The Journey Inside You
Follow one drop of blood from your hand through the heart, the lungs and back, and work out for yourself where it goes, what pushes it, what stops it going backwards, how oxygen crosses a wall thinner than a hair, and what a pulse alone cannot tell you. Nine investigations for ages 12 and up, taught inside a working model of the heart and lungs.
Library
Pick up the trail
Lesson 1
Where Does the Next Beat’s Blood Come From?
An adult’s heart pumps about five litres of blood a minute, far faster than the body makes new blood. How does it never run out?
StartLesson 2
Lesson 3
A Push You Cannot See
The heart starts squeezing, yet no blood comes out at first. What has to happen before it can leave?
StartLook closer
Lesson 4
Still Beating. Something’s Wrong.
The heart beats strongly and steadily. So why is its owner out of breath on the stairs?
StartLesson 5
Before the Next Breath
An iron lung helped people breathe with their bodies inside a sealed box and their heads outside. How could the box move air into their lungs without blowing into their mouths?
StartLesson 6
The Wall Nobody Notices
A thin wall separates air from blood. How can oxygen cross it while blood cells stay inside?
StartPut the clues together
Lesson 7
What Happened in the Hand?
Blood picks up oxygen in your lungs, then gives it to your muscles. How does oxygen cross out of the blood at a muscle but into it at the lungs?
StartLesson 8
The Race Inside You
A trained runner’s heart can beat much more slowly at rest than another person’s. How can fewer beats still send enough blood around the body?
StartLesson 9
Three Clues. One Missing Link.
Someone’s heart beats faster, but less oxygen reaches their muscles. Why might a faster heartbeat fail to help?
Start