Fun Fact 2: What are the main parts of a Skeleton? The human skeleton has two main parts the axial skeleton and the appendicular skeleton:
Fun Fact 3: The axial skeleton is the bones that make up the main body area. The axial skeleton is composed of 80 bones and includes the head, backbone and ribs; it protects the body's most important organs, the brain, heart, lungs and spinal cord
Fun Fact 4: The appendicular skeleton is the bones that make up the attaching limbs. The appendicular skeleton is composed of 126 bones including the pelvis, shoulders, arms and legs
Fun Fact 5: When bones come together they form a joint, this allows movement and flexibility. The names of joints include ball and socket, hinge, pivot and a saddle joint. The saddle joint is only found in the hands
Fun Fact 6: How many different types of human bone are there? The human skeleton is made up of five different types of bone: long, short, flat, irregular and sesamoid
Fun Fact 7: Examples of different types of bone; long - Humerus (arm) and Tibia (lower leg), Short - Carpals (hand) and Tarsals (foot), Flat - Scapula (shoulder blade) and Cranium (skull), Irregular - Vertebrae (spine) and Mandible (lower jaw), Sesamoid - bones that are usually short or irregular bones and imbedded in a tendon, a good example is the Patella (knee cap)
Fun Fact 8: What are bones made of? Bones are made of mineral salts, calcium, proteins, water and tissues - the tissues can be one of two types compact or cancellous
Fun Fact 9: Bones made with compact tissues are smooth and solid and cylindrical
Fun Fact 10: Bones made with cancellous tissues are also known as spongy bones, the internal structure is similar to honeycomb
Fun Fact 11: Bones are covered with a thin layer of blood vessels and nerves, some bigger bones contain a sticky fatty substance called bone marrow
Fun Fact 12: Bone marrow is the substance that produces blood cells; bone marrow can be found inside bones such as the femur, ribs, shoulders and skull
Fun Fact 13: Weight for weight bone is stronger than steel, in fact a steel bar measuring the same dimensions as a bone would weigh around four times heavier!
Fun Fact 14: A baby's skeleton is mainly made up of a bendy flexible tissue called cartilage, as the baby develops and grows the cartilage develops into hard bone
Fun Fact 15: The funny bone is not a bone it is a nerve! The ulnar nerve is situated inside your elbow, if it gets knocked it can cause a strange sensation, hence it's name - the funny bone |
