Bodies Revealed

This weekend JoLee and I visited the Bodies Revealed exhibit in the newly renovated basement of Union Station. The tickets were pricey, but I think the experience was worth it. You have to turn on your brain when you go to something like this because you end up learning a lot. I think the highlights for me were:

• The blood vessels suspended in water (see below)
  
• The exposed spinal cord (not the vertebrae, but the actual nerves)
  
• The fetuses (yep, there were a lot of them)
  
• The small intestine (which is much more fascinating than you might think)
  
• The brain (also see below)
  

Unfortunately they wouldn't allow cameras in the exhibit (or gum chewing), so I snagged what images I could off the internet (and swallowed the gum).

Note: The business of acquiring human bodies is one that can lend itself to dodgy business practices. In February, 20/20 ran an expose on the dubious sources of the bodies in some of these exhibits. In particular, it focused on "Bodies…The Exhibition” which is run by the same group as "Bodies Revealed", and a competing exhibition, “Body Worlds". Reportedly, "Bodies...The Exhibition" is made up of unclaimed specimens from China, whereas the show we saw, "Bodies Revealed", is made up of people who have donated their bodies to science. Whew! I feel better now that I got that off my chest.



There were three exploded bodies that were cut in all three planes of dimension. This cross section showed what an MRI looks at--thin cross sections of the human body.


There were a number of full body displays as well. Some featured the nervous system, the skeletal system, or the muscular system as shown here.


There were numerous brains, all of different sizes and healthiness. The one on the left features one of the sacks that surrounds the brain. I thought it was particularly fascinating. The brain needs an enormous amount of fluid to expel waste and impurities. The sack keeps the fluid in the skull. Sometimes the fluid gets blocked and accumulates resulting in a condition known as water on the brain.


One of the most fascinating rooms of the exhibit displayed the blood vessels surrounding various body parts. These blood vessels were colored, suspended in fluid, and lit up. They were simply amazing.