Medicine + Technology + Art

When I think of medicine the first thing that comes into my mind is a hospital and saving lives. I never really thought to relate plastic surgery to medicine because nowadays most people do it for aesthetics.

http://nymag.com/news/features/48948/

When Professor Vesna mentioned that reconstructive surgery has been around for hundreds of years it was a little hard to believe. Reconstructive surgery was first introduced during World War I; its main purpose was to repair or re-create a body part that was blown off or disfigured during battle. In my opinion, these doctors weren't trying to make the soldiers look prettier, they were trying to make sure that these soldiers could continue living a normal life without the hinderance of a missing nose.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/history/9396435/Pioneering-plastic-surgery-records-from-First-World-War-published.html

Nowadays, many celebrities and those with enough money, will opt for surgery instead of accepting their appearances. In South Korea, plastic surgery is so common that almost every street corner has an advertisement for plastic surgery. During my stay in Korea, when I would go to Gangnam (a rich neighborhood in Seoul, S.K.) I could spot many women and men that had gotten either double eyelid or higher nose or both. 

http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/s-korea-painful-beauty-fad-bone-cutting-jaw-surgery-article-1.1356287

Why is it that people would want a new face? 

I found an interesting article about how beautiful people get more job interviews. Is everyone trying to make themselves prettier just to be noticed and liked. Why are having skills and a great personality not enough?

http://www.businessinsider.com/beautiful-people-get-more-job-interviews-2013-9

Plastic surgery always reminds me about the film Gattaca. It is a science fiction film about a society that is genetically engineered. Parents can pick out the genes they want for their child such as 20/20 vision, eye color, etc. Gattaca raises the concern that society is becoming superficial and will soon be entirely based on biotechnology. People are being customized, which produces a society where the "inferior" can never coincide with the "superior".

http://www.nature.com/scitable/topicpage/genetic-inequality-human-genetic-engineering-768

Everything in science always begins with a good purpose, but after a while people get greedy and begin to use it for their own "benefit". I really appreciate the advancement of medicine, but in the end it should be used to heal wounds not ego's.


Digital Images:

N.d. Photograph. n.p. Web. 27 Oct 2013. <http://www.bernardhealth.com/Portals/131307/images/Plastic_Sugery.jpg>.

N.d. Photograph. n.p. Web. 27 Oct 2013. <http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02275/PLastic-Surgery_2275673b.jpg>.

N.d. Photograph. n.p. Web. 27 Oct 2013. <http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.1356291.1369751514!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_635/double-jaw-surgery.jpg>.


Works Cited:

Nisen, Max. "Check Out How Much More Often Beautiful Women Get Callbacks For Job Interviews." Business Insider. N.p., 9 Sept. 2013. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

Furness, Hannah. "Pioneering Plastic Surgery Records from First World War Published."The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, 13 July 2012. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

"Gattaca - Movie Trailer." YouTube. YouTube, 14 Apr. 2010. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

Meter, Jonathan V. "New York Magazine." NYMag.com. N.p., 3 Aug. 2008. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

"Double-jaw Surgery Is the Latest Extreme Addition to South Korea's Plastic Surgery Fad." NY Daily News. N.p., 28 May 2013. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.

Simmons, Danielle. "Genetic Inequality: Human Genetic Engineering." Nature.com. Nature Publishing Group, 2008. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.