Through the use of some humor, vivid imagery, and anecdotes Mary Roach writes in Stiff about how the cadaver is used for more than just the medical and anatomical research that she had previously mentioned andwhat many people would hope to donate their bodies and organs to. Rather than using cadavers for dissection purposes, a number of them can be and are used in place of crash test dummies to further promote knowledge of car safety, and most notably how much damage on impact can be done to the human body. Roach describes with humor the many things that a cadaver or "decedent" is unable to do such as, "They can't play water polo, or lace up their boots, or maximze their market share. They can't tell a joke, and they can't dance for beans." However in telling of the many things cadavers are unable to do, Roach also clarifies their ability to endure substantial amounts of pain, thus putting them in better postions for crash safety than dummies and live humans. Roach explores the causes of airplane crashes when she explains how the bodily remains of the deceased unwittingly tell tales of the crash. Roach describes being in contact with a colleague who used reports from autopsies to determine the causes of airplane crashes from the physical features of "survivors". Roach recalls being in the office with her colleague and probing through countless reports and photographs of people from a particular plane crash, and listening to her colleague as he came up with possible explanations and theories for the crash. Through several anecdotes Roach begins to explain how research regarding bullets to be used in war and by police officers were tested, and how cadavers gradually replaced animals like pigs that were once used for the tests.
Discussion Questions:
Clarification: Did Roach do the actual shooting of the "thigh", when she reported on the testing of the bullets that were not meant kill the opponent in battle?
Application: Do you think that people consider respect or reverence for themselves when they donate their bodies to medical or science research?
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Application:
ReplyDeleteI think that Roach did shoot the "thigh" at the firing range. Although it says that Rick handed her a trigger string. So I am assuming that it was done from long distance.
Clarification:
I would think that most people who donate thier bodies would want respect and reverence for them. But on the other hand there may be people who don't care for things like that, and only wish for the advancement of science.
Clarification:
ReplyDeleteI believe Roach was the one to shoot the "thigh". In the book it seems as though Rick hands her the trigger string and counted downfor her, then she shot the gun.
Application:
Understanding that reverence is another word for respect, I believe that someone would ofcourse want to be treated with reverence once they've passed on.I'm assuming that I've misunderstood your question, but I think someone would expect to be treated with respect while donating themselves to the advancement of science.
Good work Ashley- I misplaced by blog url's for period six and I am so happy to have your url so that I can both check up on the class, provide assistance and also possibly share your blogs with my period 5 class. Expect a possible comment from someone in period five reading Stiff. Ms. G
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