Bodies: The Exhibition
Yesterday, I had the pleasure of seeing “Bodies, The Exhibition” in Durham, North Carolina. I was a bit concerned that it was going to be gory or disrespectful. Instead, I was able to get a good look at our human body.
Positives of the Exhibit
Although the topic was a review for me (from anatomy and physiology classes in school), I was able to see what several body systems look like. For instance, I was able to see how big our digestive system really is, how many nerves we really have in our bodies, and what a normal artery versus a diseased artery looks like. More so, I was able to see what smoking does to your lungs (and for those of you who are smokers, this is a great exhibit to inspire you to quit!).
Areas of Improvement
The only drawback to the exhibit was that I didn’t want it to end! I wanted more information on each body system and how it worked. I wanted to see more of the lymphatic system, the respiratory system, and different disease states (I did see a polycystic kidney, a cleft palate, and lung cancer though). I also would have liked to know how old the bodies were and a bit about their disease history. (For instance, was the diseased lung from a smoker, a nonsmoker experiencing second hand smoke, or a previous smoker who had quit smoking years before they died?). You may notice, though, that most or all of the lungs shown (whether in or out of a body) were from a smoker. They are quite discolored compared to healthy lungs.
I highly recommend the exhibit, especially for those of you who do not have a medical background. The exhibit helps put a real image to the text you read and words you hear. Also, if you are with a group of people, I recommend only one of you getting the audio and sharing it. I was with a few people, and we all got the audio. As it is just a remote-sized phone, we would have been able to pass the “wand” around and hear the exhibit. Moreover, the information on the audio was not much different than the written words by each exhibit, so getting the audio wasn’t really worth the extra $6.
Overall, it was informative and well-done. However, I do recommend a vegetarian meal afterwards!
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Are you kidding!?! I wanted to go get steak!
I really enjoyed the exhibit as well.
Another positive was the medically trained docents (is that the right word?). They were very knowledgeable and ready to answer any questions you may have.
I agree it was nice to have people in each room, but I asked a simple question about what that dangly thing at the back of your throat does, and they didn’t know! I still haven’t looked it up, but I’ll assume it’s just the gag reflex.