NEWS: "Bodies Revealed" opens in Korean Theme Park

[robbalvey]

http://www.mysan.de/article51361.html

 

ATLANTA, March 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Premier Exhibitions Inc. (BULLETIN BOARD: PXHB) announced this week’s opening of "Bodies Revealed ... the Exhibition" at Samsung’s Everland Theme Park in Seoul, South Korea.

 

Lee Byong-Soo, curator of the exhibition, said that "Children will especially benefit from the first floor of the exhibition where they can make their way through models and recreations of the heart, lungs, ears, nose and eyes of the human anatomy."

 

The second floor is where real human bodies and actual organs are exhibited, enabling visitors to see how their body is constructed.

 

All of the bodies and organ specimens in "Bodies Revealed ... the Exhibition" came from individuals who chose to donate their bodies to medical science for the purpose of study and education. These specimens were then preserved using a process called polymer preservation. The end result is a specimen that can be easily examined without any chance of deterioration due to natural decay. Nearly 20 million people throughout Asia and Europe have already visited similar exhibitions.

 

According to Dr. Roy Glover, Professor Emeritus of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Michigan, and the Chief Medical Director and spokesman for "Bodies Revealed ... the Exhibition," "Seeing promotes understanding and understanding promotes the most practical kind of body education possible."

 

Arnie Geller, President of Premier Exhibitions, Inc. said, "We are delighted to be at Everland, a venue that is visited by over eight million patrons annually and we look forward to another successful collaboration with CT Entertainment of South Korea."

[buttonman700]

Those wacky Koreans, what will they think of next?

[JT3000]

That kid.... priceless. He'll no doubt be scarred for life. I don't see how that would belong in a theme park.

[Rugged One]

Wow, how educational!

[robbalvey]

Apparently this exhibit has been on display in Blackpool for quite a few months, which is where those images came from.

 

And Everland does seem to be quite a "real" park complete with 5 credits including the last remaining Arrow Suspended coaster I need to complete the collection!

 

http://www.rcdb.com/pd489.htm

 

--Robb "Weird" Alvey

[disneygurlz2s]

Wasn't there a similar exhibition out in CA this past year? Either LA or SF, I think. I seemed both creepy and pretty amazing.

 

Shari "although I would probably puke when I got there to see it" Shoufler

[Meteornotes]

That is indeed odd. I do know that some science centers and such here in the US have attractions where you walk through giant replicas of human hearts and such. I remember the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia had a display like that.

 

I can't imagine this going on display at a US park. Then again, you get the chance to see all sorts of exposed body parts at parks in the summer. Of course, they're often NOT what you wanted to see exposed, but...

 

dt

[Hattuchili]

We also have something like this here in Germany. Gunther von Hagens "Körperwelten" (Body Worlds). BODY WORLDS 2 will be at the:

- (LOS ANGELES) California Science Center from January 29 to March 27, 2005

- (CHICAGO) Museum of Science and Industry from February 4 to September 5, 2005

- (CLEVELAND) Great Lakes Science Center from April 9 to September 18, 2005

 

Gunther von Hagens is the inventor of the plastination technique and creator of the BODY WORLDS and BODY WORLDS 2 exhibitions. In 1965, he began his medical studies at the University of Jena. He spent two years as a political prisoner in East Germany after having distributed leaflets protesting against the invasion of Czechoslovakia by Warsaw Pact troops and an unsuccessful attempt at escaping from East Germany. In 1970 the West German government bought his freedom for US$20.000, enabling him to finalize his medical studies at the University of Lübeck in 1973. In 1974, he received his license to practice medicine before moving to the University of Heidelberg, where he finalized his doctoral thesis as a resident in the Department of Anaesthetics and Emergency Medicine in 1975. He started an eighteen-year career as a resident and lecturer in the Institute of Pathology and the Institute of Anatomy at the Heidelberg University in 1976.

 

Back in 1977, at the department of Anatomy of Heidelberg University, he invented plastination as a groundbreaking technology for preserving anatomical specimens with reactive polymers. The process was patented between 1978 and 1982. Also in 1978, Gunther von Hagens started his own company, BIODUR Products, which has since marketed special polymers and equipment for plastination. These are currently exported to four hundred institutions in forty different countries worldwide. Gunther von Hagens founded the Heidelberg-based Institute for Plastination in 1993, with the aim of offering plastinated specimens for educational use and for the BODY WORLDS exhibitions, which premiered in Japan in 1995. He finalized his engagements at Heidelberg University in 1995 and consequently accepted a visiting professorship at Dalian Medical University in China in 1996. In the same year, he also became the director of the plastination research centre at the State Medical Academy in Bishkek/Kyrgyzstan. He has since been active at both locations and in 2001 additionally founded a private company (the "Von Hagens Dalian Plastination Ltd.") in Dalian, China, which currently employs two hundred people.

