This activity is designed to compare and contrast the anatomy of the leg bones of a bird vs. a human.

Different hormones, neurotransmitters and reflexes are involved in the complicated process of feeding in animals. Secretions and motility of the gastrointestinal tract are stimulated and carefully regulated by numerous factors, including environmental stimuli and the presence of food in different parts of the gastrointestinal tract from the oral cavity right through to the intestines. When a harmful substance is ingested the body acts to eliminate it in different ways to prevent the animal becoming ill, for example, through vomiting and diarrhoea. If one or more of the pathways in controlling feeding is damaged or inhibited, then problems such as obesity occurs.

Corpus Luteum is latin for "yellow body". The corpus luteum is the structure formed during luteinisation of the follicle after ovulation. The corpus luteum is, however, actually only yellow in the cow and in all other domestic species it is red. The yellow colouration of the corpus luteum is due to the pigment, lutein.

Luteinisation occurs after ovulation and the collapse of the follicle. The number of corpora lutea formed in the ovary at any one time is directly proportional to the number of oocytes ovulated. Therefore many corpora lutea will be visible on the ovary of polytocous animals. During Luteinisation there is an increase in both the size and weight due to hyperplasia (increase in cell number) and hypertrophy (increase in cell size) within the developing corpus luteum.

Cranial nerves are those nerves which arise from the brain and brain stem rather than the spinal cord. Nerves arising from the spinal cord are the peripheral nerves. There are 12 pairs of cranial nerves and these pairs of nerves passage through foramina in the skull, either individually or in groups. Cranial nerves are traditionally referred to by Roman numerals and these numerals begin cranially and run caudally.

Deglutition is the process of swallowing. Food is passed from the oral pharynx into the oesophageal/laryngeal pharynx whilst the epiglottis closes across the entrance of the trachea. It is an involuntary reflex preventing food from passing into the trachea and thus preventing choking and respiratory pneumonia.

" This course provides an exciting, eye-opening, and thoroughly useful inquiry into what it takes to live an extraordinary life, on your own terms. The instructors address what it takes to succeed, to be proud of your life, and to be happy in it. Participants tackle career satisfaction, money, body, vices, and relationship to themselves and others. They learn how to address issues in their lives, how to live life, and how to learn from it. This course is offered during the Independent Activities Period (IAP), which is a special 4-week term at MIT that runs from the first week of January until the end of the month. This not-for-credit course is sponsored by the Department of Science, Technology, and Society. A similar, semester-long version of this course is taught in the Sloan Fellows Program. A semester-long extension of the IAP course is also taught to the population at large of MIT (please see PE.550, Spring). Acknowledgment The instructors would like to thank Prof. David Mindell for his sponsorship of this course, his intention for its continued expansion, and his commitment to the well-being of MIT students."

Embryo, when applied to mammals, is the term given to the developing organism from fertilisation to birth. Developmental biology, or embryology, is the study of the embryo as it transforms from a unicellular zygote to a multicellular, mulitsystemed organism which in some cases is ready to function autonomously at birth. Developmental biology is of interest to vets in understanding why organs and systems are the way they are, but also in understanding genetic diseases and applying cell based therapies to treat loss or damage to tissues.

The Diaphragm is a dome-shaped musculotendinous sheet separating the thoracic and abdominal cavities. It is convex on its cranial surface. In the neutral position between full inspiration and full expiration, the most cranial part of the diaphragm is in line with the 6th rib.

Gases or liquids can be unevenly distributed between two areas. If one area has a higher concentration than the other then the differance between these two areas is termed the concentration gradient. The equality is then corrected by the movement of the molecules down this so called gradient from the region of high concentration to that of low. This process is passive as the molecules do not have to be forced to do this and it is reffered to as diffusion.

The duodenum is the proximal part of the small intestine and extends from the pylorus of the stomach to the jejunum. It has descending and ascending portions and both portions have digestive and absorptive functions.

