Find-Your-Own Animation: Action Potentials
We learned about action potentials and resting membrane potentials in class on Thursday. Find a (previously unmentioned) animation online, provide the link, and describe why it is an animation that did or did not help you learn the material for Thursday's exam.
36 comments:
http://outreach.mcb.harvard.edu/animations/actionpotential.swf
I found the animation at this website very helpful because it gave a very broad overview of what a neuron does, and how it travels to the brain. The animation then went into further detail about what an action potential is and what it does. The animation is also very interactive and asks you to place ions where they belong. I also found it very helpful that the animation goes over resting potential, depolarization, and repolarization. It makes it much easier to understand, and the animation provides a very good visual of what is happening. I would definitely reccommend checking out this animation if you are having trouble understanding action potential.
http://bcs.whfreeman.com/thelifewire/content/chp44/4402002.html
This animation that I found was really helpful for me to understand the concept of the action potential. The stage of the action potential was divided into different phases so that I could see which ions move in and out from the channels. Also, the conclusion part organized the explanations shown in the animations. This website would be a good source to review about the action potential.
http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/matthews/channel.html
This animation is a big help in learning material for Thursday's exam. Not only does it illustrate the opening of channels during an action potential, but it allows the viewer to control when the next phase will begin. I like to try to figure out what will happen next, and then push the button to see if I am correct. It is also helpful that the animation is colorful, providing little room for confusion.
http://bcs.whfreeman.com/thelifewire/content/chp44/4402002.html
I found this AP animation online. It is helpful because it shows the different stages of AP; resting potential, threshold, the rising phase, falling phase and recovery phase.
Resting potential: when subset of k+ are open. There is equilibrium. When one potassium leaves another enters. When it is depolarizing NA+ channels open allowing NA+ enter. Since there is more positive ion charge inside, there is a threshold.
When it reaches threshold, more NA+ channels open which causes more positive ions to go inside. It then becomes positive.
When it reaches its maximum threshold during AP, K+ channels close and NA+ open. When this occurs more positive ions leave the cells which will lead to a falling phase towards resting potential.
Then the membrane potential falls below resting potential. This is when re polarizing occurs. It is caused because there are more potassium than the resting stage. After the potassium leaves the cell, it is back to to resting stage.
This is what I have learned from this animation. It helps refresh my mind of the lecture that was given in class. By going over AP material again, it will help me remember the steps of AP during the exam.
Action potentials! Here is the link:
http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/olc/dl/120107/bio_d.swf
This animation is incredibly useful to understand what an action potential truly is. It goes from the main broad picture from the "outside" perception of an action potential and then proceeds to break an action potential down. Also, at the bottom of the animation is a text box with information as well as a guided voice telling and showing you exactly what is happening.
This animation shows the stages of an action potential as it moves from areas of high concentration to areas of low concentration. It demonstrates how at first, the cell is negative on the inside and positive on the outside. It proceeds to animate the polarized cell into a depolarization state and then a re-polarization followed by a refractory period with more in depth discussions of each process.
I hope this image helps others while studying!
http://www.tvdsb.on.ca/westmin/science/sbioac/homeo/action.htm
I found this animation via google, and it helps me understand action potentials better. It not only explains the material with the terms, but the animation stops at key points to help explain everything. I definitely recommend this animation to understand the action potentials.
I found this animation which looks really helpful to me. It explains what is going on step-by-step in sentences and animation at the same time. It also shows how the action potential graph looks like when it depolarizes, repolarizes, and returns to the resting point. It would be better if the website labels the ions and channel names; otherwise, this links is helpful to study for the midterm.
http://www.mind.ilstu.edu/curriculum/neurons_intro/flash_action_potential.php?modGUI=232&compGUI=1827&itemGUI=3156
http://scienceblogs.com/clock/2007/02/physiology_regulation_and_cont.php
This animation about action potential and resting potential really helped me understand more what was going on. I found it extremely helpful that the picture moved showing when the sodium ions would go out and potassium ions would enter. It also has a brief explanation of what is going on in the picture explaining when there would be a resting state, depolarization, repolarization, etc. This allowed me to correlate action potential and resting potential. Also, at the beginning of the website there are pictures of a neruon. This refreshed my memory of what the action potential and resting potential is related to and also it helped me to know what parts are on the neuron.
http://www.biology4all.com/resources_library/source/63.swf
This is an okay animation. The animation is almost like a slide, you would have to click on play a few times to get to the action potential part of it. Good qualities of this animation, is that it shows different stages of the action potential, from the resting potential, depolarization, and repolarization. It shows a good view of how the pump works, however it doesn't show that three ions of Na leaves and two ions of K are brought in. There is a slight description in the corner explaining why the inside is more negative than the outside, but the animation doesn't clearly show it. The animation also does a good job of describing the pump and channels. It explains what a voltage-gated channels do and how it does it.
