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decapitated heads
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read the other day that the brain doesn't die until 8 to 10 seconds afterthe head has been chopped off and there is strong evidence of the head still being aware of its surroundings in terms of eyes following movement around the room, any experts amongst us who can verify this?
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Wikipedia says,
Decapitation is invariably fatal, as brain death occurs within seconds to minutes without the support of the organism's body. There is no way to provide life support for a severed head with current medical techniques.
An even more gruesome issue is whether a decapitated head retains consciousness after separation from the body. The issue has been debated many times {1}, especially in the context of whether beheading is or is not a humane form of execution (see below). No definitive answer has ever emerged. Many have argued that loss of consciousness would be virtually instantaneous, either as a result of the massive drop in cerebral blood pressure, or because of the impact of the severing implement. Nevertheless, anecdotal evidence, of varying degrees of credibility, has circulated for centuries that victims may, under some circumstances, retain consciousness for at least a few seconds.
The body of a decapitated chicken was once known to live for an additional 18 months. (See Mike the Headless Chicken).
Later went on to become John Prescott.
Full story can be found here.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decapitation
Decapitation is invariably fatal, as brain death occurs within seconds to minutes without the support of the organism's body. There is no way to provide life support for a severed head with current medical techniques.
An even more gruesome issue is whether a decapitated head retains consciousness after separation from the body. The issue has been debated many times {1}, especially in the context of whether beheading is or is not a humane form of execution (see below). No definitive answer has ever emerged. Many have argued that loss of consciousness would be virtually instantaneous, either as a result of the massive drop in cerebral blood pressure, or because of the impact of the severing implement. Nevertheless, anecdotal evidence, of varying degrees of credibility, has circulated for centuries that victims may, under some circumstances, retain consciousness for at least a few seconds.
The body of a decapitated chicken was once known to live for an additional 18 months. (See Mike the Headless Chicken).
Later went on to become John Prescott.
Full story can be found here.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decapitation
There have been - mostly rather dubious - reports that the eyes and mouth of a lopped-off head - as in French guillotine executions - do show signs of movement. The most credible was by a Doctor Beaurieux who attended an execution in 1905. He mentioned lip and eyelid motion and - when he shouted the man's name twice - he claims the eyes opened and actually focussed on him both times! He describes the eyes as "undeniably living" and believes the process lasted about 30 seconds.
Antoine Lavoisier, the father of modern chemistry, was supposedly prepared to experiment to the end...and beyond. Before his execution in 1794, it is claimed that he said that he would try to communicate by blinking immediately after decapitation. The story goes that his head did so several times. Marie Antoinette, too - or it could have been the murderess, Charlotte Corday, depending on whose story you listen to - is said to have blushed angrily when her severed head was slapped. (With no blood-flow?)
In a British context, while Earl Waltheof's neck was already on the block in 1076, he was reciting �The Lord's Prayer'. The headman's axe descended before he had quite finished and the story is that the words: "But deliver us from evil. Amen" were reportedly spoken by the severed head. (In the absence of airflow and a connected voice-box etc, I'm not sure how that supposedly worked...but it's a good story!)
Although all of these tales are almost certainly apocryphal, it has been calculated that the human brain has enough stored oxygen to function for about seven seconds after the head is severed. Presumably, therefore, some form of �consciousness' could conceivably remain for some period of time.
Antoine Lavoisier, the father of modern chemistry, was supposedly prepared to experiment to the end...and beyond. Before his execution in 1794, it is claimed that he said that he would try to communicate by blinking immediately after decapitation. The story goes that his head did so several times. Marie Antoinette, too - or it could have been the murderess, Charlotte Corday, depending on whose story you listen to - is said to have blushed angrily when her severed head was slapped. (With no blood-flow?)
In a British context, while Earl Waltheof's neck was already on the block in 1076, he was reciting �The Lord's Prayer'. The headman's axe descended before he had quite finished and the story is that the words: "But deliver us from evil. Amen" were reportedly spoken by the severed head. (In the absence of airflow and a connected voice-box etc, I'm not sure how that supposedly worked...but it's a good story!)
Although all of these tales are almost certainly apocryphal, it has been calculated that the human brain has enough stored oxygen to function for about seven seconds after the head is severed. Presumably, therefore, some form of �consciousness' could conceivably remain for some period of time.
-- answer removed --
I thought I had contributed to this debate but it was only on re-reading I realised I hadnt.
I thought it was Brown-Sequard who had paid a convict to react when he went up and shouted his name. however Beaurieux' report is at:
http://www.metaphor.dk/guillotine/Pages/30sec. html
There are good reasons why he shouldbe deeply unconscious, and that is because the section is at a level of the brain where if you do it in an animal, deep unconsciousness results. That is the section is too high to be/result in an encephale isole [you need a physiol textbk to understand that last bit]
I thought it was Brown-Sequard who had paid a convict to react when he went up and shouted his name. however Beaurieux' report is at:
http://www.metaphor.dk/guillotine/Pages/30sec. html
There are good reasons why he shouldbe deeply unconscious, and that is because the section is at a level of the brain where if you do it in an animal, deep unconsciousness results. That is the section is too high to be/result in an encephale isole [you need a physiol textbk to understand that last bit]
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