Week 4 | Medicine + Art

This week's topic was interesting me because I found that a lot of what I liked was relevant to my daily my life. As an bioengineer major, one of the main reason why I chose to pursue this field was actually because of how fascinated I was with the human anatomy. In fact one of the exhibits mentioned in this week, Body Worlds, was a big contributor to my discovery of the human body as a topic.

[Figure 1] "Body Worlds: Pulse" exhibit at California Science Center

I went to the Body Worlds exhibition located at the California Science Center in 2018 as part of a club field trip. I still vividly remember the live surgery videos and all the diagrams and figures that they had. Upon further research, I learned that the exhibit contained more than 200 plastinated specimens which took a variety of forms including whole bodies, body configurations, translucent slices, and organs. [1] This was eye opening to me because I had no idea that what I was looking at was indeed real human bodies and organs. As I went through this week's lecture and readings, I began to realize to the true extent of technology and its relation to the art of medicine.

For example, I also believe that technology of plastination is truly a breakthrough in the field of medicine and the arts. Being able to preserve the body so that they are dry, odorless, and durable while also maintaining their original structure and details is an amazing tool for both educational and artistic purposes. It's no wonder that the entire process to plastinating a human body requires 1500 working hours, or about a year, to complete. [2]

[Figure 2] "The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp" by Rembrandt

Another interesting bridge between the art and the medicine field that found during my research process was the idea of the anatomist that was popularized by the inventor of the plastination technique himself, Gunther Von Hagens. The anatomist hat was a black fedora that anatomy artists of the Renaissance era wore in order to demonstrate their independence from the social norms of the time. [3] This was really fascinating because it demonstrates the role of medicine as an art that conveys the importance of individuality in society.

[Figure. 3] Qlarity Imaging's software used to assist radiologist

Relatedly this information also got me thinking about how Professor Vesna noted that medicine was considered an art and that doctors who used tools in the early twentieth centuries were not considered doctors. That's crazy to me because I live in a world where there exists a software that can analyze a collection of 90,000 breast x-rays to create an algorithm in predicting a patient's cancer risk [4]. There also exists the field of telemedicine where patients and physicians can share information, readings from medical devices, and diagnosis and treatments all within the comfort of their own home [5]. The fact is technology and science is rapidly changing the way doctors practice. And while the future definitely lies in that sector, the human body is a work of art and that will always continually prove to be true.

References:

[1] “California Science Center to Open BODY WORLDS: PULSE May 20, 2017 Largest BODY WORLDS Exhibition of the Decade.” California Science Center, https://californiasciencecenter.org//press-room/pressrelease/2021-01-11/california-science-center-open-body-worlds-pulse-may-20-2017. Accessed 23 Apr. 2021.

[2] “The Plastination Technique – Invented by Dr. Gunther von Hagens!” Körperwelten, https://bodyworlds.com/plastination/plastination-technique/. Accessed 23 Apr. 2021.

[3] “Gunther von Hagens.” Körperwelten, https://bodyworlds.com/plastination/gunther-von-hagens/. Accessed 23 Apr. 2021. 

[4] Simonite, Tom. “The AI Doctor Will See You Now.” Wired, https://www.wired.com/story/ai-doctor-will-see-you-now/. Accessed 23 Apr. 2021.

[5] “What Is Telemedicine?” VSee, 9 Dec. 2016, https://vsee.com/what-is-telemedicine/. Accessed 23 Apr. 2021.

Images:

[1] “California Science Center Explores Anatomy and Health with ‘Body Worlds’ Exhibit.” Park Labrea News/ Beverly Press, 28 Dec. 2017, https://beverlypress.com/2017/12/california-science-center-explores-anatomy-and-health-with-body-worlds-exhibit/.

[2] “The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp by Rembrandt.” Joy of Museums Virtual Tours, https://joyofmuseums.com/museums/europe/netherlands-museums/the-hague/mauritshuis/the-anatomy-lesson-of-dr-nicolaes-tulp-by-rembrandt/. Accessed 23 Apr. 2021.

[3] “FDA-Cleared Artificial Intelligence Breast Cancer Diagnosis System Launched By Paragon Biosciences.” Medical Product Outsourcing, https://www.mpo-mag.com/contents/view_breaking-news/2019-09-12/fda-cleared-artificial-intelligence-breast-cancer-diagnosis-system-launched-by-paragon-biosciences/. Accessed 23 Apr. 2021.