Meaning of regular muscle-prism | Babel Free

Definitions

A simplified, geometric block representing a bundle of parallel muscle fibers; an old teaching model used for explaining tension, cross-sections, and electrical properties of muscle.

Examples

“Taking a regularly shaped muscle in which the fibres are parallel, we will cut⟳ out a part of this by making two even cuts at right angles to the direction of the fibres. A piece of this sort⟳ may be called a regular muscle-prism. It is, according to the shape⟳ of the muscle used, either circular or more oval, or flat and band-like ... all the muscle-fibres are parallel to each other, [and] the two cuts are made at right angles to the direction of the fibres.”

“... and a muscle of regular shape⟳, in which the fibers are parallel, is selected. The ends are cut⟳ off by clean⟳ vertical cuts, and the resulting piece of muscle is called a regular muscle prism.”

“When the muscle is at rest⟳ the contents of the muscle prism will be in equilibrium with the surrounding sarcoplasm ... pressure in the muscle prism rises and causes a bulging of its lateral wall and a shortening of the whole element.”

CEFR level