Action/Resting potential animation link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYnvt8biXX0
This animation from youtube.com provided a good explanation of action potentials. The video also gives an outlook on resting potentials and the depolarization/ repolarization of cells. I thought the video was easy to understand because the speaker uses simply words to describe the process. I hope the video with help me remember when a cell is polarized and when it is depolarized. I think this information will help me comprehend what the charge is inside and outside of the cell at given points. The only downfall to the video is it isn't very engaging.
http://intro.bio.umb.edu/111-112/112s99Lect/neuro_anims/a_p_anim1/WW1.htm
This animation was helpful to me because it showed the speed of the electrical current that occurs due to the action potential. Because it shows how fast this happens, it is not very helpful in breaking down step by step the transfer of the potassium and sodium. The link at the top of the website actually breaks it down into still images that are all color coordinated. Beside these pictures is a little summary of what is going on. This step by step lay out was what has helped me learn action potential. I think this link is helpful for those who learn by pictures and those that learn by directions.
http://www.edumedia-sciences.com/a488_l2-action-potential.html
I found this animation at this website useful in explaining action potential. Not only does it provide a clearly labeled animation, but it also gives other helpful information about the process. I would highly recommend this animation because it gives a great visual and other information about the action potential.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=SCasruJT-DU&feature=related
This animation was very helpful by simplifying the steps of an action potential. The picture they show starts off broad then specifically talks about what happens during a action potential. Since I learn best with visuals, this video helped me better understand the process of an action potential. This video does not cram extra information but rather highlights the important steps. I like how they stop after each step and explain what is going on. It makes it a lot easier to follow.
The information on this website is in a quite different format than the other youtube links provided. This link goes into more detail in describing the name of each factor being initiated throughout the entire action potential series. I found it rather intersting because I never knew how complex the entire process was and it amazes me how our bodies can do so many complex processes all at once. The whole concept of polarization and action pontential is quite confusing to me, but this link helps me to better understnad the different steps of an action potential.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70DyJwwFnkU
http://outreach.mcb.harvard.edu/animations/actionpotential.swf
This animation was excellent for a fundamental understanding of action potentials and its purpose in the human body. The animation breaks down the process of generating action potentials and the resting potential in clear, decorative, and informative animations that though like Ms. Williams' animation, had more detail and an explanation to aid the understanding the of animation. Likewise, the animation is broken into navigatable steps of introduction, resting potential, depolarization, repolarization, return to resting potential, summary of action potential, and zoom out in order. It also includes a level of interactivity that asks for tasks such as the closing of the correct channels for depolarization and so forth.
http://www.mrothery.co.uk/images/nerveimpulse.swf
I found this animation very helpful because it gives a step by step description of what is happening during the action potential. It shows the ions moving around and then causing a sllight positive charge. Then it also shows the ion channels opening. I think the amount of detail that this animation describes exactly what we have been learning in class. Furthermore, I like that this animation also draws out the action potential graph as well. This helps students visualize the processes of the action potential and relate it to the graph at the same time. This animation would be very helpful in studying for the midterm.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iA-Gdkje6pg
I found this animation on youtube and it appears to have been made by possibly our professor(?) and some of our TAs(?) and a few other students.
It explains the process very well and goes into great detail of how the pumps work, as well as a few of the channels.
Though it does not go into great detail about the voltage gated channels, it is very helpful to understand how the leaky channel and the pump works.
It does help me prepare for the exam as do the many other links posted here.
I just hoped there was a bit more information about both voltage gated channels as well as the sequence and cycle, but it is still a very good animation and narration.
