Interactive Functional Anatomy

Abstract: A great interactive computer simulation of muscle action. This is a DVD for PCs (Windows 98 or higher) or Macs.(PowerPC MacOS 8.6 or higher). Not for TVs.

Keywords: book review, SCNM, Gross, Regional, Anatomy, Muscles, Simulation, Interactive, DVD.

Title: Interactive Functional Anatomy Author: Susan Kay Hillman Publisher: Primal Pictures Limited Date Published: 2003 ISBN: 1902470893 SCNM Courses: ANAT603,ANAT604 SCNM Quarters: Q1-ANAT603,Q2-ANAT604 SCNM Need: Orville's Pick

Click below to buy the book [Book price/availability varies]

REVIEW by Orville R. Weyrich, Jr.

This is one of the best study aids I have seen for gross or regional anatomy. It provides a computer-animated skeleton overlayed with muscles. The user can easily rotate the skeleton in the medial axis to view from any angle, peel off layers of muscle down to bare bone (11 layers), and click on any muscle to view a summary of the muscle's origin, insertion, and action.

If this were not enough, most of the muscle actions come complete with interactive computer simulations (called animations, but they are much more) that allow the user to view the muscle and skeletal action over the range of motion of the action by moving the mouse up and down, from a variety of angles chosen by moving the mouse left and right. Notably absent are animations of the facial muscles.

Finally, many of the muscle actions are also illustrated with movies of a male model flexing his muscles -- you can see how the muscles manifest their actions in real life.

Although it may seem a bit pricy at over $100, this is the most cost-effective learning tool I have found. However, this program is not for everyone. You need to have a computer (Windows 98 or higher, or Mac) with a DVD drive. The program works great on my 800Mz Pentium-III with 385 MB of RAM. The publisher also states that it works with any Pentium PC with 64 MB of RAN or PowerPC Macs running MacOS 8.6, but I have not evaluated this. (Note -- this DVD will NOT work with a TV DVD player.

All-in-all, this is a great program. I would much rather have this program than a plastic skeleton.

This program is hard to find, but well worth searching for.
 

I have taken this program and I highly recommend it to all health-care providers - Orville R. Weyrich, Jr PhD NMD.     For more information, see: The CSI Report and Video and Become a New Patient Magnet