Elephant anatomy is very much comparable to the horse and rabbit. Microbes are present in the hindgut that produce Volatile Fatty Acids (VFAs). VFAs make a substantial contribution to the elephant's total energy requirements. Food has a relatively fast transit time and as a result, elephants have a low digestive efficiency (44% as opposed to 60% in horses). A fast transit time is achieved by a short GIT, reduced caecum and increased GIT diameter. Their digestive strategy is to pass as large a quantity of low quality food through their digestive tract within a short period of time.

There are various hormones that influence the structure of the skin. These influences may be made apparent by the repeated long-term administration of various glucocorticoids or their analogues. Endogenous imbalances are generally seen in adult mature animals although congenital forms have been seen, especially with hypothyroidism. The hormones implicated as important for maintaining skin structure are thyroxine, cortisol and estradiol. Deficiencies or excessive production may result from abberations in the function of the hypothalamic-adrenal axis, the adrenal gland, thyroid gland or the gonads.

Comprised of a group of duct-less glands with limited or no anatomical contact with each other, the endocrine system integrates and controls metabolic activity through the secretion of hormones into the vascular system. These hormones may have their effects on tissues and organs far from where they were produced.

This course is intended to provide students with the fundamentals of fencing, including footwork, bladework, bouting and refereeing. It will allow students to develop the ability to analyze a fencing bout, and promotes creativity in applying acquired skills in a fencing bout.

Prior to birth the foetus is not capable of respiratory function and thus relies on the maternal circulation to carry out gas, nutrient and waste exchange. The foetal and maternal blood never mix, instead they interface at the placenta. Consequently the liver and the lungs are non-functional, and a series of shunts exist in the foetal circulation so that these organs are almost completely by-passed.

The forebrain (proencephalon) is the largest part of the brain, most of which is cerebrum. Other important structures found in the forebrain include the thalamus , the hypothalamus and the limbic system. The cerebrum is divided into two cerebral hemispheres connected by a mass of white matter known as the corpus callosum.

" We are now at an unprecedented point in the field of neuroscience: We can watch the human brain in action as it sees, thinks, decides, reads, and remembers. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is the only method that enables us to monitor local neural activity in the normal human brain in a noninvasive fashion and with good spatial resolution. A large number of far-reaching and fundamental questions about the human mind and brain can now be answered using straightforward applications of this technology. This is particularly true in the area of high-level vision, the study of how we interpret and use visual information including object recognition, mental imagery, visual attention, perceptual awareness, visually guided action, and visual memory. The goals of this course are to help students become savvy and critical readers of the current neuroimaging literature, to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the technique, and to design their own cutting-edge, theoretically motivated studies. Students will read, present to the class, and critique recently published neuroimaging articles, as well as write detailed proposals for experiments of their own. Lectures will cover the theoretical background on some of the major areas in high-level vision, as well as an overview of what fMRI has taught us and can in future teach us about each of these topics. Lectures and discussions will also cover fMRI methods and experimental design. A prior course in statistics and at least one course in perception or cognition are required."

" This team-taught multidisciplinary course provides information relevant to the conduct and interpretation of human brain mapping studies. It begins with in-depth coverage of the physics of image formation, mechanisms of image contrast, and the physiological basis for image signals. Parenchymal and cerebrovascular neuroanatomy and application of sophisticated structural analysis algorithms for segmentation and registration of functional data are discussed. Additional topics include: fMRI experimental design including block design, event related and exploratory data analysis methods, and building and applying statistical models for fMRI data; and human subject issues including informed consent, institutional review board requirements and safety in the high field environment. Additional Faculty Div Bolar Dr. Bradford Dickerson Dr. John Gabrieli Dr. Doug Greve Dr. Karl Helmer Dr. Dara Manoach Dr. Jason Mitchell Dr. Christopher Moore Dr. Vitaly Napadow Dr. Jon Polimeni Dr. Sonia Pujol Dr. Bruce Rosen Dr. Mert Sabuncu Dr. David Salat Dr. Robert Savoy Dr. David Somers Dr. A. Gregory Sorensen Dr. Christina Triantafyllou Dr. Wim Vanduffel Dr. Mark Vangel Dr. Lawrence Wald Dr. Susan Whitfield-Gabrieli Dr. Anastasia Yendiki "