A new exhibition, opening at NIH's National Library of Medicine, traces the history of forensic medicine--the efforts of physicians, surgeons and other specialists to translate views of bodies and body parts into hard evidence or "visible proofs" that testify on behalf of the victims of violent crime and against the guilty. Visible Proofs: Forensic Views of the Body opens Thursday, February 16, 2006, 10:00 a.m. with a special program featuring several of the persons portrayed in the exhibition. Special press previews are available by appointment, too, February 8-15. (Please see end of this release for details on opening event, press previews, exhibition hours and location, and sample images.)
"Visible Proofs pulls back the curtain on the field of forensic medicine, which is so much a part of our lives today through the parade of popular crime shows, novels and movies," noted Donald A.B. Lindberg, MD, Director of the National Library of Medicine. "But this exhibition is rooted entirely in fact, not fiction. We reach all the way back to medieval times to show how medical professionals around the world have, over the centuries, developed methods for seeing inside the body and making visible what the untrained, unequipped eye cannot."
"This rich tapestry of stories and scientific information is quite contemporary, too," explained Elizabeth Fee, PhD, Director of NLM's History of Medicine Division. "Today, we increasingly rely on DNA analysis, whether to persuade judges and juries or to help identify the victims of disasters like Hurricane Katrina. How has that science evolved? Visible Proofs shows how forensic
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Contact: Robert Mehnert
publicinfo@nlm.nih.gov
301-496-6308
NIH/National Library of Medicine
3-Feb-2006