Harvard Human Anatomy - Bones

Skeleton

The body part that forms the supporting structure of an organism.

Appendicular skeleton

Composed of 126 bones in the human body, this division of the human skeleton includes the bones of the upper and lower limbs.

Axial skeleton

The portion of the human skeleton that consists of the bones of the head and the trunk.

Appendicular lower limbs

Includes the hipbone (fused ilium, ischium & pubis), lower limb girdle, thigh (femur), knee (patella), crus and ankle (tibia & fibula), proximal foot, and distal foot (tarsals, metatarsals, phalanges).

Appendicular upper limbs

Includes the upper limb girdle (clavicle & scapula), arm (brachium & humerus), forearm (antebrachium, incl. raidus & ulna), wrist, and hand (carpals,metacarpals, phalanges).

Compressive stress

Force directed toward an object.

Tensile stress

Force directed away from an object.

Combination of tensile and compressive stress

Also called shear or bending stress.

Endoskeleton

The internal support structure of an animal, composed of mineralized tissue.

Exoskeleton

External structures found in many invertebrates, enclosing and protecting soft tissues and organs.

Failure

Occurs when the force applied to a material exceeds its strength.

Resilience

The capacity of a material to recover its original shape after deformation.