Cartilage is a type of connective tissue; it smoothes the surfaces of the bones at joints and it gives strength to structures such as the trachea. There are three different types of cartilage in the human body.
The first is the hyaline cartilage; this makes up the connective tissue that gives structure to the nose and trachea and the ear lobes. It also covers the ends of bones at joints to smooth the surfaces so that jarring does not occur during movement. The second type is white fibrous cartilage, which is found between the vertebrae of the spine. It acts as a shock absorbed to protect the bones of the vertebrae from damage when, for example, someone jumps up and down. Fibrous cartilage is a good shock absorber because it is compressible and it can withstand a lot of force ~ the same forces that would shatter more brittle bone.
The third type of cartilage is yellow elastic cartilage. This very elastic tissue is also found in the earlobes and it forms the pharynx and the epiglottis, two structures inside the back of the throat.
The first is the hyaline cartilage; this makes up the connective tissue that gives structure to the nose and trachea and the ear lobes. It also covers the ends of bones at joints to smooth the surfaces so that jarring does not occur during movement. The second type is white fibrous cartilage, which is found between the vertebrae of the spine. It acts as a shock absorbed to protect the bones of the vertebrae from damage when, for example, someone jumps up and down. Fibrous cartilage is a good shock absorber because it is compressible and it can withstand a lot of force ~ the same forces that would shatter more brittle bone.
The third type of cartilage is yellow elastic cartilage. This very elastic tissue is also found in the earlobes and it forms the pharynx and the epiglottis, two structures inside the back of the throat.
