View Full Version : The plastinated Giant Squid returns
Steve O'Shea
Mar 08, '10, 2:38pm
After 5 years we'll soon see what a marvelous job Dr Gunther von Hagens has done with a giant squid sent to him in December 2004.
Here's a sneak preview (http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn18619-giant-squid-get-radical-plastic-surgery.html). I haven't been so excited in a while! There's a lot of video this side prior to the squid being sent .... it looks like it was in REALLY bad condition .... (but it wasn't; it just needs some TLC after a long flight, and to be immersed in a preservative).
I was having a bit of fun with the reporter in a long conversation; she chose to write some of the less-than-academic statements in the release. Sigh.
DWhatley
Mar 08, '10, 3:06pm
I assume the referenced exhibit is the one that shows all parts of the human body. I missed it when it came here but my chiropractor went and has several copies of the book in her waiting area so I have been through it several times. Quite fasinating.
Would you rather be set in a pose to battle the squid rather than riding it? :wink: I, on the other hand, like my staff photo :gigas:
body works is amazing. I saw the exhibit a few years ago when it was in San Antonio..I would love to see a squid and a whale! I love anatomy..seeing bodyworks is an incredible experience. Is the squid whole or opening layers like all her bodies are?
Yeah, I've seen two "Body Worlds" exhibits that were both fascinating. :welcome: to the plastic squiddie!
Teuthman
Mar 09, '10, 4:52pm
This sounds awesome. I never got around to seeing the body works exhibit but I would make a special trip to see a Giant Squid ( I promise that I will try as hard as I can not to touch it) if get puts on display. Any plans for plastinating a Colossal Squid?
If you are not up for being plastinated riding the squid than I totally am.
DWhatley
Mar 09, '10, 5:21pm
From what my chiropractor said, you can touch the exhibits :mrgreen:
Steve O'Shea
Mar 11, '10, 9:19pm
T minus 3 days ....
Steve O'Shea
Mar 11, '10, 11:18pm
Update .... T minus 5 days (we're dealing with ships and bureaucracy)
Pray it makes it past Skull Island....
DWhatley
Mar 12, '10, 5:32am
as well a jurassic park
Not to mention R'lyeh :shock:
Steve O'Shea
Mar 13, '10, 3:12pm
T minus 3 days .... and counting
myopsida
Mar 14, '10, 2:48pm
You realise that MAF Quarantine will seize it and refuse to allow it into the country until it has been fumigated...
Steve O'Shea
Mar 14, '10, 3:34pm
Yup; am dealing with these issues now. The ship reaches NZ today. :madsci:
T minus 2 and counting.
Steve O'Shea
Mar 15, '10, 3:16pm
T minus 1 ..... and beginning to lose count!
Steve O'Shea
Mar 16, '10, 3:17pm
T minus ...., plus ...., who knows. T minus Q. DEFCON 2
myopsida
Mar 17, '10, 1:51am
T minus ...., plus ...., who knows. T minus Q. DEFCON 2
and so the days passed...summer extended into autumn....autumn into winter (almost)...and Dr O' waits... and waits.....it seemed to everyone else but a short time but how the time dragged....and dragged...on into the nights...how many more big sleeps will he have to wait?
Steve O'Shea
Mar 17, '10, 3:06am
Aint that the truth!
DEFCON 1
Issues with permits, GST, forms, letters, forms and letters ..... all for a dead plastic squid.
MAYBE tomorrow. MAYBE.
I believe you are at DEFCON 5, as that is the highest alert level (scale of one to five). I know this because I watched the movie "War Games" in the 1980's.
You have "issues"...
You don't know why...
Think again...
:no_diamond:
Steve O'Shea
Mar 17, '10, 3:11pm
LOL
DEFCON 5+
need :wine:
Maybe today ....... maybe
Steve O'Shea
Mar 17, '10, 3:45pm
DEFCON 8
Steve O'Shea
Mar 17, '10, 4:49pm
DEFCON 4 .... no taxes to pay!
WhiteKiboko
Mar 17, '10, 5:12pm
Lower DEFCON = worse.
I think you should smear their houses in whale goo until they clear everything.
Stupid Matthew Broderick (http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/DEFCON?wasRedirected=true) (i blame him for my bad memory)
DWhatley
Mar 17, '10, 8:46pm
T -1 and Holding?
myopsida
Mar 17, '10, 10:38pm
DEFEC 8?
