Well believe it or not, steamed lobsters are actually anatomically complete samples of the organism with nervous, digestive and circulatory systems all in tact. Lobsters may quite possibly be the only animal that is served completely in tact and ready for dissection. Think about it, most animals are served as cuts or pieces of the original organism, and even those small enough to be served whole (such as certain fish) are prepared in a way that removes the digestive tracts and other undesirable parts. I would be interested to know if anyone knows of any other animal that is served completely in tact like a lobster, if so please comment below!
September 28th was no average day in lab for students in Biology 320: Evolution of Invertebrates. As part of our unit on Arthropod anatomy, we had rather unusual dissection subjects, steamed lobsters. That's right, lobsters.
You may be wondering how could this delicious delicacy possibly be used as an educational tool, and if so you're certainly not alone. When I told my friends and family about this lab activity their initial reaction was that of jealousy at our obtaining lobsters, immediately followed by questions such as "How is that science?" or "So, what do you actually do at that school?".
So dissections were a smashing success, and we were able to note locations of all major body systems and organs within the lobsters, all the while harvesting that ever precious lobster meat for our consumption later on. It should be noted that these dissections took place outside of an official lab room (where food and drink are prohibited). Instead the dissections took place in the Davis Spencer Cafe in the Mars Science Center.
| Final Product of Class Dissections: Lobsters Rolls and Dirty Bowls, gotta love it |
Upon completing our dissections, the lobster meat was mixed with mayonnaise and freshly diced celery and made into lobster rolls for the enjoyment of the class. Nothing like fresh Maine Bug Meat on a bun, am I right? And they said science was boring...
Really? Was this connected to the Lobster dinner at Chase? I couldn't see the image
ReplyDeleteThis was actually completely unrelated to lobster dinner at Chase. The main goal of the lab was for us to get a good look at arthropod anatomy, and Professor Dyer figured lobsters are not only great scientific specimens but tasty ones as well!
ReplyDeleteI wonder what Levi Strauss would say about the preservation of being served the full body of an animal. Would you say lobster is gendered based on the preparation practices?
ReplyDeletePerhaps the reason we eat the full lobster instead of merely parts of it is because lobster is seen as such a delicacy within the food community. It is hard to come by if you do not live near the coast, and it is very expensive. People pry at it and crush the shell to get the last little bits of meat out. Maybe we can stomach the stomachs of other organisms if we have to in order to obtain a higher social status?
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