This project makes possible the incorporation of more physiology into traditionally anatomy-based biological sciences laboratories in order to more effectively tie in laboratory with lectures in human anatomy and physiology. Additional physiology is imperative in order to prepare future health care workers or future scientists as relates to the assessment and management of real-life situations concerning the recovery of and maintenance of homeostasis. This can be accomplished through the use of computers and two types of computer software package. Quantitative Circulatory Physiology (QCP) is a computer that allows students to challenge people's homeostatic capabilities through the application of various stressors such as trauma, exercise, or environmental changes and noting the body's responses through changes in various cardiovascular, respiratory, and endocrine parameters. Physiological data acquisition can also be accomplished by combining computer software components with traditional lab equipment. This setup allows students to see themselves as models to determine the effects of exercise, various drugs, etc., on their cardiovascular, respiratory, and muscular systems. Ideally, this computer-supplemented laboratory allows the student to exit a biology course with a much better understanding of how living organisms interact with their environment.
