Revolutionizing the Human Body Da Vinci’s The Vitruvian Man

Dissecting the Human Body  In 1543, Andreas Vesalius published his book De Humani Corporis Fabrica Libri Septem  Vesalius informed his readers that he formed his theories by repeated observation of cadavers

Four Reasons for a Delay in Medical Advancement  Psychological  Social  Anthropological  Religious

Challenges to Tradition  Iacopo Berengario insisted on the priority of sensory perception over traditional authority  Galen advocated a balance of the humoral system where all bodily fluids would restrain the others Galen

Teaching Anatomy  The lone practical exercise consisted of one member of the college “putting forward a case of illness so that he may furnish a prognosis and a course of healing”

Selecting the Body The idea was to select a body for dissection that would be completely beyond anyone caring about what would be done to it The idea was to select a body for dissection that would be completely beyond anyone caring about what would be done to it

Utmost Compassion & Care  Selection of a body was made several days in advance under utmost secrecy  Such news might influence the rites of comfort, or even reach the ears of the intended victim

Careful Treatment of a Dissected Body First…rewarding the soul of the body First…rewarding the soul of the body Second…avoiding a higher dose of infamy Second…avoiding a higher dose of infamy Third…to not torture a soul in the afterlife Third…to not torture a soul in the afterlife

Obsessive Repetition of Sources  Aristotle, Hippocrates, and Galen are just three of many  All these sources had the goal of constructing a history of anatomy that would further their science and also their names  Whomever wrote on the subject of anatomy plagiarized, forgetting original sources, and sometimes misrepresented or even falsified their contents

Of Philosophers and Physicians  Anatomy is not now, nor was it years ago, solely the province of physicians  Philosophers also had their separate needs and theories quite removed from the body  Even though the two disciplines had different methods, they both read and used the same sources

Aristotle & Zoology Aristotle was recognized by Renaissance anatomists as a founder of anatomical science, even though his expertise in this endeavor was mostly in zoological writings on animal dissection Aristotle was recognized by Renaissance anatomists as a founder of anatomical science, even though his expertise in this endeavor was mostly in zoological writings on animal dissection

Incorrect Analogy to the Taboo “It is necessary to know the position, the color, the shape, the size…of individual organs” “It is necessary to know the position, the color, the shape, the size…of individual organs” Aulus Cornelius Celsus

East Vs. West Aristotle’s disgust combined with Celsus’ belief of uselessness combined over the years to describe dissections as useless, repugnant, and cruel Aristotle’s disgust combined with Celsus’ belief of uselessness combined over the years to describe dissections as useless, repugnant, and cruel

What We Thought Was True…  When we take a look at the whole host of problems, from misinformation to false analogies to lost documents, is it any wonder we believed dissection to be wrong  Even today, there are legitimate studies that show even within a society that considers dissection indispensable, the practice causes med students trauma  The practice of anatomy then is the product of a conflict between scientific need and philosophic resistance