I found this animation on the Psychology Department Website from the University of Alberta. This animation was not as helpful since the animation didn't quite show a domino effect. It shows all the sodium moving at once and all the potassium moving at once. Whereas we're told that the voltage opens one channel and then another, that's what I mean by the domino effect. However, the one thing that was helpful was the graph on the left hand corner, putting both the graph and animation illustrates the action potential more clear. Before I wasn't quite sure what the graph's purpose was but if you follow the graph and imagine the action potential taking place, then the graph makes a lot of sense.
Here's the link: http://www.psych.ualberta.ca/~ITL/ap/ap.swf
This animation helped me for Thursday's exam. It explained step by step what happens with the voltage in relation to the flow of Na+ and K+ and the opening and closing of channels. The process is explained by a narrator which helps. The narrator also asks questions along the way to see if you understand what is going on in the animation.
Personally, this youtube video was one of the best animations I have seen for action potentials:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCasruJT-DU
This is a great video because it goes through all aspects of action potentials. The video starts with the nerve cell and how it is broken down into parts and then proceeds to explain the exact process by which a nerve cell transfers potential. Covers the sodium potassium pump, the various gates, et al.
http://lessons.harveyproject.org/development/nervous_system/cell_neuro/action_potential/propagation.html
This link did not help me at all because it just shows how an electrical charge during action potential would move across the axon. It did not mention any specifics or details of the process, such as the pumps, channels, and which ions are present inside and outside of the membrane. None of the processes of when and where ions move in and out of the channels and pumps. There are no helpful pictures or detailed animations of depolarization and repolarization. Overall, this is not an animation that I would recommend for study aid because it is too simple for the amount of detail and depth that our class is studying.
This is Christina Oh, by the way.
This animation was definitely very helpful for me to learn the material for Thursday’s exam.
The link is:
http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0072943696/student_view0/chapter8/animation__voltage-gated_channels_and_the_action_potential__quiz_2_.html
It thoroughly went over how the voltage gated-sodium ion (Na+) channels and the voltage – gated potassium ion (K+) channels function. It also discussed the main points about Depolarization, such as it occurs because more sodium ions diffuse into the cell than potassium ions (K+) diffuse out of it. This Animation was beneficial because I got to see the actual channels and the pink dots or pink channels that represented Sodium (Na+), and the purple dots or purple channels that represented Potassium (K+). The animation broke down each step for the entire process and I got to see how the ions moved through the channels and understood the reason for why things occurred.
http://video.search.yahoo.com/video/play?p=action+potential&n=21&ei=utf-8&js=1&fr=yfp-t-501&fr2=tab-web&tnr=20&vid=1083258607
I found a great action potential video that seems to have been made by a faculty member from the University of Minnesota for the Department of Neuroscience. Although the animation and the characters look very cheesy, the explanations they give are VERY easy to understand. They provide each step within the action potential in ways that are easy to comprehend. They even provide a glossary at the end in case there was any confusion. This video really helped me to study the action potential because it placed each step in order whereas before I had some confusion over which channels opened/closed and other such details. I love how they used different voices for each of the different "characters" involved such as the neuron, potassium ions, etc. I also really liked how they clearly explained each role of the different parts within the action potential.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=OInb8uxzGXQ
I found this animation on youtube and I found it extremely useful because it helped me get a sense of where these action potentials are occurring and how to visualize them in a 3D sense instead of the 2D drawings that are provided. Even though this clip does not clearly label which ions are moving in and out of the cell membrane it does help you see ions as electrical charges that all work together to help the heart beat.
I looked through the websites of some other students and found them very helpful, I don't think this animation was meant to teach you about action potentials in the heart but it was good to view after learning about it in class.
-Priscilla
http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/matthews/channel.html
The animation found on this website gave me a break down of each individual step taken during the cell action potential. I found this site very interesting and helpful, because it allows the viewer to see each step at his/her own pace. Similarly to the animation shown in class, this website shows the opening and closing of the voltage gate channels; both sodium and potassium. Through animated and color coded markers, you can see the potassium entering the cell and the sodium leaving the cell. Because the figure allows you to continue to each step at your own pace, it is easy to test yourself and try and figure out what will happen next.
http://cas.bellarmine.edu/tietjen/Laboratories/Bio%20Pix%204%20U/Bio%20Pix.htm
If you go this website, and scroll down to the very bottom of the page, you will be able to find animations for "sodium-potassium pump," "action potential animation," and "sodium flow & action potential animation."
