Posted by For my STEAM project, I wasn’t too sure what to create (as I’m not quite a creative person), but I decided to relate it to the topic of a neuron and an action potential. Although a neuron’s appearance looks simple, their involvement with action potentials is very significant, as they send instructions/information throughout the body and brain. For my STEAM project, I chose to make a giant cardboard neuron that I painted and labeled.
Some Background Info to make up for the simplicity of my project:
Neurons communicate information via electrochemical impulses (aka action potentials), which are temporary shifts in the neuron membrane potential caused by sudden inward/outward flow of ions in the neuron. A stimulus will cause sodium channels to open, which allows for Na+ to leave, and cause the neuron to become more positive (depolarization). K+ channels take longer, but when they open the repolarization happens, which causes the neuron to go towards the original -70mV. Afterward, Hyperpolarization occurs because the K+ remains open for a bit longer, going past the resting -70mV, but eventually goes back to the resting levels.