CaptFish
Mar 17, '10, 10:41pm
I think he's too busy playing with it to post.....
DWhatley
Mar 17, '10, 11:28pm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DEFCON
Steve O'Shea
Mar 18, '10, 5:45am
Sigh. T plus whatever - q to power of xyz!
I'm afraid I'm not playing with a giant rubber squid at present, but wish I was. Tomorrow I buy a bottle of bubbly, some dark beers, several rough reds (picture TONMOCON in Florida when we had a cart of the stuff!).
I will miss American Idol tomorrow night, if that squid arrives .... and NOTHING normally would keep me from American Idol (A HUGE Simon Cowell fan!).
Hopefully I will be able to post pics tomorrow of bloodshot eyes next to said squid .... DEFCON :wine: (having given up on numbers).
cuttlegirl
Mar 18, '10, 7:45am
I will miss American Idol tomorrow night, if that squid arrives .... and NOTHING normally would keep me from American Idol (A HUGE Simon Cowell fan!).
You don't want to miss this episode - Simon is being Simon... good luck!
Somehow it doesn't surprise me that you are a Simon Cowell fan... :roll:
Steve O'Shea
Mar 18, '10, 4:03pm
BP through the roof!
Steve O'Shea
Mar 19, '10, 3:27am
T plus 3 .... don't ask. Nothing proves as simple as it 'could' be. It will arrive, but for me the days grow longer, and time passes at glacial speed.
WhiteKiboko
Mar 19, '10, 3:59am
Whale goo son, whale goo.
Steve O'Shea
Mar 20, '10, 3:47pm
T minus 1 (deja vu), and off to attend to a whale stranding ....
WhiteKiboko
Mar 21, '10, 12:52am
Oh Stevey boy, the scent, the scent is calling...
Steve O'Shea
Mar 21, '10, 3:10pm
It was ripe!
T minus, plus, minus, plus .... Please, please, pretty please let it be today!
Steve O'Shea
Mar 21, '10, 4:04pm
DEFCON 2
It will not be today! Tomorrow maybe, perhaps Wednesday. I'm glad my life doesn't depend on this ... it's a shame my sanity does though!
Don't worry too much, it's only half a squid, after all :wink:
Steve O'Shea
Mar 22, '10, 12:35am
DEFCON 1, T + 2 .....
Beyond a joke!
Steve O'Shea
Mar 22, '10, 5:46am
I am most miserable
Oh, cheer up lad! There's plenty of more squid in the sea, and alternatively, there's always
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyXgTHvO1MA&feature=fvwe1
CaptFish
Mar 22, '10, 9:54am
Oh man, I can only imagine the agony you are going through. I dont even get to see it and I'm anxious for it to be there already! Why is there such a hold up with it?
Teuthman
Mar 23, '10, 4:04am
The suspense is killing me!!!!
Steve O'Shea
Mar 23, '10, 6:17am
Well, all I can say is that I know no more than anyone else! I've given up on T, and DEFCON. Right now I am just thoroughly disillusioned. I will post pics when the darn thing arrives, but I am afraid that I can no longer structure my days on the offchance that the thing will arrive - there's a backlog of work to do.
We're kind-of totally burnt out now.
It will happen, and soon(ish)
Steve O'Shea
Mar 23, '10, 7:10pm
DEFCON 1
Steve blew! :mad:
Expect an ETA tomorrow
myopsida
Mar 23, '10, 8:23pm
I am most miserable
I have a plastinated octopus - its not very big, only about 80 mm long but I could send it to you so you can dream . . . . . .
Steve O'Shea
Mar 23, '10, 8:53pm
I have a plastinated octopus - its not very big, only about 80 mm long but I could send it to you so you can dream . . . . . .
You most dark and dastardly evil tease!
Steve O'Shea
Mar 23, '10, 9:18pm
Mid-day tomorrow!! 21 hours and 43 minutes ..... and counting
Steve O'Shea
Mar 24, '10, 1:46pm
5 hours, 13 mins .....
Steve O'Shea
Mar 24, '10, 2:38pm
4 hours, 20 mins ....
CaptFish
Mar 24, '10, 3:25pm
3 hours 35 mins....
