle and bone working together. We used nails, but soon realised that it was not the best set up, so we redid the lever. From there we added rubber bands and the ball within them and added clay to the bottom. We all took on different tasks that we needed to get done for the project and because of that we finished early. Then we presented all our information to the class.
Once my group finished our plan, we started working on the project. We went to the shed grabbed pieces of wood and got to building. We started with the frame and started screwing things in. We had one day to put all our information into our slide presentation, and then we added the lever to represent the muscle and bone working together. We used nails, but soon realised that it was not the best set up, so we redid the lever. From there we added rubber bands and the ball within them and added clay to the bottom. We all took on different tasks that we needed to get done for the project and because of that we finished early. Then we presented all our information to the class.
Concepts
Organ system-In biology, an organ system is a group of organs that work together to perform one or more functions. Each does a particular job in the body, and is made up of certain tissues.The 11 organ systems of the body are the integumentary, muscular, skeletal, nervous, circulatory, lymphatic, respiratory, endocrine, urinary/excretory, reproductive and digestive.
Organ-a part of an organism that is typically self-contained and has a specific vital function, such as the heart or liver in humans
Skeletal system-Bones support the body, protect the internal organs, provides for movement, store mineral reserves, and provide a site for cell formation.
Muscular system-permits movement of the body, maintains posture, and circulates blood throughout the body.
Muscular and Skeletal System
Organ-a part of an organism that is typically self-contained and has a specific vital function, such as the heart or liver in humans
Skeletal system-Bones support the body, protect the internal organs, provides for movement, store mineral reserves, and provide a site for cell formation.
- Cartilage connects bones together and can also be used to support weight because of its dense flexibility.
- Ligaments provide joint stability and prevent movement that might damage a joint.
- Tendons join muscle to bone, and also are capable of transmitting force from muscle to bone.
Muscular system-permits movement of the body, maintains posture, and circulates blood throughout the body.
- Skeletal- control voluntary movement.
- Smooth or Visceral- controlled by the unconscious part of the brain. Found in the stomach, blood vessels and small and large intestine. Move food along the digestive tract.
- Cardiac- found only in the heart and is responsible for pumping blood into the blood vessels and into the circulatory system.
Muscular and Skeletal System
- The muscles work by pulling on the tendons, which connect muscle to bone
Reflection
My group accomplished a lot with the time given to us. We had great teamwork, for example, we all contributed to the designs of the project and we all helped bring in materials and build the project. Also when one person was working one part of the project, another one was drilling in something into it. Not everything was perfect though, everyone didn't contribute equally. Some people were more on tasks than others, like one person would be assembling the project and the other would be on their phone. Next time, I will to make sure everyone has something to do, so that everyone will contribute equally.
Some skills I have acquired from building this project is the ability to draw out a model. At first I had never draw out the construction of a project and design, I didn't even know how to, but in this project I drew out the entire model. I, even labeled what each object on the model does. Another thing I learned was simplier is better. During this entire project I was freaking out, and thinking our project was to simple, because everyone elses was so complicated. I realized in this project that sometimes simpler is better. I realized this because it better to have something simpler and efficent, than something complex and sometimes works. During presentation time our model worked perfectly doing everything we wanted it to do, while other projects had glitches and didn't work. This was a real eye opener for me.
Some things that I could have done better, and that I will continue working on are staying a bit more focused, and bring in materials sooner. Sometimes during the project I would go over and talk to my friend instead of doing something for our project. Next time I will try to limit my talking time with her and focus more on the project. Also in this project I forgot to bring in some key materials for our project one day. So that entire day we had nothing to do, because we did not have to materials to get started on the rest of the project. Next time I will try to bring all materials on our first build day. Overall this project was a great experience where I learned new skills and the science concepts.
Some skills I have acquired from building this project is the ability to draw out a model. At first I had never draw out the construction of a project and design, I didn't even know how to, but in this project I drew out the entire model. I, even labeled what each object on the model does. Another thing I learned was simplier is better. During this entire project I was freaking out, and thinking our project was to simple, because everyone elses was so complicated. I realized in this project that sometimes simpler is better. I realized this because it better to have something simpler and efficent, than something complex and sometimes works. During presentation time our model worked perfectly doing everything we wanted it to do, while other projects had glitches and didn't work. This was a real eye opener for me.
Some things that I could have done better, and that I will continue working on are staying a bit more focused, and bring in materials sooner. Sometimes during the project I would go over and talk to my friend instead of doing something for our project. Next time I will try to limit my talking time with her and focus more on the project. Also in this project I forgot to bring in some key materials for our project one day. So that entire day we had nothing to do, because we did not have to materials to get started on the rest of the project. Next time I will try to bring all materials on our first build day. Overall this project was a great experience where I learned new skills and the science concepts.