Orbital Groove

by Greg Crowther

Here's an ode to the many holes (foramina and fissures) in the bones around the orbit (eye socket). It was originally written for Biology 241 at South Seattle College.

Oh, oh, orbital groove! (Oh, oh, orbital groove!)
Eye-eye-eye, orbital groove! (Eye-eye-eye, orbital groove!)
Oh, oh, orbital groove! (Oh, oh, orbital groove!)
Eye-eye-eye, orbital groove! (Eye-eye-eye, orbital groove!)

Supraorbital foramen. (Supraorbital foramen.)
Infraorbital foramen. (Infraorbital foramen.)
Op-optic foramen (op-optic foramen)
To the optic canal. (Optic canal.)

Superior orbital fissure....
Inferior orbital fissure....
Uh-huh!

Orbital groove! (Oh, oh, orbital groove!)
Eye-eye-eye, orbital groove! (Eye-eye-eye, orbital groove!)

• MP3 (demo)

• sheet music (with melody play-back)

Songs like this one can be used during class meetings and/or in homework assignments. Either way, the song will be most impactful if students DO something with it, as opposed to just listening.

An initial, simple follow-up activity could be to answer the study questions below. A more extensive interaction with the song might entail (A) learning to sing it, using an audio file and/or sheet music as a guide, and/or (B) illustrating it with pictures, bodily poses, and/or bodily movements. The latter activity could begin with students identifying the most important or most challenging content of the song, and deciding how to illustrate that particular content.

(1) What does "orbital" mean, anatomically speaking?

(2) What is the difference between a foramen and a fissure?

(3) Where are the superior and inferior orbital fissures, relative to each other?

(4) Where are the supraorbital and infraorbital foramina, relative to the eye?