In scientific terms, aging is referred to as “senescence”. Senescence is the process where cells fail to sufficiently replace the older cells, thus reducing the body’s functional capacity. (merriam-webster, 2016) It appears counter-intuitive for evolution to engineer organisms with a limited life span. However, it is not the intent of evolution to deteriorate our cells. The infinite number of outside factors that bring damage upon a life form are to blame. Our DNA can be harmed by radiation, chemicals ingested through food or drugs, and even an error in the copying process. The cells may fail to divide correctly, leading to a slow but gradual deterioration of tissues, or even a fatal disease that can cause the body to shut down. (MIT School
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It became significantly easier, and much safer. The largest growth in this field occurred during the World Wars. Described as one of the most outstanding contributions to surgical literature, Sir Harold Gillies’ “Plastic Surgery of the Face” laid down the principles for modern plastic surgery. The First World War posed many problems. Due to the use of more cataclysmic weapons, the injuries in turn were disastrous. Moreover, trench warfare caused a tremendous amount of damage to the faces of soldiers because the head was more exposed than the rest of the body. They were frequently burnt beyond recognition. Given their best efforts, surgeons could almost never restore a face to what it once was, and this is when Gillies realized that a new type of surgery was needed. Driven by the idea that a surgeon should be a “creative artist”, he sought to not only restore the function of impaired body parts, but to reinstate their beauty as well. At the first International Congress of Plastic Surgery in Stockholm (1955), he declared; “within us all there is an overwhelming urge to change something ugly and useless into some other thing more beautiful and more functional.” (Williams, 2002) One of Gillies’ most notable innovations was the pedicle tube. This idea emerged when he was presented with a patient who lost all of the skin on his face to a cordite explosion. “The burns had left extensive scarring. The eyelids and lower lip were turned inside out, and all that remained was a twisted blob, which had once been a nose. “ (Williams, 2002) By trimming a piece of skin off of the man’s chest, Gillies was able attach it to the face, and by cutting holes for the eyes and nose, he was able to make a mask of sorts. This had worked, however, he noticed that when the skin on the patient’s shoulders was raised, it tended to curl in. This is what sparked Gillies’ pedicle tube
It became significantly easier, and much safer. The largest growth in this field occurred during the World Wars. Described as one of the most outstanding contributions to surgical literature, Sir Harold Gillies’ “Plastic Surgery of the Face” laid down the principles for modern plastic surgery. The First World War posed many problems. Due to the use of more cataclysmic weapons, the injuries in turn were disastrous. Moreover, trench warfare caused a tremendous amount of damage to the faces of soldiers because the head was more exposed than the rest of the body. They were frequently burnt beyond recognition. Given their best efforts, surgeons could almost never restore a face to what it once was, and this is when Gillies realized that a new type of surgery was needed. Driven by the idea that a surgeon should be a “creative artist”, he sought to not only restore the function of impaired body parts, but to reinstate their beauty as well. At the first International Congress of Plastic Surgery in Stockholm (1955), he declared; “within us all there is an overwhelming urge to change something ugly and useless into some other thing more beautiful and more functional.” (Williams, 2002) One of Gillies’ most notable innovations was the pedicle tube. This idea emerged when he was presented with a patient who lost all of the skin on his face to a cordite explosion. “The burns had left extensive scarring. The eyelids and lower lip were turned inside out, and all that remained was a twisted blob, which had once been a nose. “ (Williams, 2002) By trimming a piece of skin off of the man’s chest, Gillies was able attach it to the face, and by cutting holes for the eyes and nose, he was able to make a mask of sorts. This had worked, however, he noticed that when the skin on the patient’s shoulders was raised, it tended to curl in. This is what sparked Gillies’ pedicle tube