BrainyRedhead's World

"Umbrella Crab" (Cryptolithodes sitchensis)

Also known as the Sitka crab or the Turtle Crab, the umbrella crab is a species of lithodid crab that is native to coastal regions of the northeastern Pacific, ranging from Sitka, Alaska to Point Loma, California. C. sitchensis is noted for having a unusual half-moon shaped carapace that extends over its walking legs and chelipeds, this serves as a form of camouflage allowing C. sitchensis to blend in with the rocks around it.  The color of C. sitchensis’s carapace is highly variable and often matches the color of the coralline algae with C. sitchensis feeds on.

Classification

Animalia-Arthropoda-Crustacea-Malacostraca-Decapoda-Anomura-Lithodidae-Cryptolithodes-C. sitchensis

Doctor saves child’s life by practicing heart surgery on 3D-printed model

Heart surgery is an extremely difficult procedure. Even more so when the tiny anatomy of a small child is involved. When 14-month old Roland Lian Cung Bawi’s heart was failing him, his surgeon Erle Austin knew that he had to prepare meticulously for an intricate operation. Initially he consulted other surgeons, but this yielded conflicting advice. So Austin turned to 3D printing for help.

Using the facilities at the University of Louisville’s engineering school, Austin and his medical team produced a three dimensional model of little Ronald’s heart. Pediatric operations are difficult because the interior structures of a child’s organs are small and hard to see clearly. This model allowed the surgical team to come up with a precise plan to limit the amount of exploratory incisions, reduce operating time and prevent the need for follow-up operations.

… yeah, I don’t really know why I made this, either.

Frog legs dance when salt is sprinkled on them

A frog’s muscles do not succumb to rigor mortis as quickly as most warm-blooded animals which makes it possible for the muscles to move post-mortem if energy is applied to them some how. This can be done either by cooking (heat/energy) or by salting (ions). Salt,also known as NaCl, can work like electricity because it is made up of ions (Sodium and Chlorine to be exact) and ions carry an electrical charge. In living animals, sodium delivers a signal to cause muscles to contract.

The frog legs in the video are fresh so energy (ATP) is still stored in the cells. When the electrical impulse is applied, the legs contract even though the frog is dead! Of course this doesn’t apply to only frog legs!

Gif source