I am constantly surprised by the culture and am humbled by how much I do not know. Stepping into a culture I know nothing about, I have found it fascinating to track the similarities and differences I see between different people. Even though I do not know any French and still have much to learn about the history, culture, and politics of Paris, I have appreciated finding common threads between both what I have experienced and from what I am learning by taking in a new city.
In this way, I find medicine and history fascinating because it tells a story of how many cultures have impacted medicine in different ways yet have collaborated and learned from each other to contribute to the progression of humanity. Walking into the Musee d’Histoire de la Medicine, I was excited to integrate my interest in both history and medicine. I personally am really passionate about pursuing a neuroscience degree; however, I truly enjoy branching out to other disciplines that broaden both my knowledge and appreciation for research within different subjects.
To me, biomedical engineering integrates my appreciation for the liberal arts and contemplating the philosophical notions of what make us human with hard science. I had the goal of finding one of the first prosthetics within the Musee d’ Histoire de la Medicine. To my surprise, our tour guide showed the class a robotic arm, shown in the first figure below. Analyzing this pivotal piece of history, I began to think about my discussions of neuro-prosthesis in my previous NBB classes and how my knowledge of neuroscience and my experiences in Paris had come full circle.
By thinking about the prosthetic, I was able to integrate my knowledge from NBB 402, 301, and 471 (Neuro-ethics) with my experience in the museum. In NBB 301, we analyzed an article about research developed in France in which a neuro-prosthesis within a mouse model was used to develop new spinal cord therapies that re-establish cortical connections required for movement (Van den Brand et. al, 2012). I remember being in awe of the power of prosthetics after reading this article. I knew I wanted to investigate it further in Paris. I am glad I attained my goal of learning more about prosthetics in Paris, while integrating two subjects I love: history and medicine.
Citation:
Van den Brand R, Heutschi J, Barraud Q, DiGiovanna J, Bartholdi K, Huerlimann M, Friedli L, Vollenweider I, Moraud EM, Duis S, Dominici N, Micera S, Musienko P, Courtine G. 2012. Jun 1;336(6085):1182-5. doi: 10.1126/science.1217416.