Related topics: fossil
Skeleton
hideIn biology, a skeleton is a rigid framework that provides protection and structure in many types of animal, particularly those of the phylum Chordata and of the superphylum Ecdysozoa. Exoskeletons are external, as is typical of many invertebrates; they enclose the soft tissues and organs of the body. Exoskeletons may undergo periodic moulting as the animal grows. Endoskeletons are internal, as is typical of many vertebrates; they are usually surrounded by skin and musculature, though they often enclose vital organs. Endoskeletons are attachment points for musculature and act as leverage for movement, and in many animals contain marrow, which produces blood cells. Skeletons may or may not be mineralized - human skeletons are calcified, while shark skeletons are cartilaginous - and may be jointed for flexibility and motility or rigid for structural strength.
The average adult human skeleton has around 206 bones. These bones meet at joints, the majority of which are freely movable. The skeleton also contains cartilage for elasticity. Ligaments are strong strips of fibrous connective tissue that hold bones together at joints, thereby stabilizing the skeleton during movement.
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News tagged with skeleton
World's first skeletal mount of Paluxysaurus jonesi reveals new biology
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Dec 15, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The Early Cretaceous sauropod Paluxysaurus jonesi weighed 20 tons, was 60 feet long and had a neck 26 feet long, according to scientists who prepared the world's first full skeletal mount ...
Ancient Pacific islanders brought to light
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Dec 21, 2009 |
4.6 / 5 (5) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A find of 60 headless skeletons summer 2009 may reveal the identity of the people who first inhabited the Pacific Ocean archipelago Vanuatu 3000 years ago.
Early carnivorous dinosaurs crossed continents
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Dec 10, 2009 |
4.5 / 5 (4) |
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Did the first dinosaurs wander across continents or stay put where they first evolved? The first dinosaurs evolved 230 million years ago when the continents were assembled into one landmass called Pangea. ...
U of A students reaffirm the work of a 1920s paleontologist
Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils
Dec 14, 2009 |
4.5 / 5 (2) |
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Three University of Alberta paleontology graduate students blew the dust off an 85-year-old dinosaur find to discover the original researcher had it right and a 1970s revision of his work was wrong.
Science's breakthrough of the year: Uncovering 'Ardi'
Dec 17, 2009 |
2.3 / 5 (3) |
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The research that brought to light the fossils of Ardipithecus ramidus, a hominid species that lived 4.4 million years ago in what is now Ethiopia, has topped Science's list of this year's most significant s ...
