A formative experience arose in my second year during our introductory anatomy course by Professor Philip Tobias. We were obliged to take the Hippocratic oath before being allowed into the dissection halls. This introduction to anatomy was, therefore, one of our first entries as privileged people into the worlds and bodies of others, teaching us to maintain respectfulness and humility. Professor Tobias explained that we were going to spend a very intense year among the odors of formalin, delving into the secret innards of dead people, and that the body in the end would be a mere remnant of the former person. The muscles and nerves would be exposed, the organs removed, and the face, the former mark and feature of a unique individual, would lose its identity. This experience inspired me to realize that biology, anatomy, medicine, health, disease, and life itself is an integrated experience. Learning the one was not possible in isolation. In fact I learned that nothing is, exists, happens in isolation.
In order to instill a perspective of the eventual purpose to this seemingly destructive method of learning, Professor Tobias invited a duet of professional classical ballet dancers and a pair of black belt karate experts into the lecture room. He wanted them to display the beauty and form that pieces of muscle, nerve and gut can actually accomplish in their prime of health, when structure and function are in perfect harmony. To this he added the element of a creative soul that drove these four people to their expressive peaks.
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Study of Anatomy Through Dissection Remember The Beauty of Form and Function When It all Works Together 01900.800 adrenal aorta IVC kidney liver lung small bowel ureter diaphragm normal fetal lobation neonate growth time gross anatomy Davidoff MD87162pb01bs.8 dance beauty of form and function grace coordination Davidoff art Davidoff photography copyright 2008
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Cells and Tissues The Liver13440 liver hepatocytes cells cytology histology normal 5star Courtesy Barbara Banner MD13236 liver hepatocyte liver cords sinusoids cytoplasmic granules connective tissue reticulin histopathology histology Courtesy Barbara Banner MD
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The Organs The Normal Heart and Coronary Arteries 22390c01s heart cardiac normal coronary arteries left ventricle left anterior descending artery diagonal arteries circumflex coronary artery barium injection normal anatomy pathology Davidoff photography copyright 2008 high resolution
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FROM THE ATOM TO THE SOLAR SYSTEM The collage takes us from the proton (top left) through to element and molecule and finally to strands of DNA in the first row. The second row starts with a group of cells advances to the tissues, to the organ which in this case is the liver. The third row represents units2unity from the organ (liver with its connections (arteries and veins to body systems and the body. The fourth row advances from the body to the person, couple family home community. The last row is the village advancing to the city, state country earth and solar system. Note the similarity between the proton and the earth, and between the atom and solar system. 13440c11.8 Davidoff art copyright 2008
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Dance of the Butterflies80753pb01.800 Dancers Arielle Davidoff art Davidoff photography Courtesy Ashley Davidoff MD
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Dance of the Body46580b02.800 body dance brain nerve muscle Davidoff art
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Angels in Blue 83664.800 Angels in Blue Dance Davidoff Art
The Tree Airway tree flower tracheobronchial tree trachea bronchi lung Davidoff tree Davidoff Art flower tracheobronchial tree trachea bronchi lung Davidoff tree Davidoff Art 32620b14.8
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More Trees in the Chest Pulmonary Circulation 46649c01.800 lung pulmonary artery pulmonary trunk Davidoff Trees Davidoff Art lung pulmonary artery pulmonary trunk Davidoff Trees Davidoff Art
Alveoli of the Lung – Factory Workers
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This is a drawing of a cluster of alveoli surrounded by the capillary network, fed by an arteriole in blue, and drained by a venule in red. Courtesy of Ashley Davidoff M.D. 32164 code RS lung alveolus respiratory bronchiole artery vein pulmonary capillary normal anatomy histology drawing
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This is a drawing of a cluster of alveoli surrounded by the capillary network, fed by an arteriole in blue, and drained by a venule in red. The second image shows the exchange of life giving oxygen for the by product of metabolic activity – carbon dioxide Courtesy of Ashley Davidoff M.D. 32164 32165 code RS lung alveolus respiratory bronchiole artery vein pulmonary capillary normal anatomy histology drawing
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The Alveoli Tubes For Transport Large Surface Area For Exchange Grapes of the lung – alveoli This artistic rendition of the workhorses of the lung – the alveoli – the appearance of the alveoli around the terminal airways has been likened to bunch of grapes.Davidoff art 32645a04b01.800
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Feelings The Somatosensory Cortex – Post Central Gyrus83029b01.8s brain somatosensory cortex parietal lobe medial longitudinal fissure medially central sulcus anteriorly postcentral sulcus posteriorly lateral sulcus inferiorly location of primary somatosensory cortex main sensory receptive area touch. maps sensory space homunculus in this location The Common vein Davidoff art
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Shoulder Bridge This A-P examination of the right shoulder of a young adult shows a healed fracture of the middle of the right clavicle with reasonable anatomical alignment. The patient can probably feel a fullness overlying the area. CODE Clavicle Shoulder Humerus glenoid fracture simple trauma healed normal X-ray Plain film bone shoulder joint clavicle fx healed fracture trauma normal humerus normal scapula 39177.800 Ashley Davidoff MD
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Youth on the Run64163b01 health youth age time physiology boy running happy davidoff photgraphy Davidoff MD
A Delicate strings of Life
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A close-up view if the resilient tiger lily in orange glory. Two delicate threads of a spider web sit delicately between the petal and a bud. 02120p Davidoff photography
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The Breasts
79560p.800 flowers breasts structure anatomy Davidoff art Davidoff photography TCV applied biology The Common
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The Breasts – Functional Beauty
Skin Deep
42657b16a Courtesy Ashley Davidoff MD breast lobule duct nipple fat glands glandular tissue normal anatomy drawing art
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Macrophage many Arms of the Law
71680b04.800 reticuloendothelial system macrophage cell wbc protection immune scavenger leukocyte white cell Davidoff art Davidoff MD normal cytology
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Droplets on Leaves Catching the Water65423 leaves leaf water droplets rain forces green shape sphere cohesion Davidoff MD Davidoff photography
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Mountain Farms in Peru
How do they Change the Form of the Mountain to CAtch the Water and Create a Farm in the Mountains?
