FRIENDS ARE FOR LOVING NOT FOR EATING

it does not matter how prime their ribs and haunches are I AM SERIOUS KEVIN, PUT THAT FORK AWAY

(okay maybe one kidney is alright) (but only with consent)

[repeat until learned]

source

Vertical Longitudinal Section - Human Head

Sagittal section taken slightly right of the median line of the body. The grey matter of the brain is tinted red, everything else is painted "natural hues". Designed to show the relations between the head and neck structures, particularly the brain, turbinate bones, nares, mouth, and pharynx. 

From the National Museum of Health and Medicine on Flickr. Preparation created in 1886. Photograph taken in the 20th century.

"Van Gogh gave you an ear? Well I'll give you my entire skin!"

The skin is the largest organ in the human - and yes, its secretory and absorptive properties mean that it's an organ!

In the adult human, the surface area of our epidermis (the only exposed layer of the skin) is approximately 1.5-2.0 square meters (16.5-21.5 sq. ft.).

There are six primary functions of the skin (some argue seven, including aesthetics and signalling to other members of our tribe), and two secondary functions:

Skin is nothing short of a hard-working organ that deserves at least as much credit as your lungs. Blemishes and spots and "discolorations" are no detriment to its functionality - love the skin you're in! It's one of the most important reasons why you're not constantly sick!

Anatomia del corpo humano. Juan Valverde de Amusco, 1560.

Human Central Nervous System and Peripheral Nervous System Connections

The central nervous system (CNS) of the human consists of the brain, spinal cord, and cranial nerve II (the optic nerve which connects to the eyeball).

When compared to the peripheral nervous system (PNS), the CNS differs in several key ways. It's largely autonomic (requires no input for it to work) instead of voluntary, is much more protected (by bone and the blood-brain barrier), and interprets input, rather than integrating it.

As the PNS is much less protected, it's vulnerable to damage by toxins, disease, mechanical injury, and autoimmune disorders. The degenerative conditions of the CNS are almost always hereditary.

Dictionnaire Universel d'Histoire Naturelle. Charles d'Orbigny, 1849.

Heart Inside Pericardial Sac

There are two layers to the pericardium: the outer fibrous pericardium, which is the tough tissue that protects the heart and anchors it in place, and the inner serous pericardium, which further cushions the heart against trauma and lubricates the area between the muscle and tough fibrous pericardium, so that no friction is formed while the heart pumps blood.

Atlas and Text-Book of Topographic and Applied Anatomy. Oskar Schultz and George D. Stewart, 1905.

HOKAY NO MORE HEIGHT QUESTIONS

<3 I've gotten about 15 anons (and, thankfully, several non-anons) in the past 2 hours, and while I'd love to help you all, I really really cant.

Trust me, you're cool even if you're below average or way above average or two feet tall! Don't worry about it, and if you want to know the reasons why, your doctor knows way more than me ^_^

North Island Moa (Dinoris novazealandiae), high-class Māori in kakapo and kiwi feather robe, and Haast's Eagle (Harpagornis moorei)

The Haast's Eagle (Harpagornis moorei) was the largest known raptor to exist - while there were larger birds that existed, no larger birds of prey have been found in the fossil record so far. It was huge, large enough to easily take away a small human child, and create a significant injury threat to even the largest adult humans.

When the Polynesian people known as the Maori arrived in New Zealand, around C.E. 1250-1300, the Haast's eagle and moa would have been dangerous and defining creatures in their lives. While the moa was not a big meat-eater, it could kick (and possibly kill) a human more easily than an ostrich can, and would not have hesitated to do so, if threatened.

However, with their already-advanced spears and javelins, and their ingenuity with hunting and shelter-building, the Maori easily overcame the threat of the moa - by 1400, the giant bird was no more. Unfortunately, with its primary food source gone, the Haast's eagle also went extinct, shortly after the moa. Today, birds like the kakapo, kiwi, taiko, and takahe, are all critically endangered, because of human influence and habitat destruction. New Zealand's island environment, with its few airborne predators and unusual evolutionary pressures, has lead to extremely specialized birds, and they unfortunately adapt poorly to a modern world that has feral cats, rats, and poachers. While conservationists attempt to protect them from the pressures of non-island life, there is little telling what the future holds for them.

Images: Extinct Birds. Lionel Walter Rothschild, 1907.

A History of the Birds of New Zealand. Walter Lawry Buller, 1873.

"Ancient DNA Tells Story of Ancient Eagle Evolution". Art: John Megahan, 2005.

Reginald Southey with human and monkey skeleton

Albumen photograph by Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (nom de plume Lewis Caroll, author of Alice in Wonderland), 1857.

Reginald Southey was an English physician who invented a specialized cannula (tube) for draining the excess fluid from limbs suffering from edema (dropsy). He also apparently served on England's "Lunacy Commission" so...there's that. Southey was lifelong friends with Charles Lutwidge Dodgson and was the one who encouraged him to take up photography.

The pensive expression on Southey's face betrays the fact that he's standing with his arm around a skeleton rather than a live human. The composition of the photograph and the portrayal of the abnormal as mundane strikes me as incredibly reminiscent of the worlds Dodgson created in his writings.

Skull of juvenile Bornean orangutan (top) compared to adult Homo sapiens

Like most great apes, Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) have large, sharp, canine teeth. However, these do not grow in until the juvenile orangutan loses its milk teeth, a couple years after weaning (typically between 4-6 years of age).

You can see the evolutionary differences in diet between orangutans and humans, simply by looking at the teeth and shape of the skull. The orangutan has large, broad molars, sharp incisors, and mandibular musculature that has a very broad attachment point on the skull. Bornean orangutans are generally vegetarian, feeding on leaves, berries, and even bark at times. The broad molars are necessary for grinding and breaking down roughage in their diet.

While the human skull given is not the best example, we have smaller molars, weaker mandibular muscles, and fairly dull incisors and canines. Homo sapiens evolved as strict omnivores, but with a very distinct difference from our more simian (and even most of our hominid) ancestors - we cooked our food. Though the roughage early humanity consumed was much tougher than what we eat today (unless you eat roots and nutmeats as a primary diet), cooking foods such as meats and roots broke them down before we ate them. Our skulls required less space for jaws and jaw muscles, and we required less energy to eat than ever before.

Die Säugthiere in Abbildungen nach der Natur. J.C.D. Schreber, 1774.