Unique Features for Teaching and Learning
A combination of unique features make the DVD Atlas tapes different from all other anatomical teaching tools.
A truly three-dimensional look at anatomy.
When the video image is recorded the specimen is made to rotate from time to time, either on a horizontal or a vertical axis. As you watch, the fact that the specimen rotates lets you to see the structure that's being shown as a fully three-dimensional object. How this works. View video clip to experience the impact of this powerful imaging technique.
Fresh human specimens in their natural colors.
The DVD Atlas images are direct video recordings of real human anatomic specimens. The cadavers used have not been stiffened or discolored by embalming: their tissues retain the color, texture and mobility of the living body. Bone specimens are real human bones. Besides showing the structure of the human body in its natural beauty, the DVD Atlas shows moving structures making the same movements that they make in life.
Exquisite dissections.
The dissections are done by skilled clinical anatomists, using the finest surgical and even microsurgical techniques. Studio lighting accentuates the shape and definition of the structures. A black background enhances their outline.
Clear narration, on-screen titles.
A concise narration runs through the program, using the simplest possible language. The words you hear correspond exactly with what you see on the screen. The names of stuctures, when seen for the first time, appear as onscreen titles as a learning reinforcement.
Building complex stuctures step by step.
The DVD Atlas starts with the foundation. For example with the musculoskeletal system the bones are shown first, then joints and their movements, then the muscles, and then the blood vessels and nerves. This is the reverse of the order that is seen in dissection, where the foundation is not understood until the end.
Review sections.
Throughout each program there are brief review sections that let you test yourself on what you have seen in the preceding 10 - 15 minutes.
Navigation (DVDs)
Each DVD has a comprehensive index and a detailed table of contents that are accessed either by using the native menu command of the DVD player, or by clicking on the on-screen Menu and Index buttons. The index shows an alphabetic listing of each structure shown on the DVD, often indicating choices when multiple views are available. The table of contents breaks the program down into sections and subsections. Clicking on any of these starts the program playing at the start of that section or subsection.
The navigation features of the DVDs work in the same way, whether on a computer with a DVD drive, or on a set-top player. Each DVD is self-contained: there's no accompanying software to load.
Navigation (Web version)
The web version can be navigated either via the table of contents, or the index. The table of contents shows each volume subdivided into short segments. For details of the structures shown in a segment, bring the cursor over the name of the segment: the information appears in a side box.
When working from the index, the index appears on the left of the screen, the table of contents on the right. Clicking on an index item makes the table of contents scroll down to the segment in which the index item is shown, with that segment highlighted. To see it, click on the segment in the table of contents. For many structures there are multiple options in the index, with sub-entries that indicate how these differ. See these easy-to-use features. For more information about the web version.
Navigation (Tapes)
In the top left corner of the image a constantly visible running time number counts the minutes and seconds from the start of the tape. This enables you to navigate, using the index booklet that comes with each tape. The booklet contains a detailed table of contents and a comprehensive index, as for a textbook but with time number references. At the start of each tape there is a time signal that lets you set your tape player's time counter to zero, so that you can navigate accurately.
