Just in case you ever need to have emergency surgery while traveling at zero-gravity- a team of French surgeons are planning a trial run. They'll board an Airbus 300 Zero-G which will dive in and out of weightlessness while they remove a cyst from a patient's arm. What kind of man volunteers to undergo and operation without the benefit of gravity, on a plane diving up and down like a roller coaster? Well a bungee jumper of course.




While my husband (a pilot) would probably love to take his plane to Zero-G- I'd have serious second thoughts about volunteering to be that patient. Here are a few of the disturbing- but interesting facts:

-the surgeons will be strapped to the walls of the plane for the three-hour operation
-without gravity, things could float around (like blood, and scalpels!)
-precise surgical movements would be tricky without gravity (every see an astronaut try to catch an M & M?)
-their last and only surgery in space was on a rat's tail

For the full story click here

Workers at the International Bird Rescue Research Center in California, found something a little out of the ordinary while x-raying this mallard duck. The image of an alien's head staring back at them from the duck's gizzard!



Unfortunately the alien apparition (caused by grains in the bird's digestive system) was unable to save the bird- and it succumbed to it's injuries. The story does have a happy ending though- proceeds from the sale of this unique x-ray on eBay went to the center's bird rehabilitation center.

As a medical illustrator who spends a considerable amount of time interpreting and illustrating xrays- this is one film which would allow me a little extra artistic license.

For the complete story in National Geographic click here