Yesterday I had the pleasure of exploring the Bodies exhibit; photos weren't allowed, so this is the one shot I have of the exhibit. The whole thing was absolutely amazing though. Broken down into various bodily functions each section of the exhibit was newly educational, interesting, and at times a little revolting. The highlight of the exhibit though? The mortician I met.
The docents were all volunteers from various medical professions. There is a table where a brain and a liver were available to hold. I approached the table at a point where two volunteers were switching places. The mortician was the replacement and as I walked up he was examining the brain. "Are these bite marks?" I knew I had entered at the perfect time. He analyzed the brain further, pointing out the ridge pattern that teeth leave behind. "Seriously...someone bit the brain." This is when he revealed to me his profession and why he's familiar with analyzing bite marks. The man was perfectly stereotypical; he even had the jet black, slicked back hair and pale white skin. We had a long discussion about the plastification process for preserving the bodies. He compared it to a space ship, where all the air is sucked from the air craft, but instantly replaced by silicone so the ship never has a chance to loose it's structure. "So it's like a petrified tree, it just happens a little more quickly."
"Ummm...yeah...I guess that's the simpler explanation."
It was a fun exhibit. The only down fall is that there wasn't a student discount. The cheapskate in me cried, "This is educational! Shouldn't they be encouraging students by offering a discount?!?" In the end though? It was worth the cash.
