The Geographical Embryo
Today I learned about the anatomy of the digestive system.
McMinn, R.M.H., and M.H. Hobdell. 1974. Functional Anatomy of The Digestive System. New York: Pitman.
Under normal conditions, the workings of the digestive system comprise a larger part of our consciousness about our own bodies than other bodily systems. Diurnal cycles of hunger and defecation mean that we notice the circulation of food through our bodies - part of the invisible internal geography - more than say, the circulation of blood.
The digestive system has been thought of by medical professionals as a tube with a number of gates and openings, but only two to the outside world: the mouth and the anus. We think of these two openings as distant and disconnected, yet at 27 days-old, a human embryo mouth and gut just begin to separate from the same piece of matter. This early development of the digestive system perhaps suggests that bodies prioritize the apparati that allow them to assimilate the outside world: the geographical embryo.
Much like there is a geography to bacterial ecosystems in and on the body, the "epithelial lining" of the digestive tube is modified in different "regions" of the invisible internal geography for different functions of digestion. As food moves through the body in what McMinn calls an "ordered sequence," it exits and enters different places of chemical transposition: from plants and animals to human bodies.
1. Mouth
2. Pharynx
3. Esophagus
4. Stomach
5. Small intestine (duodenum, jejunum, and ileum)
6. Large intestine (Caecum, Colon, Rectum, and Anal canal)
7. Anus
Chemistry begins in the stomach with an acidic homogenizing function that essentially makes mush. Most of the absorption then takes place in the small intestine, where food is moved into the vascular and lymphatic systems. The large intestine absorbs water, and its lower part (the anal canal) acts as a "storage organ" for feces.
That nourishment and poison are separated by two openings of one invisible internal geographical system is astounding. Much like chemistry is the study of change (history) at the molecular scale, gastroenterology is the study of change at the human scale - the making and remaking of bodies, ever-connected to external landscapes.
McMinn, R.M.H., and M.H. Hobdell. 1974. Functional Anatomy of The Digestive System. New York: Pitman.
Under normal conditions, the workings of the digestive system comprise a larger part of our consciousness about our own bodies than other bodily systems. Diurnal cycles of hunger and defecation mean that we notice the circulation of food through our bodies - part of the invisible internal geography - more than say, the circulation of blood.
The digestive system has been thought of by medical professionals as a tube with a number of gates and openings, but only two to the outside world: the mouth and the anus. We think of these two openings as distant and disconnected, yet at 27 days-old, a human embryo mouth and gut just begin to separate from the same piece of matter. This early development of the digestive system perhaps suggests that bodies prioritize the apparati that allow them to assimilate the outside world: the geographical embryo.
Much like there is a geography to bacterial ecosystems in and on the body, the "epithelial lining" of the digestive tube is modified in different "regions" of the invisible internal geography for different functions of digestion. As food moves through the body in what McMinn calls an "ordered sequence," it exits and enters different places of chemical transposition: from plants and animals to human bodies.
1. Mouth
2. Pharynx
3. Esophagus
4. Stomach
5. Small intestine (duodenum, jejunum, and ileum)
6. Large intestine (Caecum, Colon, Rectum, and Anal canal)
7. Anus
Chemistry begins in the stomach with an acidic homogenizing function that essentially makes mush. Most of the absorption then takes place in the small intestine, where food is moved into the vascular and lymphatic systems. The large intestine absorbs water, and its lower part (the anal canal) acts as a "storage organ" for feces.
That nourishment and poison are separated by two openings of one invisible internal geographical system is astounding. Much like chemistry is the study of change (history) at the molecular scale, gastroenterology is the study of change at the human scale - the making and remaking of bodies, ever-connected to external landscapes.
posted by Nick at
2:36 PM
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