Chapter 4, Dead Man Driving Summary and Analysis

Chapter 4 looks at cadavers used in impact studies. Roach visits Wayne State University to watch cadaver UM 006 get hit with a linear impactor during a crash simulation. Researchers hope to determine how much force a human shoulder can withstand in a side-impact before it suffers serious injury. The author digresses to give a brief history of how cadavers have contributed to car safety. Cadavers have given scientists a better understanding of how injury is suffered, particularly to the brain and nervous system. Safer windshields and steering wheels are the result.

Cadaver research has proven contentious, but it became apparent that the best stand-in for a human is a human cadaver. Animals, even apes, do not have the same biology as humans and are therefore only useful test subjects when functioning organs are required. The one...