Random Commuter Observation

So the Metro recently has been plastered with posters for something called BODIES: The Exhibition currently on display somewhere in the wilds of Rossyln. It's supposed to be a detailed display of the inner workings of this mortal coil, and I believe has generated some controversy for its use of actual cadavers. As a matter of fact, it does look rayther interesting.

But back to the posters. They're of sort that contain what is conceived to be eye-catching trivia. You know the sort of thing, "Snot comes out of your nose at 100 mph when you sneeze." Just the thing to get your loutish teenager interested in slogging out to see the show. (Of course, once he's there, all he'll want to look at are the naughty bits.)

The one that gets me, however, reads, "It takes 17 muscles to smile, but 43 muscles to frown."

Let's just say that as a general rule I prefer the more comprehensive facial workout, thank you very much.

Indeed, this poster is nothing more than, "A smile is a frown turned upside down," dolled up in medical terms and is of a sentiment that immediately makes me want to reach for a large brick. Particularly first thing in the morning when I haven't had any coffee yet.

Oh, and speaking of things to make Robbo cranky of a morn, the tag line to the exhibition reads:

Celebrate the wonder of the human form in the World Premier of BODIES … The Exhibition—a phenomenal look at the phenomena we call the human body.

It could be that the copy writer sought to acknowledge that the human body is really an interdependent set of extremely complex systems and processes. On the other hand, it could also be that said writer doesn't know the difference between "phenomenon" and "phenomena".

I know where I'd put my money.....

UPDATE: Mr. P sends along a post reviewing the exhibit that raises some seriously troubling questions about the bodies used therein:

A local newsaper, New York Newsday, reports as to the exhibit's ultimate source: "The bodies are unclaimed or unidentified individuals from China." That disclaimer appears next to a Newsday photo of the polymer-coated corpse of a 32 week old unborn child. All 16 Newsday photos from the exhibit can be seen here. Caution: they are not for family viewing.

At the exhibit itself, there is no statment whatsoever about the derivation of the corpses, and the New York Times greeted its arrival by publishing questions from human rights activist Harry Wu. Mr. Wu noted that the bodies of executed prisoners had been exploited by this same universtity in the past. It is clear that no one in the United States really knows who the dead individuals are, much less how they died. To the relief of the exhibitors, no one seems to care. No local politicians have objected or raised questions, and a similar display by the same exhibitor in Tampa has not drawn any notable complaint at the national level. Katie Couric on the Today Show, while cracking jokes last week as she sat next to one of the dead bodies, did mention that the exhibit is "controversial."

Sigh....Robbo's naivete strikes again. My last encounter with a cadaver was with the one my brother used in med school. He explained that his school only used bodies voluntarily donated and also that a blessing was said over all of them at the beginning of the term in a very dignified ceremony. I frankly hadn't given much thought to the uglier side of corpse-trafficking. Needless to say, this revelation changes my attitude toward the whole business considerably.

UPDATE DEUX: However, as to the main point of my post, which is a rant about enforced cheerfulness, I remain firm. So much so that I steal this pic sent over by the Colossus without the slightest reservation:

Heh. Indeed.