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What it’s like to dissect a cadaver

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Re: What it’s like to dissect a cadaver

#11

Post by martopix »

zac_hudson wrote: post #2

Firstly, its surprising that this school allows what would apparently be the lay public gain access to human anatomical gifts. In Canada, this is restricted to persons with a legitimate interest, ie med students and grad students in bioengineering/bio-adjacent fields. I think that the author is not an individual with such an interest was quite clear from the tone taken on this piece - most discussions involving cadav…

Many universities, at least in Europe, allow you to sign up to individual modules/exams. This is usually used by people who want to get ahead and study stuff before they actually sign up to a degree, but anyone can do it. At that point, the author would have been a student of that class like any other.

Re: What it’s like to dissect a cadaver

#12

Post by rubatuga »

danielheath wrote: post #3
zac_hudson wrote: post #2

Firstly, its surprising that this school allows what would apparently be the lay public gain access to human anatomical gifts. In Canada, this is restricted to persons with a legitimate interest, ie med students and grad students in bioengineering/bio-adjacent fields. I think that the author is not an individual with such an interest was quite clear from the tone taken on this piece - most discussions involving cadav…

> most discussions involving cadavers are quite respectful of the fact that they are working on the mortal remains of a person Not that I know first-hand, but that's not the impression I got from the med students when I was at uni. People find all sorts of odd ways to cope with their own mortality, and getting reminded of it tends to bring those to the fore.

First-hand, every session that involved cadavers during medical school was very respectful. We were told not to take photos as well. Worst part was the smell of formalin. Humour is fine, assuming the person/cadaver would have been okay with it (and quite a few of the older patients I've met joke about their mortality). But I would rather be respectful and play it safe.

Re: What it’s like to dissect a cadaver

#13

Post by cedricgle »

JusticeJuice wrote: post #4
zac_hudson wrote: post #2

Firstly, its surprising that this school allows what would apparently be the lay public gain access to human anatomical gifts. In Canada, this is restricted to persons with a legitimate interest, ie med students and grad students in bioengineering/bio-adjacent fields. I think that the author is not an individual with such an interest was quite clear from the tone taken on this piece - most discussions involving cadav…

Yeah, it's stuff like this that makes me not want to donate my body to science.

Well don't donate your body to France [1]. Some witness even alleged the medical team played football with people heads.

[1] https://ca.movies.yahoo.com/french-academic-charged-over-mas...

Re: What it’s like to dissect a cadaver

#14

Post by drakonka »

codingdave wrote: post #9
jstanley wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In what way is the OP's interest in dissecting cadavers not "legitimate"?

They don't seem to be doing this to pursue anything other than personal curiosity. And fairly light-hearted curiosity at that -- the tone of the article, to me, sounds more like, "Ooh, nerves are neat!" than someone trying to build a body of knowledge for a larger purpose. I'm not going to go so far to say that only med students should have access to cadavers... but this article does feel like a rando just cutting so…

When you say it now I see what you mean, but when first reading the article I read of it more as awe and the act of understanding humanity on a deeper level - a physical level of course, but also transcendent somehow. I don't know if that makes sense... When I look back at it having read your comment, I also doubt my initial more generous view of the situation.

Re: What it’s like to dissect a cadaver

#15

Post by bheadmaster »

drtgh wrote: post #10

With all due respect to the profession, but.. how does this kind of thing arrived to the front page with 5 points? HN, come on, really?

I've seen a fair number of posts arriving to the front page with ~5 points.

One element could be the timing - if 5 points appear in the first, say, 15 minutes, it might be enough to raise it to the front page? Maybe there's an element of randomness, too. Dunno.

I suppose HN algorithms are secret for a reason - if they were revealed, they could be optimized for.

Re: What it’s like to dissect a cadaver

#16

Post by the_af »

danielheath wrote: post #3
zac_hudson wrote: post #2

Firstly, its surprising that this school allows what would apparently be the lay public gain access to human anatomical gifts. In Canada, this is restricted to persons with a legitimate interest, ie med students and grad students in bioengineering/bio-adjacent fields. I think that the author is not an individual with such an interest was quite clear from the tone taken on this piece - most discussions involving cadav…

> most discussions involving cadavers are quite respectful of the fact that they are working on the mortal remains of a person Not that I know first-hand, but that's not the impression I got from the med students when I was at uni. People find all sorts of odd ways to cope with their own mortality, and getting reminded of it tends to bring those to the fore.

My brother, when he attended his anatomy classes, told me the med students were very playful and joked all the time. A coping mechanism, perhaps? I think it's understandable, but respectful they were not.

For example, they called one of the corpses "blondie"... and she was headless. Let that one sink in.

Re: What it’s like to dissect a cadaver

#17

Post by the_af »

JusticeJuice wrote: post #4
zac_hudson wrote: post #2

Firstly, its surprising that this school allows what would apparently be the lay public gain access to human anatomical gifts. In Canada, this is restricted to persons with a legitimate interest, ie med students and grad students in bioengineering/bio-adjacent fields. I think that the author is not an individual with such an interest was quite clear from the tone taken on this piece - most discussions involving cadav…

Yeah, it's stuff like this that makes me not want to donate my body to science.

I totally understand how you feel, but I think I disagree. After I'm dead, my body is of no use to me. I'm gone. Like Elvis, I will have "left the building". I'm not an ancient Egyptian and so I neither believe in the afterlife nor in my body being of use to me there. And bodies are definitely a boon to science and medicine; they help the living! What can be more uplifting than that?

However, if the body of a loved one who has passed away were to be treated without respect, it would upset me a lot.

Re: What it’s like to dissect a cadaver

#19

Post by minimal-o »

cedricgle wrote: post #13
JusticeJuice wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, it's stuff like this that makes me not want to donate my body to science.

Well don't donate your body to France [1]. Some witness even alleged the medical team played football with people heads. [1] https://ca.movies.yahoo.com/french-academic-charged-over-mas...

Yikes! I hope that was a corner, nee coroner, case, but it would not surprise me. My mother was a student nurse in the 40's. In the U.S. for context. She told me of corpses floating in a big tub, or vat, at uni, and that they had to take them out and dissect them for class. She didn't mention any peculiar schenanigans as you describe and I am glad she did not.

Re: What it’s like to dissect a cadaver

#20

Post by qikInNdOutReply »

danielheath wrote: post #3
zac_hudson wrote: post #2

Firstly, its surprising that this school allows what would apparently be the lay public gain access to human anatomical gifts. In Canada, this is restricted to persons with a legitimate interest, ie med students and grad students in bioengineering/bio-adjacent fields. I think that the author is not an individual with such an interest was quite clear from the tone taken on this piece - most discussions involving cadav…

> most discussions involving cadavers are quite respectful of the fact that they are working on the mortal remains of a person Not that I know first-hand, but that's not the impression I got from the med students when I was at uni. People find all sorts of odd ways to cope with their own mortality, and getting reminded of it tends to bring those to the fore.

Others demanding a "respectful" treatment, usually mean, that handling, diposal and research on remains, should be treated by a seperate group of persons. One which they usually shun socially, should they ever talk about or discuss there work or parts of it. So the respectful treatment, is actually code for "I do not want to talk about that, or engage with that, unless i must."

Meanwhile, pathology is such a interesting science. Especially the quite visual signs of self inflicted decay due to substance abuse or bad living conditions are very hands on. Also the realization, that the body is a self deprecating machine, adapting to all circumstances.

Great german book on famous dead people and the source of there demise: https://www.amazon.de/Woran-sie-wirklich-starben-Pers%C3%B6n...

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