Essay on Anatomy of the Heart

The initial observation of the heart is fascinating because it has many fatty tissues surrounding it. This observation gives the details of arteries and veins as well as how the heart is divided. Observing the front of the specimen, one can see a groove that is down the middle of the heart, which divides the ventricles. The appearance of the heart is different from what one would expect because it could be difficult to figure out the left or the right side of the heart, ventral, atria, and the back side. Someone can observe two openings to the heart, which include the aorta and the superior vena cava. The front or one side of the heart looks different from the other because of the varying amount of tissues surrounding it. The heart is connected to the rest of the body through the superior vena cava and the aorta. The heart is oriented in the thoracic cavity such that the left is the animal left and the right as the animal right with the opening facing up.

Anterior View of the Heart before Dissection

Observation 2

There are four chambers that are visible in a dissected heart. Also one can notice valves, muscles, thicker left ventricle, and tissue deposits. When the heart is dissected, its anatomy appears different than expected.  However, someone can notice the two main arteries and veins. The left ventricle wall is conspicuously thicker than the right one. The many tissues surrounding the heart are also visible. The projected nature of the valves when observed in a dissected heart confirms their functions of preventing the backflow of blood. Locating the entry of vein and the exit point of the artery requires putting the fingers through them or the openings to trace the path of the blood flow. The boundaries between the atria and the ventricles can be located by identifying the thick fatty tissues called the sulci.  Drawings are used in science to give a detailed and accurate representation of specimen while diagrams are for giving stylistic representation of the image (Jones, Reed, & Weyers, 1998). Therefore, diagrams used for scientific purposes are perfect and illustrate the intended images.

Anterior View of the Heart after Dissection

References

Betts, J. G. et al. (2013). Anatomy & physiology. Open Stax College.

Gottfredson, L. S. (2003). Dissecting practical intelligence theory: Its claims and evidence. Intelligence, 31(4), 343-397.

Jones, A., Reed, R. and Weyers, J. (1998) Practical Skills in Biology Addison Wesley Longman Ltd, Essex. pages 44-49

Marieb, E. N., & Hoehn, K. (2007). Human anatomy & physiology. Pearson Education.