Topics
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Lessons from a Fighter Pilot
I’m always interested in learning how others think and frame what they do. Increasingly I feel that the internal dialogue and frameworks we cultivate have a disproportionate effect on how we conduct ourselves in work and life. Hasard Lee is a US Air Force fighter pilot who has flown over 80 combat missions in Afghanistan,…
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5. Gas Exchange
Subheadings– Oxygen transport and storage– Oxygen consumption and delivery– Oxyhaemoglobin dissociation curve– Hypoxia– Carbon dioxide Oxygen transport and storage The transport of oxygen flows along a cascade of pressure, from a higher pressure source (atmosphere, 21 kPa) to a lower pressure destination (mitochondria, <5 kPa). At each stage in this cascade there is a subsequent…
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4. Ventilation and Perfusion
Subheadings:– Ventilation-perfusion (V/Q) relationship– Dead space– Shunt– Pulmonary circulation Ventilation Perfusion (V/Q) relationship Ventilation (V) refers to the movement of air into an alveolar space, whilst perfusion (Q) is the flow of blood to an alveolar space. Ventilation and perfusion are two partners of a relationship that is required for gas exchange. There are numerous…