0178.800 Peru farm wall units to unity mountains vertical agriculture food the common vein applied biology Davidoff photography Davidoff MD
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Black Bird at the Commons
Secrets of Flight82056pb01.800 bird black drying off The Commons Boston Davidoff MD
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Portal Circulation
Roots Sustenance Nutrition Branching and Flourishing
The tree has a root system below and a branching system above. The nature of the tree and biology is to be gifted a brief period to enable us to borrow from the earth, and to evolve the raw products toward the heavens. (Davidoff art)45828b12.800
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A Tube Blowing off Steam
Chimney from the Underground
Smoke in New York city Courtesy Ashley Davidoff code accessory interesting chimney tube smoke New York 2001p
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Welcome to the Home of My Seed
Please Feel Free to Partake and Distribute
Cosmos
89309p.8s flower Cosmos red green dark pink Davidoff Art Davidoff photography copyright 2008 Portsmouth New Hampshire
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Beyond the Flowers – Not so still life82715p Davidoff art
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Shopping At the SuperMarket- Bags of Food to Take Home
Plastic or Paper? No Thanks Just Dump Em on My Legs
Oh Heck Spilled Some on the Leaves!02100p Davidoff photography
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I Might Look Pretty – But I am MAde For Work not For Comfort
Flowers on a Chair82749p Property of Janine and David Goldstein Photography Talya Davidoff art
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Reap Transport Store
Gathering on a farm in Pennsylvania02512p food farm gathering receiving packing transporting TCV the common vein Davidoff photography
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Selling Souvenirs in Peru
06046pb01.8s Peru function streetside people Indian mountains selling souvenirs Davidoff photography copyright 2009 all rights reserved
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Finding The Centre of Gravity
Power of the Vestibular System and the The Spine57984.800 farm red peppers vegetables South Africa gather picking transport work Davidoff photography
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The Red Onion
Storing the Carbohydrates in Layers of Tight Shelves
84411p.800 red onion parts making up the whole units to unity vegetable Davidoff photography
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The Liver
Clockwork purple – 24/7
A Model of Efficiency – And Quite Beautiful Too
44426b01 liver hepatic clockwork purple anatomy Davidoff art
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Strings of the Heart
Anatomic image of the chordae affixing to the apex of the anterior leaflet of TV. The tip of the anterolateral papillary muscle can be seen at the bottom of the image. This muscle as previously noted is constant and characteristic of the RV. Courtesy of Ashley Davidoff M.D. 32097
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Brooklyn Suspension Bridge Upside Down
13268b.81 Brooklyn Bridge suspension bridge upside down lines and strings cables water New York Manahattan Brooklyn Davidoff photography Courtesy Ashley Davidoff MD
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Strings of the Heart From Above
The most beautiful feature of the LA (in my opinion of course) is its view of the anterior leaflet of the mitral valve through the annulus. To see the chordae and the sail of the anterior leaflet biphasically flap-flapping must be a sight to behold. Courtesy of Ashley Davidoff M.D. code cardiac heart normal MV mitral valve anatomy 32106
70125b01.800 A brown horse in a green meadow early in the spring Courtesy Ashley Davidoff MD code accessory interesting horse brown Davidoff photography
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Phone Line Toys of Line Wire Rays of Sun
Two boys play barefoot with complex homemade toys in the hills of the Drakensberg mountains in South Africa – in the dawn of the sunset Courtesy Ashley Davidoff MD. Davidoff photography 5 star 02105p01 code accessory interesting toy boy rural sunset
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Cells Clustered Around the Transport System
Gland and its Ductule39939b05 Courtesy Ashley Davidoff MD
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Parts of the lungs82738p chest lung connective tissue pulmonary artery pulmonary vein axial interstitial tissue secondary lobule lobes segments trachea bronchi interlobular septa polygonal Davidoff art
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Another tree of Functional Efficiency
The Splenic Artery
82068b07b02s spleen artery splenic artery trees in the body normal anatomy trees in the body Davidoff art Courtesy Ashley Davidoff copyright 2008
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A Transport System
The Biliary Tree
46411b11.800 interesting accessory Davidoff art
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The Spine
After Chagall – The Circus Rider, c.192782045.8s Chagall horse circus angel art and medicine Art Institute of Chicago Davidoff Art
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Breast -A Gland with an Arborizing Pattern of Efficiency
Another Tree of the Body46791c02b01.800 breast glandular tissue applied biology appliued anatomy Davidoff art Davidoff trees
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Breast Tree in Bloom46792b09.800 breast glandular tissue applied biology appliued anatomy Davidoff art Davidoff trees