Body Worlds, a traveling exhibition showcasing preserved corpses, opens its doors today at the National Taiwan Science Education Center.
"The basic intention of this exhibit is education -- to let people know what we are made of, to look into the authentic body and see how beautiful we are and how fragile we are at the same time," said Angelina Whalley, Body Worlds chairperson.
PHOTO: AFP
Among the several specimens showcased include slices of a thigh and a brain, a knee with arthritis, a brain after a stroke and a lung infected with tuberculosis.
Full-body specimens of humans and animals in lifelike poses are also featured.
The "Flying Skier" poses in mid-air to offer visitors a view of the organs inside the body's cavities. The "Swordsman" is divided in half to provide a view of the spine and its nerve endings.
All of the specimens are real corpses preserved and posed by Gunther Von Hagens using a process dubbed "plastination."
"I don't think that any of these exhibits should scare children. It is all very artistic," Academia Sinica Vice President Ovid Tzeng (
As Tzeng spoke, he sat down for a game of chess across from a corpse frozen in the act of contemplating the next move.
The skull of the "Chess Player" has been split open to allow visitors a clear view of the detailed pathways of nerves coming out of the spinal cord and the components of the brain.
"We don't just show the normal body; we also show the diseased body," Whalley said.
"You can see what a tumor is about, what smoking and drinking can do to your body," she said.
While the exhibit has earned praise as a unique educational experience and encouraged visitors to donate their bodies and organs for medical research upon their death. However, it has also caused many to consider Von Hagens a "Dr. Frankenstein."
"Twenty-five years ago when I visited Taiwan, I was delighted by the power to learn," Von Hagens said.
The exhibit will be open to visitors from today through Oct 24, from 10 am to 9 pm. Tickets are NT$280 for adults, NT$200 for students, and NT$140 for children and senior citizens.
Taipei and New Taipei City government officials are aiming to have the first phase of the Wanhua-Jungho-Shulin Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line completed and opened by 2027, following the arrival of the first train set yesterday. The 22km-long Light Green Line would connect four densely populated districts in Taipei and New Taipei City: Wanhua (萬華), Jhonghe (中和), Tucheng (土城) and Shulin (樹林). The first phase of the project would connect Wanhua and Jhonghe districts, with Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Chukuang (莒光) being the terminal stations. The two municipalities jointly hosted a ceremony for the first train to be used
The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday said it is fully aware of the situation following reports that the son of ousted Chinese politician Bo Xilai (薄熙來) has arrived in Taiwan and is to marry a Taiwanese. Local media reported that Bo Guagua (薄瓜瓜), son of the former member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, is to marry the granddaughter of Luodong Poh-Ai Hospital founder Hsu Wen-cheng (許文政). The pair met when studying abroad and arranged to get married this year, with the wedding breakfast to be held at The One holiday resort in Hsinchu
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon this morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan between Friday and Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The storm, which as of 8am was still 1,100km southeast of southern Taiwan, is currently expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, the CWA said. Because of its rapid speed — 28kph as of 8am — a sea warning for the storm could be issued tonight, rather than tomorrow, as previously forecast, the CWA said. In terms of its impact, Usagi is to bring scattered or
An orange gas cloud that leaked from a waste management plant yesterday morning in Taoyuan’s Guanyin District (觀音) was likely caused by acidic waste, authorities said, adding that it posed no immediate harm. The leak occurred at a plant in the district’s Environmental Science and Technology Park at about 7am, the Taoyuan Fire Department said. Firefighters discovered a cloud of unidentified orange gas leaking from a waste tank when they arrived on the site, it said, adding that they put on Level A chemical protection before entering the building. After finding there was no continuous leak, the department worked with the city’s Department
RSS