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Visiting academic Dr Lizzie Burns received an outreach grant from The Physiological Society to create a novel set of engaging drawings for adult colouring-in to learn about our remarkable human body. Dr Burns has collaborated with members of The Society, including DPAG's Heidi de Wet, Peter Robbins, Keith Dorrington and Andrew King, to illustrate a wide range of physiological topics.

Drawings of the human head (showing the brain and sound waves coming from the ear), lung aveoli, and the human digestive system.
Amazing Body projects Listen, Beautiful Lungs and Digestive System

The new collection of drawings inspired by physiology explore how our body works. Understanding the body highlights the changes with disease and brings hope for new medicines and treatments for the future. Physiologists often add dyes in their work to reveal structures inside the body. These drawings encourage members of the public to add their own unique colours and get creative while learning about the human body. Physiological topics cover the brain, the heart, the lungs and the digestive system, with three of the entries in collaboration with DPAG academics.

Pencil drawing of female head and ear with sound waves depicted as swirls or multiple circles within circles around the head.© Left ear - Dr Burns & Prof King

Amazing Body: Listen

"Your body is a astonishing. For a moment just listen. We hear so much around us. We need both ears to help give our brain information as to where sound is coming from. We cannot see sound but here imagine sound as ripples, sound waves travelling through the air."

Collaboration: Dr Lizzie Burns with Professor Andrew King

  

Pencil drawing of alveoli - tiny honey-comb structures where red blood cells pick up oxygen to carry around our body.© Alveoli - Dr Burns, Prof Robbins & Prof Dorrington

Amazing Body: Beautiful Lungs

"We take oxygen in from the air we breathe and excrete carbon dioxide. This exchange of gases takes place within lungs which resemble branched trees."

Collaboration: Dr Lizzie Burns with Professor Peter Robbins and Professor Keith Dorrington.

Pencil drawing of the small intestine at a microscopic scale. In the small intestine tiny ‘finger’ like projections help to increase the area for your body to absorb digested molecules.© Intestine cross section - Dr Burns & Prof de Wet

Amazing Body: Digestive System

"We need food to grow and maintain our busy active body. We interact with the world in a vital way through eating. Through eating a variety of food we ingest many molecules which are broken down (digested) through acids in the stomach."

Collaboration: Dr Lizzie Burns with Professor Heidi de Wet.

 

Science brings hope and appreciation as to how astonishing our body is. I hope this collection will bring you delight, joy and comfort in learning about yourself while unleashing your creativity. - Dr Lizzie Burns

Download the Amazing Body colouring book for the full set of drawings.

Read more about Amazing Body on The Physiological Society website.

Access more outreach from Dr Lizzie Burns on YouTube.

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