studying urinary system

When we began Anatomy and Physiology at the beginning of the semester, Dr Johnson started us out on the nervous system. She said she wanted to begin with the hardest section first, so that we wouldn't have to deal with it later on when we are worn out from the school year. She also mentioned that everything else would be easier as we approach the end of the semester. I guess she is right about the material being easier, however although the digestive, urinary, respiratory, and male and female reproductive systems are easier to understand than the nervous system, that is a lot of material to memorize at once, and it's still not easy, just easier! So, please bear with me as I go over a simplified version of the urinary system.

The components of the urinary system include: kidneys which produce urine, ureters which transports urine from the kidneys to the urinary bladder, the urinary bladder which stores urine prior to elimination, and a urethra which conducts urine to the exterior of the body. The functions of the urinary are to filter the blood and make urine, removal of organic waste products from body fluids, discharge of waste products, regulation of blood volume, pressure, PH, and conserving nutrients, and production of erythropieton which plays a role in red blood cell synthesis. will skip the many, many parts of the kidney as it would take more than one blog to list and explain it all.

The process of urine formation is filtration, re-absorption, and secretion. Filtration is pressure driven; blood pressure drives water and solutes from glomerulus (part of kidney) into capsular space. Re-absorption removes water and solutes from the filtrate into the tubular epithelium and into peritubular fluid. Secretion transports solutes from the peritubular fluid, across the tubular epithelium, and into the filtrate. There is much more to that, but it is confusing me, and I am supposed to know it, so I won't include it here.

This class consists of two portions for each unit we go over. We have class every Tuesday and Thursday from 6pm to about 8pm. In the classroom we go over the lab portion, which consists of identification of structures on plastic models, microscope slides, and a poor little dissected cat. The lecture portion that goes over the physiology (how it all works) on line. She provides us with narrations, a slide show, and a study guide. There are around 50-70 slides for most sections, and if you don't study every little detail, and read, and then re-read the book, you are going to miss questions on the exam. It is a very interesting class though, I would enjoy learning this material even if it wasn't required. The American econ system on the other hand seems like it should be an easy class, but it is giving me more difficulty than anything. I read, and re-read the chapters; it seems like the homework questions asked aren't even in the book. Then if I manage to survive the homework questions, the quizzes and tests are designed to confuse students as well. It is my belief that a class should be designed to teach, not to confuse. If a person really puts forth an effort to succeed in a class, there should be no problem. The design of this economy class seriously needs to be re-thought.