RICHMOND, Va. — "BODY WORLDS: The Anatomy of Happiness," which is now open at the Science Museum of Virginia, explores how contentment impacts the human body.
"Happiness is not just mental health. Happiness is a whole-body system," Rose Basom, the museum's David and Jane Cohn scientist, explained. "And it doesn't just affect our mental well-being it affects all of our organs overall."
Basom hopes that people reflect on what makes them happy after seeing the exhibit.
"Have a deeper understanding of the knowledge of what makes our bodies work, how they function and how those emotions affect those functions and feel more empowered to make the decisions that they do in their life," she said.
Basom said one of the things in the exhibit that makes her happy is the chocolate tower.
"Actually one of my favorite exhibits is this chocolate tower, and it's talking about how choices can lead to our feelings of happiness or feeling like, we're not particularly satisfied," Basom said.
Body Worlds features over 150 different specimens, from whole bodies to individual organs, showcasing the intricate workings of the human body.
"It's a fantastic exhibit that incorporates human plastinates," Basom said. "So specimens of the human body, from anatomy to nerves to bones, to give us a deeper understanding of how happiness affects not only our minds, but our entire bodies as well."
The exhibit offers an opportunity to learn about our bodies and see it in a method of preservation called plastination, which uses vacuum-force impregnation.
"So essentially, you're forcing polymers like silicone or resin into the body to preserve them for many years to come," Basom said. "Part of this plastination process involves carefully placing each of the muscles, each of the nerves, each of the vessels as they would appear naturally in life. So that's what's on display our natural positions and exactly as how they would have appeared in real life."
The specimens in the exhibit come from the Body Worlds Institute for Plastination in Heidelberg, Germany.
"They go through a really specific process called informed consent," Basom explained. "So anyone who is part of the exhibition has given living consent in order for their, their bodies to be displayed."
The Science Museum is offering a variety of complementary programming to Body Worlds, which runs through Labor Day, with extended hours on Fridays from 5– 8 p.m. with $10 discounted ticket.
Click here for more information about "BODY WORLDS: The Anatomy of Happiness."
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