Name:________________________
Dissect a Cow Eyeball on the World Wide Web!
Today we are going to learn how eyes work and do an on-line dissection of
a cow eyeball. We'll start by learning about the parts of an eyeball. Go to the American
Academy of Ophthalmology.
Go to the Anatomy of the Eye and look at the different parts of the eye. Answer the following
questions. If you can't find all of the answers, go to How the Eye Works for more
information.
What part senses light and sends impulses to the brain through the optic nerve?
_________________
What part is the clear front window of the eye? ___________________
What is the protective outer "white part" of the eye? ____________________
What is clear, jelly-like stuff that fills the middle of the eye? __________________
What is the colored part of the eye? _______________________
Next, go to the the Cow's Eye Dissection. Download the Cow's Eye Primer and try it.
After that, do Step-By-Step: Dissecting a Cow's Eye. Put the following steps in the
correct order by placing 1, 2, 3, ... in front of each.
___ Use a finger to pull out the iris.
___ Look through the lens.
___ Cut slits around the lens in the sclera.
___ Turn the eye inside out.
___ Find the optic nerve and look at the separate fibers.
___ Find the spot where the retina is attached.
___ Remove the lens.
___ Make an incision where the sclera meets the cornea.
___ Cut around the cornea, but don't cut the lens.
___ Put the cornea down and cut it.
___ Find the blind spot, where the retina's nerves collect.
After seeing the steps of the dissection, see how Walton Primary School did their own
dissection.
Now, label the parts of the eye:
Next, see how the optic nerve makes a blind spot in your eye. Go to Blind Spots and try
it.
If you have time left over, you can see how different animals have different eyes. See how
things look through the Eyes of a Bee. If you still have time left over, for more dissecting,
go and Dissect a Frog.