1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:02,560 Speaker 1: Brain Stuff is sponsored by Harry's dot Com. Get a 2 00:00:02,560 --> 00:00:04,840 Speaker 1: great shaving experience for a fraction of the price. The 3 00:00:04,920 --> 00:00:07,520 Speaker 1: quality of the shave is so important that Harry's purchased 4 00:00:07,520 --> 00:00:10,039 Speaker 1: the factory that makes their blades. Fifteen dollars gets you 5 00:00:10,119 --> 00:00:12,799 Speaker 1: a set that includes a handle, three blades, and shave cream. 6 00:00:12,840 --> 00:00:15,280 Speaker 1: Go to Harry's dot com use the code brain stuff 7 00:00:15,320 --> 00:00:18,640 Speaker 1: to say five dollars off your first purchase. Welcome to 8 00:00:18,760 --> 00:00:22,360 Speaker 1: brain Stuff from how Stuff works dot com where smart happens. 9 00:00:23,280 --> 00:00:26,439 Speaker 1: This podcast is brought to you by Audible dot com, 10 00:00:26,520 --> 00:00:30,040 Speaker 1: the Internet's leading provider of spoken word entertainment. Get a 11 00:00:30,120 --> 00:00:32,920 Speaker 1: free audio book download of your choice when you sign 12 00:00:33,000 --> 00:00:36,920 Speaker 1: up today. Log on to audible podcast dot com slash 13 00:00:37,040 --> 00:00:43,519 Speaker 1: brain Stuff today for details. High and Marshall brain a 14 00:00:43,760 --> 00:00:46,440 Speaker 1: listener wrote in with a question this week, and it's 15 00:00:46,560 --> 00:00:50,720 Speaker 1: perfect for Halloween. The question is what happens to a 16 00:00:50,760 --> 00:00:54,240 Speaker 1: person's blood when they are embalmed, which gets into the 17 00:00:54,280 --> 00:00:57,680 Speaker 1: whole topic of embalming in general and how it works. Now, 18 00:00:57,720 --> 00:01:01,080 Speaker 1: this is not the subject for the week of stomach 19 00:01:01,520 --> 00:01:04,720 Speaker 1: and if you're weak of stomach, please stop listening now 20 00:01:05,160 --> 00:01:08,320 Speaker 1: and avoid the upcoming grossness. If you don't mind it. 21 00:01:08,400 --> 00:01:12,720 Speaker 1: Here we go. The general idea behind embalming is pretty simple. 22 00:01:13,160 --> 00:01:16,440 Speaker 1: You want to fill a body with enough preservatives so 23 00:01:16,480 --> 00:01:19,959 Speaker 1: that it doesn't start rotting or bloating or smelling before 24 00:01:19,959 --> 00:01:23,520 Speaker 1: the funeral. There are two steps to the process. The 25 00:01:23,600 --> 00:01:27,680 Speaker 1: first step is to pump embalming fluid through the circulatory 26 00:01:27,760 --> 00:01:32,000 Speaker 1: system of the body. The embalming fluid is normally formaldehyde 27 00:01:32,040 --> 00:01:36,200 Speaker 1: with some dyes and perfumes added. There's an embalming machine 28 00:01:36,280 --> 00:01:39,760 Speaker 1: that pumps the fluid in. The mortician will cut open 29 00:01:39,800 --> 00:01:42,319 Speaker 1: one of the major arteries to run a tube from 30 00:01:42,319 --> 00:01:45,839 Speaker 1: the embalming machine into the artery. The mortician will also 31 00:01:45,880 --> 00:01:48,040 Speaker 1: attach a tube to one of the major veins to 32 00:01:48,160 --> 00:01:51,640 Speaker 1: let blood and embalming fluid run out. All the blood 33 00:01:52,040 --> 00:01:55,440 Speaker 1: flushed out during this process goes into the sewer system. 34 00:01:55,480 --> 00:01:59,560 Speaker 1: There's nothing special done with it. Embalming fluid preserves the 35 00:01:59,640 --> 00:02:02,360 Speaker 1: skin in the muscles. So the second part of the 36 00:02:02,400 --> 00:02:06,920 Speaker 1: embolming process is major organs like the stomach and testines, etcetera, 37 00:02:06,960 --> 00:02:09,760 Speaker 1: in the abdomen and the thorax. They have to be 38 00:02:09,840 --> 00:02:15,160 Speaker 1: handled separately because they're filled with partly digested food and bacteria, 39 00:02:15,280 --> 00:02:18,880 Speaker 1: and if they're left by themselves they'll bloat. The basic 40 00:02:18,960 --> 00:02:22,239 Speaker 1: idea is to use a section to fitted with blades 41 00:02:22,360 --> 00:02:25,839 Speaker 1: to cut open the organs and suck everything out. Then 42 00:02:25,880 --> 00:02:30,160 Speaker 1: the abdomen is filled with embolming fluid. Once this process 43 00:02:30,240 --> 00:02:34,440 Speaker 1: is complete, the body will last. It's dressed quoift, made 44 00:02:34,480 --> 00:02:37,440 Speaker 1: up to look realistic, and arranged in the casket for 45 00:02:37,520 --> 00:02:40,760 Speaker 1: presentation at the funeral. Do you have any ideas or 46 00:02:40,760 --> 00:02:43,960 Speaker 1: suggestions for this podcast? If so, please send me an 47 00:02:44,000 --> 00:02:47,240 Speaker 1: email at podcast at how stuff works dot com. For 48 00:02:47,320 --> 00:02:49,600 Speaker 1: more on this and thousands of other topics, go to 49 00:02:49,639 --> 00:02:54,440 Speaker 1: how stuff works dot com. Brain Stuff is sponsored by 50 00:02:54,440 --> 00:02:57,000 Speaker 1: Harry's dot com. Get a great shaving experience for a 51 00:02:57,040 --> 00:02:59,120 Speaker 1: fraction of the price. The quality of the shave is 52 00:02:59,160 --> 00:03:01,720 Speaker 1: so important that Harry's purchase the factory that makes their 53 00:03:01,760 --> 00:03:04,520 Speaker 1: blades fifteen dollars gets you a set that includes a handle, 54 00:03:04,639 --> 00:03:07,120 Speaker 1: three blades, and shave cream. Go to Harry's dot com 55 00:03:07,240 --> 00:03:09,600 Speaker 1: use the code brain stuff to save five dollars off 56 00:03:09,639 --> 00:03:10,440 Speaker 1: your first purchase.