You nee to right click them to download FIRST.
These clips were very helpful because they showed how sodium ions and potassium ions are moved outside and how ATP comes into use when these "pumps" are in action.
Also, the animation of "action potential animation" showed in what part of EKG do the Sodium gated channels and potassium gated channels open.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6890770586678681705&q=action+potential&ei=QTYOSNjxEJny4QLtppSvBA
The animation I found was somewhat helpful, but there are several things I did not like. To begin the video progressed very slowly, which really allowed me to understand the steps and see things go at a slower pace. I had to look really hard at the ions to tell which were K+ or Na+, because the video was dark. Also, I would like it if it showed the Action potential in a diagram that showed the 5 stages clearly. Also, another thing that would help would be if there was a clearer picture of where the pumps and voltage channels are. Overall, this animation is not very helpful to use to study for the exam.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqVeH26i7Kg
Here is a video that shows the action potential and muscle contraction. I found this animation to be a very useful and helpful visual for me to understand the concept of the action potential. The best way I understood it was to watch the video and look over my notes at the same time. Since there is no one explaining the images that are displayed you would have to know what the steps are to understand what is happening in the video. I would reccomend watching this video if you already somewhat have an understanding of action potential, and in order to further understand it, watch the video. But, if you are having trouble understanding it, this might not be the best video considering there is no one explaining anything that is on the video. Overall it has great picture and it is very detailed!
The full animation is also here :
http://www.tvermilye.com/pmwiki/pmwiki.php?n=Animation.Video12
http://www.3rbdr.com/video/118.html
This animation is helpful in the sense that it provides each step of the synapse from the presynaptic neuron to the postsynaptic neuron. However, this animation didn't really follow the action potential all the way through. The animation simply starts in the end terminal, and the synapse, then finally the neurotransmitters activating the postsynaptic neuron.
This animation lacked information on how Na and K pumps work, or how voltage-gated channels and leaky channels play a large role in an action potential.
http://www.lifesci.ucsb.edu/~mcdougal/neurobehavior/modules_homework/lect3.dcr
I think this website is good because it shows how the action potential happens not only on the membrane level, but show us how the signal transmitted from cell through axon. It also provides us the animation of how the depolarization occurs. It contains small box with words that explains to us, which is clear and helpful. However, the anmation is different from the picture we see in the class, since this animation shows all the pumps and channels on the axon, and this let us know how the action potential is transmitted through cell.
www.unm.edu/.../actionpotential.html
I recommend this picture image/animation of the Action Potential. It shows a specific and descriptive/close look at the process of Action potential. It also gives a detailed descriptions of the procedures. It shows the clear sequence of opening of Na+ and K+ voltage channels. It is a good way to memorize and remember the clear process of the Action Potential and I recommend it to others if someone needs to look at this process in colorful details.
http://trc.ucdavis.edu/biosci10v/bis10v/media/ch25/action_potential_v2.html
I found this animation to be really helpful. Not only does it go through an action potential step by step, it also enforces the explanation with a chart to describe the threshold that correlates to the step. I hope it helps.
http://www.biology.ualberta.ca/facilities/multimedia/uploads/cell_biology/NERVE.html
I found this website very helpful and engaging. After watching this animation I was really able to fully understand what is occurring in the inside and outside of a neuron during resting potential, depolarization, repolarization, and the overshooting stage. The animation was very helpful because there was a start and stop button which allowed me examine each step at my own speed. Also, the color coded sodium, potassium and calcium really made it easy to track the movement of the different ions going into and out of the cell. I would recommend this animation to anyone who needs a little clarification on the process or just would like a little refresher right before a test!
http://bcs.whfreeman.com/thelifewire/content/chp44/4402002.html
This animation was very helpful in actually seeing how the action potential works. The narration was also very helpful, and I liked that you were able to move the animations faster or slower. the picture was more along the line of what was learned about during class. Most of the animations I found for action potential acutally showed the lipid bilayer of the cell membrane, but the animation on this site was easily correlated with the EKG display. At first I did not completely understand how what hyperpolarization looked like on the EKG, but after listening to the narrator and viewing the animation I had a better understanding of the materials.
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