Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers in Science and Inquiry

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Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers

Mary Roach

Start date: June 1, 2011

Finish date: June 30, 2011

Discussion: Book Club 2011

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Book Club 2011

September, 2011: The Blind Watchmaker
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April 2011 - The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
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What Members Thought

Dec 20, 2007 Jim rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 1paper, 2non-fiction, science, favorites

Re-read Aug2012
Group read & it has been a while. Wow, right out of the gate. Roach manages to be respectful yet humorous & insightful all at the same time. The first chapter begins with a training session for plastic surgeons who learn new procedures by working on cadaver heads & she follows up with a brief history on doctors getting corpses to learn on. It's just fantastic.

Original review from when I joined GR, read date end of 2005, early 2006

Not the best thing to read while eating lunch, alt ...more

12 likes · Like · see review

Jan 12, 2009 Christy rated it really liked it

Shelves: science-and-science-studies

This is a fascinating look at what happens to us after we die, from medical experimentation to embalming and burial to more experimental methods of disposing of corpses. Roach incorporates histories of various practices, scientific details, and a clear and humorous narrative voice into her book.

I was worried that I would be too grossed out by the nitty gritty details of, say, decomposition and dissection to be able to read the book, but as it turns out, although there are a lot of details on su ...more

5 likes · Like · see review

Aug 11, 2012 Casey rated it really liked it

Shelves: knowledge-is-good

In the winter of 2012, I spent five weeks in a basement medical school classroom, taking an advanced course in neuroanatomy. I didn't know what to expect, and was surprised when we were instructed to grab gloves, a scalpel, and what could only be described as a brain in a bucket. Compared to the cadavers given to the physical therapy students who sometimes shared our lab space, we didn't have much information about our brains. Each cadaver was housed in a stainless steel table, the top of which In the winter of 2012, I spent five weeks in a basement medical school classroom, taking an advanced course in neuroanatomy. I didn't know what to expect, and was surprised when we were instructed to grab gloves, a scalpel, and what could only be described as a brain in a bucket. Compared to the cadavers given to the physical therapy students who sometimes shared our lab space, we didn't have much information about our brains. Each cadaver was housed in a stainless steel table, the top of which detailed the name, age, sex, and cause of death of the cadaver inside. Our brains, on the other hand, were completely devoid of identifiers. The best we could do to humanize our subjects was carefully examine the substantia nigra to ascertain whether the donor suffered from Parkinson's disease.

I expected this work to throw me into a state of existential ennui: after all, I was holding in my hands everything that once made someone (someone who no longer existed) human. Strangely, it wasn't that strange. The brains quickly became objects. They could teach us, they interested us, and they made us go home smelling slightly of formaldehyde (I once found grey matter in my hair, which was enough to remind me to wear it up during lab days). Sure, we respected what they had once been, but we didn't let that freak us out.

When you think about donating your body to science, you likely imagine a similar scenario. Most anatomical donations (if you pick up this book, you'll soon learn all sorts of euphemisms for "bodies") are used by medical students and scientific researchers, in laboratories where they can learn about human anatomy. In her book Stiff, Mary Roach details the more unusual activities that bodies can participate in after death. She follows bodies everywhere, from decomposition labs to auto crash tests to the intestines of other humans. I'm not squeamish, but the books likely wouldn't bother me much if I was. Like my donated brain, the cadavers take on some sort of thingness, and objecthood. Roach means no disrespect, and she mentions that cadaver researchers use this objectification strategy to get through day-to-day life with the dead.

The only part of the book that bothered me was the chapter on plane crash analysis. When the black box sinks to the bottom of the ocean, the bodies can tell the story of what happened on the plane. You may not be surprised to find out that planes could be safer, but your life is not worth the extra money that would have to be spent on features like three point seat belts and airbags. As a fairly frequent flier, it made me a bit queasy. ...more

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Oct 15, 2008 bup rated it it was amazing

Shelves: science, favorites, 2008, halloween

I want to have Mary Roach's babies. This book is fantastic - morbid, funny, edifying. I want to have written this book. ...more

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Jun 16, 2011 Kathleen (itpdx) rated it liked it

Shelves: non-fiction

An interesting and lively exploration of what can happen to cadavers--from crash testing to plastination.

For many years I have wondered how medical examiners/law enforcement can come up with an estimate of how long a person has been dead when a body is found. And also whether the body has been moved. There is a chapter here on the testing that is being done to help determine that.

Roach's humor fell flat sometimes, for me. I don't think Elmer was considered a "humiliating first name" at the ti ...more

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Feb 05, 2011 Bridget rated it liked it

Just gave Stiff a second go. It's pretty interesting, and if I was more fascinated with corpses I could imagine finishing it. I'm just ultimately bored by all the dead bodies, strange as that is. The book is funny and I like Roach's style -- I just can't imagine the grossness of actually having to write it.

Update:

I finally finished this book when I had nothing else to read (kindle signal void) at the beach. I quite enjoyed the last few chapters on subjects such as living organ donation (scary) ...more

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Jan 31, 2008 Gabrielle rated it liked it

hmm. the scientist in me was fascinated by this book, but the part of me that is struggling to understand just what happens to our consciousness when we die hated this book =(.

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Feb 16, 2009 Edie Kestenbaum rated it it was amazing

Shelves: books-read-2013

So beautifully written. So intriguing. No, it isn't poetry. It's a book about dead bodies. But I almost forgot! Looking forward to reading the rest of Mary Roach's works. ...more

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