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l191/captfish/anticipation.jpg (http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l191/captfish/anticipation.jpg)
Steve O'Shea
Mar 24, '10, 4:46pm
LOL
2 hours, 14 mins ....
Steve O'Shea
Mar 24, '10, 5:58pm
1 hour, 2 mins ....
CaptFish
Mar 24, '10, 6:20pm
down to the minutes! Can you sense its presence yet?
Steve O'Shea
Mar 24, '10, 6:20pm
.... 40 mins
CaptFish
Mar 24, '10, 7:03pm
Well.....
Steve O'Shea
Mar 24, '10, 9:02pm
:)
myopsida
Mar 24, '10, 9:53pm
Well now that the boring part is over, can you update the forum on rumours that part II of von Hagen's project involves the plastination of one teuthologist who will be mounted forever perched on top of said squid, holding aloft a laminated copy of Neil Diamond news clipping to give the exhibit some sort of context and interest?:bugout:
CaptFish
Mar 24, '10, 10:11pm
T + 3 hours 10 minutes...at least tell us if it squeaks when you squeeze it?!
Steve O'Shea
Mar 24, '10, 10:34pm
Gimme a few mins; am just exhausted
Steve O'Shea
Mar 24, '10, 10:58pm
I just took a couple of quick snaps; so many other photos are out there .... so many people!
The squid is almost too long for the room (boardroom); more to follow, but not today
Cheers
CaptFish
Mar 24, '10, 11:08pm
That is SOOOOO cool!!! I like the eyes, are they glass? I can only imagine how it feels.
Omega
Mar 24, '10, 11:22pm
i think that makes my day
mucktopus
Mar 24, '10, 11:30pm
Those are some fantastic book ends!
DWhatley
Mar 25, '10, 12:08am
I was wondering how it feels too :wink: Laughed aloud at the bookend comment though.
Maybe only half of it goes in the boardroom and the other half gets added to your office collection :shock:
Are the organs preserved?
"It's awfully quiet out there..."
"Yeah, too quiet..."
Steve O'Shea
Mar 25, '10, 4:09am
The organs didn't work too well - what we have are stomach, caecum and parts of the oesophagus; and the testis sac. The digestive gland and most of the alimentary canal from the stomach to the buccal bulb are missing. So, from an anatomical perspective, not the best - but I do recall the digestive gland of one of them having ruptured during transit to the University being a beach-cast specimen I don't recall which one), so the poor anatomical condition is likely a consequence of its slightly 'decomposed' nature upon receipt. You cannot order a giant squid to specification - it is very much an opportunistic exercise, unless of course (:wink:) you are :drk:
I am still a very happy person! Probably one of the happiest out there! I drank a few bottles of red next to my new friends tonight :smile: (with company of course)
Steve O'Shea
Mar 25, '10, 4:13am
Those are some fantastic book ends!
LOL. 5 metres long they are!! I should have had a person in there for scale; I will do so soon.
DWhatley
Mar 25, '10, 4:15am
Is the beak still attached somwhere? How about a filpped over view so we can at least see what IS there.
Steve O'Shea
Mar 25, '10, 4:19am
The beak is there D. I ruined my back and arms today, and am pretty burnt out; tomorrow I'll post something a little more creative, photo-wise
DWhatley
Mar 25, '10, 4:22am
I meant to add, not today but later when there are other people available so as not to injure something or someone. What time is it there?
Steve O'Shea
Mar 25, '10, 4:59am
'bout 10 (pm); gonna sign off. TTFN
DWhatley
Mar 25, '10, 5:03am
I am still up (5:00 AM) reading your New Yorker's Lost City of Z :wink:
Is the swirly pupil just an artistic embellishment, or does Architeuthis actually have such a peculiar aperture? I had thought they had round pupils...
They have, it's embellishment....
http://i260.photobucket.com/albums/ii37/blaauw67/mega-squid03.jpg
http://i260.photobucket.com/albums/ii37/blaauw67/Archieeye.jpg
Damien
Apr 09, '10, 4:05am
Is it the same plastination process that was used to preserv french national museum squid given by you ?
Steve O'Shea
Apr 14, '10, 5:31am
I'm not sure if it is the 'exact same' process, and I cannot comment on the appearance of two specimens that I've donated (that wouldn't be nice) .... but all I will say is that I love the specimen that I have and it is VERY realistic, whereas ....