In a world first, a compelling, complex and beautiful large-scale virtual model of a human heart is now on display in the Science Museum;
Created by bioengineer Dr Jazmín Aguado Sierra using scans of her own heart, the virtual heart functions just like her real heart and shows the intricate interactions between electrical impulses, muscle contraction and blood flow in this vital organ;
Visitors can see the Virtual Heart display, which Dr Aguado Sierra introduces, within the Engineers gallery, in a section which explores collaborations between clinicians, medical engineers and patients and showcases real-world health solutions;
The Virtual Heart simulation was made using data and the high-performance supercomputer MareNostrum based at the Barcelona Supercomputing Center, which takes 9 hours to calculate the mathematics behind the model. The same job would take a human 57 billion years;
The Virtual Heart, and wider research into digital medicine, have huge ramifications for the future of predictive and personalised medicine and disease monitoring, transforming how we could treat illness in the future.
Virtual Heart, Engineers gallery
Ticketed; Free
sciencemuseum.org.uk/engineers