In 2004, Dr. von Hagens began a visiting professorship at the New York University College of Dentistry. He is currently in the process of designing the first anatomy curriculum in the United States that will use plastinated specimens in lieu of dissection.

 

The site: www.bodyworlds.com

 

--Soeren

The chess player.

Gunther von Hagen and one of his plastinats.

[Shadowforce]

Yuck... I've been to one of these exbits, I've seen to much at hospitals in my life to be grossed out by much, but that just took the cake... What this have to do with theme park, entertainment, or kids for that matter is beyond me... I guess Koreans just are that different...

[ChrisZer0]

The koreans are a funny bunch...They worship Starcraft, Eat yellow dog and go for the macarbe in their entertainment.

 

If im not mistaken, Dr. von Hagens was in the crossfire here a few years ago for his exhibition,which had a deceased gentleman riding his horse and holding his brain in his hand.

[Hattuchili]

Yes, some of its plastinats looks awful. I think Dr. von Hagen is a mysterious person. I believe last year he made in England the first public dissection since the 19 Century, I think so. The Royal familie was not amused.The newspapers wrote a few weeks about this impossible event.

 

--Soeren

[J man]

On one hand I think it's kinda interesting that they can do that, but on the other hand it's just kinda gross.

[JT3000]

which had a deceased gentleman riding his horse and holding his brain in his hand.

 

Now that sounds like fun.

[BDG]

Some of these "artistic" creations are pretty sick:

 

Reminds me of Phantom Manor.

 

And it's all real.

 

Bizarre.

 

I strongly recommend people to go see the exposition when they can. Fascinating, sick, interesting, bizarre.

[Hattuchili]

I saw G. von Hagnes Body Worlds exposition. Something is very interesting and something is very sick. I belive this exposition is not for everybody, because you need to have good nerves.

 

--Soeren

[Cjw]

He did a tv show here in britain recently called anatomy for begginers.

 

Basically every night for a week he showed the viewers different parts of the body dissected on dead corpses.

 

Among the sites were brains placed into meat slicers and gunther cutting a penis in half.

 

It was nasty but quite educational. Though it was blatently done to shock.

[Jose Eber]

those artists disgust me

[socalMAN123]

All of my friends went to see it, but I haven't. Even my mom has seen it, and that's scary! Geez, it looks cool and disgusting at teh same time.

[ChrisZer0]

Yep, theres the picture of the guy and horse above

[crispy]

Yeah, I'll be passing on that adventure thanks

[robbalvey]

BTW, I noticed that this, or something really close to this was on display at the Tropicana in Las Vegas. Did anyone go see it?

 

--Robb "Thought it was REALLY an odd thing for Vegas!!!" Alvey

[mcjaco]

There has been one of these travelling around the US. It was at the Field Museum in Chicago a couple of years ago, and then it went to LA. Perhaps it's the same one that's in Vegas?

 

The sight of my own blood makes me scream like a little girl, so there's no way you'd get me into one of these shows.

[coaster_dude2002]

I went to see "Body worlds 2" when it was in Toronto, and it's definitely not for everyone. They did have age recommendations for it but it all depends on the person. I was fine with it, and actually found it interesting, my dad on the other hand only stayed for about 20 min before he had to leave. The exhibit was fairly large and took about 1.5-2 hours to visit, and had a variety of displays including a camel. It was not very popular at first but when people realized how soon the show was leaving the city tickets sold out quickly. The exhibit was open for 72 consecutive hours in the last 3 days, and almost every timeslot was sold out. If it ever comes to a city near you, check it out. Also I believe “Body worlds 3” is in Huston Texas and will finish on Monday (September 4th), and “Body worlds 2” is in Boston until January 7th.

[goleafsgo]

this isnt that big a deal. they had an exibit like this in London, Toronto, and in a bunch of other major cities...

[Homer]

Just went to this last night at MOSI up in Tampa. Geez there is a lot of detail in our bodies, almost as much detail as say, a RCT2 park on NewElement.