Human Cadavers on Display

Talk about losing your appetite! The Bodies Human, a cadaver show would not qualify as pre-dinner or even first-date material, but is far more realistic than the current horror flick.

The show will display plasticized real corpses in a variety of poses and dissection. (Bring a spare bag just in case you can't stomach it.) But you won't see a whole lot of skin. Or clothing for that matter. What you'll get is a close up view of muscles, tendons, bones, and more.

The show will open in Calgary, Canada in June 2008, at the Telus World of Science, brought to you by Texan Michael Churchman. His display is similar to and inspired by a German developed one, but Churchman diplomatically states that it's not a copy. Despite it's grim sounding subject, Churchman believes and expects the display to attract thousands.

Those whose curiosity gets the better of them can expect to see corpses in varying poses including mimicking different sports. The grisly authentic corpses will be spread out with over 100 displays. Among the displays are plastic injected organs (plastic is poured in where vital liquids would be in a living person and then left to harden thereby preserving the shape) and varying stages of dissection.

As for Churchman,"What you guys will be getting will be first class," he assures us. "People are fascinated with their bodies."

After the Calgary display, the show will move on to the his home state of Texas in the U.S.

The graphic use of corpses has raised many eyebrows over the debate of education versus exploitation. Those who are looking for a lesson in detailed anatomy, or those considering occupations that would involve such a need for grisly indifference (i.e. morgue, physicians, crime scene investigators, etc.), will find this a good test of their abilities to withstand such graphic exhibits.

Unlike that latest horror flick, you may be able to close your eyes, but the scene won't have changed. That corpse will still be standing, or sitting, or running. The whole idea smacks of potential horror flick - cadavers attack! But then we already have the zombie movies.

Certainly, while morbid fascinations are known to exist, is this not taking science to the realm of sensationalism? And what about good taste? If that still exists....

One is left to wonder, where did Churchman get his corpses? While many people offer to donate organs and the such, I would hope that's not where my loved ones' body parts, or worse, may end up. And I'm sure his bodies were legally obtained (if not he wouldn't parade them over the continent), I wouldn't want to be a relative of one of those partially dissected corpses.