The Human Body Exhibition summary guide

Transcription

1 The Human Body Exhibition summary guide The Human Body Exhibition summary guide The Human Body exhibition presents a history of changing beliefs, taboos, medical practices, and a wonderful diversity of models, maps and images of the human body produced both today and in the past are presented. Follow the path of history that has led to our current understandings of the way the human body works. Ask questions and think about how far we have come and how much we still have to learn. In the exhibition you will encounter the following themes: First impressions: Looking at our bodies from the outside Invading the body: The study of human anatomy Becoming transparent: The use of medical imaging technologies Close ups: The microscopic world of cells and genes Body parts: The workings of our body s First impressions This segment of the exhibition looks at the body from the outside and the external features that can be analysed, mapped and measured? It explores how features such as hair, and eye colour, or fingerprints can be used to identify people. External features, body measurements and proportions are often mapped and measured to classify people and determine standards of normality. Can you think of some practical decisions that could be made, based on human body measurements and proportions? Unfortunately, negative judgements about differences in body features, measurements and proportions have also been used to support naïve ideas about intelligence, character, racial superiority and to discriminate against many groups of people. Look in the mirror. Is there something about your features, measurements or proportions that could be used to judge how intelligent you are? Can your features show what you are thinking? Can they show what you are feeling? Many sculptors and painters of the human body have tried to determine ideal proportions for physical beauty. But what is regarded as a beautiful size and shape varies in different societies. In our own society fashions in body shape and size change over time. Some people believe that the more symmetrical a face is, the more likely it is to be considered beautiful. How symmetrical is your face? Rest the tip of your nose on the red line in front of the mirror wedge. If you look to the left your face will appear symmetrical, made up of two right sides. If you look to the right your face will appear symmetrical, made up of two left sides. How different are the two sides of your face? 13

2 Individuals or cultures had different ideas about the human body and their views influenced how it was seen and interpreted through time. Ancient Egyptians knew quite a lot about the organs and tissues found inside the body. They removed them from dead people and store them in special jars. Can you find the ancient Egyptian mummy, named Tjebe, lying in his coffin? Why did the ancient Egyptians wrap bodies for mummification after death? Explore some of the objects around the mummy and see if you can discover why they might have carried out this practice? Today we are able to use all sorts of different medical imaging technology to find out more about Tjebe. See if you can find the X-ray s and face models that show us what Tjebe looked like when he was alive? Invading the body This section moves beyond the skin to the interior body. It looks at dissection of the dead body, surgical exploration of the living body, and the use of instruments such as endoscopes to enter the body via its natural openings. Find out how knowledge gained from human body dissection has been essential to our understanding of the way that the body works and how knowledge from post-mortems has been essential for the understanding of different disease states. If you feel like watching something a little creepy, you can pop in to the sound and light show, (with the curved seat and purple curtain) and find out how the history of anatomy is intimately tied up with taboos about invading the human body. Also find out who the body snatchers were and why they might have taken on this creepy profession in the first place. Becoming transparent The accidental discovery of x-rays over a hundred years ago made it possible to see into the body from the outside without using cutting or probing instruments. Today many new medical imaging techniques have developed from areas outside of medicine and combined with computing power to produce detailed three-dimensional images of living organs. Together with x-ray techniques we are now able to visualise the body using CT scans, ultrasound, MRI and PET scans. Take a look at the many different medical images on display, such as X-rays, magnetic MRIs and CT scans, and see if you can see what doctors might be interested in if they were investigating these images. Close ups Early X-ray of hand. The development of the microscope in the 17th century revealed a hidden world. Humans, like all living things, were found to be made up of cells. The microscope extended our vision and allowed us to recognise the cell as the basic unit of life. The electron microscope revealed the structure of the cell. Scientists are now charting new body landscapes, beyond the reach of human vision, with techniques in chemistry and physics to determine the structure of molecules, the chemicals that form the building blocks of the cell. Early discoverers identified our internal organs; today s explorers are mapping human NA. Look at the different cells and tissues presented on the spinning cell wall. Can you find out what the special function of these cells in the body? 14

3 Body parts The Human Body exhibition has a number of dissected body parts on display. The body parts displayed in The Human Body exhibition in the Mind & Body Gallery are on loan from the epartment of Anatomy and Cell Biology at The University of Melbourne. Real human body parts are displayed for educational purposes because they fascinate and educate in a way unmatched by drawings, photographs or models. They allow visitors to see the authentic shapes and textures of our bodies, and gain new insights into the way they work. People donate their bodies with the specific aim of advancing general medical knowledge in this way. Each of the body displays presents the relevant organs and tissues and some of the things that can go wrong with the body when these organs and tissues do not function properly. The microscopic world of cells and specialised tissues are also explored within each of the body displays. The reproduction display is a separate space that focuses on the workings of the reproductive from puberty, conception and birth. Body System: nerve path between hand and brain. Our digestive : the ins and outs This section of the exhibition presents models of what food looks like inside our digestive and the sounds that are made along the way. How much gastric juice does the stomach produce each day? Why is the liver so important and what does the small green gall bladder do? Can you see where the small intestine ends and the large intestine begins? What are microvilli? Our circulation: the round trip This display represents three s in one: circulatory, respiratory and excretory. The showcase contains plastinated parts of the circulatory and most of the respiratory and excretory s. Take a good look at the resin cast of blood vessels in the hand and the airways in the lungs, called the bronchial tree. How do you think these casts were made? Our musculoskeletal : the power within This exhibit combines a plastinated dissection of the muscular and skeletal s in one. It contains a human skeleton, except for one leg. In its place is a plastinated lower leg which has been dissected to show the muscles, tendons, ligaments and bones. Move the interactive models, representing the five main joints in the body. What is it that determines the way our body moves at particular joints? What are five things that our bones do to help us stay alive? How many names of different bones do you know? o you know the names of any muscles? The Human Skeleton. 15

4 Our nervous : making sense This exhibit shows some of the nervous as it is too detailed to dissect in its entirety. The brain is shown, and how it is positioned within the skull. The spinal cord is also shown, and the nerves that travel to an arm and hand. The bones and muscles are also shown, as they provide scaffolding for the nerves to be displayed. Push the synapse interactive and see how messages are conveyed from one nerve cell to another. Push the brain interactive to see where different regions of the brain are located and what these areas are responsible for. Our immune : the defenders Our bodies are constantly under attack from invaders. Sometimes, germs get through. Our immune protects us against these intruders. It consists mainly of white blood cells, which recognise the cells of our bodies and wage war against invaders. Spin the interactive drums and see three cartoons of how the immune works. The showcase displays the major immunological organs of the body. Our hormonal : power over our cells Hormones travel through our blood and control the way our bodies work. The amount of hormone may be very small but the effect on the body is always dramatic. Push the electrical interactive to explore the effects of different hormones. The showcase displays the major glands and hormone secreting organs and both the male and female hormonal s and glands. 16

5 Exhibition floor plan The Human Body Exhibition summary guide NA Microscopy Medica --..._. Close-ups ocells imaging Becoming transparent Brain BodY poule mapping 'Children's spacol.. U kiln map Visibfo Invading the body First impressions skol Muscu-lar otal - Circulatory Hormonal Immune - Nervous I igestive...--!open void) Alternative maps B THE HUMAN BOY EXHIBITION Mind & body gallery entrance 17