University Missourian. [volume] (Columbia, Mo.) 1908-1916, 1910-10-07
HUMAN BODY 4. Real. REAL, WONDER.
Embodies in Its Composition Nina
ture World.

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Embodies in Its Composition NINA
| -t ture World.
In the ancient world there were sew
en- wonders. In the modern world we
have in reality only one, and that is
the human body. Regarded from a
purely mechanical viewpoint, the hui
man body is superbly efficient instru'
ment, infinitely complex, exquisitely
delicate, and yet powerful, enduring
and adaptable beyond belief. The
human body is microcosm OF the uni
verse, a miniature world in itself. 1t
embodies within it's composition, It's
structure, it's operations, everything
that is to be found anywhere in the
world outside OF itself.
For instance the body contains all
of the important chemical elements.
Nearly three-quarters of it's weight is
made of oxygen, that most important
and universal element. Then there
are the other gases, nitrogen, hydro
gen, chlorin and f1uorin. In addition
to these gases we find carbon, calcium,
phosphorus, sodium, sulphur, potassium,
magnesium, iron, copper, lead and Sill
con, lithium, mercury, arsenic, and
other solids. The first five named,
the gases, are sufficient in quantity to
fill a tank of 1000 cubic feet capacity
say of size 20 feet long, 10 feet
high and 20 feet wide. The solids
in the body. such as the carbon, lime
(calcium), silicon, sodium, potassium,
magnesium, are all in the ground on
which you walk.
The body contains enough fat to
make about 100 candles, enough soap
to keep it's own surface clean for a
month, enough sugar to do for fam
lily meal, and enough salt to supply
the family for month. 1t contains
|only little iron,. just about enough
to make couple of small nails; but
it has enough hydrogen gas to fill a
balloon that would actually lift the
owner into the clouds.
The human body also contains
enough carbon to make about 1000
lead pencils, or in the form of a hod
of coal enough to keep blazing fire
going for an hour or two. That, as
a matter of fact, is just what the body
does with its carbon-uses it for fuel
And the energy derived from the car
bon or coal does for the human body
just what it does for the steam en-
gine-it keeps the body warm and
gives it energy to move.
A full-grown man should weigh $50
pounds, which should be divided as fol-
lows; bones, % pounds; fat, IS
pounds; skin, seven pounds; brain,
three pounds; internal organs, IL
pounds; blood, seven pounds. The
body contains about seven-eights Wa
ter; and so the man would contain
about II gallons, or more than half
barrel of it.
/, 90 AS to food, he would consume every
day 5000 grains of lean meat or its
equivalent, 5000 grains of bread, 1000
grains of milk, 5000 grains of potatoes.
600 grains of butter, $4,000 grains of
water. This makes total of food
and drink nearly equal to eight pounds.
The matter thus taken into the body
is normally balanced by an equal guam
t:ty of waste thrown off. For the
escape of this waste there are four
avenues; the lungs, which throw off
10000 grains daily; the skin, which
excretes 10 900 grains. and the kid
neys and intestines, which eliminate
"a 900 and $500, respectively,