This presentation describes various aspects of the regulation of tissue oxygenation, including the roles of the circulatory system, respiratory system, and blood, the carrier of oxygen within these components of the cardiorespiratory system. The respiratory system takes oxygen from the atmosphere and transports it by diffusion from the air in the alveoli to the blood flowing through the pulmonary capillaries. The cardiovascular system then moves the oxygenated blood from the heart to the microcirculation of the various organs by convection, where oxygen is released from hemoglobin in the red blood cells and moves to the parenchymal cells of each tissue by diffusion. Oxygen that has diffused into cells is then utilized in the mitochondria to produce adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the energy currency of all cells. The mitochondria are able to produce ATP until the oxygen tension or PO2 on the cell surface falls to a critical level of about 4–5 mm Hg. Thus, in order to meet the energetic needs of cells, it is important to maintain a continuous supply of oxygen to the mitochondria at or above the critical PO2 . In order to accomplish this desired outcome, the cardiorespiratory system, including the blood, must be capable of regulation to ensure survival of all tissues under a wide range of circumstances. The purpose of this presentation is to provide basic information about the operation and regulation of the cardiovascular and respiratory systems, as well as the properties of the blood and parenchymal cells, so that a fundamental understanding of the regulation of tissue oxygenation is achieved.

Research centering on blood flow in the heart continues to hold an important position, especially since a better understanding of the subject may help reduce the incidence of coronary arterial disease and heart attacks. This book summarizes recent advances in the field; it is the product of fruitful cooperation among international scientists who met in Japan in May, 1990 to discuss the regulation of coronary blood flow.

Long ago we humans used a form of communication and sensing that did not involve the brain in any way; rather, it came from a sacred place within our hearts. What good would it do to find this place again? This is a book of remembering. You have always had this place within your heart, and it is still there now. It existed before creation, and it will exist even after the last star shines its brilliant light. At night when you enter your dreams, you leave your mind and enter the sacred space of your heart. But do you remember? Or do you only remember the dream? Why am I telling you about this "something" that is fading from our memories? What good would it do to find this place again in a world where the greatest religion is science and the logic of the mind? Don't I know where emotions and feelings are second-class citizens? Yes, I do. But my teachers have asked me to remind you who you really are. You are more than just a human being, much more. For within your heart is a place, a sacred place, where the world can literally be remade through conscious cocreation. If you really want peace of spirit and if you want to return home, I invite you into the beauty of your own heart. With your permission, I will show you what has been shown to me. I will give you the exact instructions to the pathway into your heart where you and God are intimately one. It is your choice. But I must warn you: Within this experience resides great responsibility. Life knows when a spirit is born to the higher worlds, and life will use you as all the great masters who have ever lived have been used. If you read this book and do the meditation and then expect nothing to change in your life, you may get caught spiritually napping. Once you have entered the light of the great darkness, your life will change -- eventually, you will remember who you really are.

Father Boyle started Homeboy Industries nearly 20 years ago, which has served members of more than half of the gangs in Los Angeles. This collection presents parables about kinship and the sacredness of life drawn from Boyle's years of working with gangs.

Clearly presents the pathology of heart disease from fetus to adolescence, integrating histology and macroscopy with effects of treatment.