Uploaded April 2014 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Wherein our dynamite Exhibitions Department creates an immersive media experience inspired by a discarded wax candle.
More about the show here: biomechanics.fieldmuseum.org
NEW! Subreddit: reddit.com/r/thebrainscoop
Facebook: facebook.com/thebrainscoop
The Brain Scoop is written and hosted by:
Emily Graslie
Created By:
Hank Green
Directed, Edited, Animated, and Scored by:
Michael Aranda
Assistant Camera:
Rob Scallon
Huge thanks to John Zehren, Marie Georg, Nivine Tawancy, Greg Mercer, Emily Ward, and Simon Watson for your help in producing this episode! Congratulations on the completion of the Heat Theater! I'm so proud of all of you.
Production Assistant:
Katie Kirby
Filmed on Location and Supported by:
The Field Museum in Chicago, IL
(http://www.fieldmuseum.org)
Thanks to Caitrin McCullough for creating captions, and to Evan Liao, Barbara Velazquez, Seth Bergenholtz, and Martina Šafusová for translating them!
Wherein our dynamite Exhibitions Department creates an immersive media experience inspired by a discarded wax candle.
More about the show here: biomechanics.fieldmuseum.org
NEW! Subreddit: reddit.com/r/thebrainscoop
Facebook: facebook.com/thebrainscoop
The Brain Scoop is written and hosted by:
Emily Graslie
Created By:
Hank Green
Directed, Edited, Animated, and Scored by:
Michael Aranda
Assistant Camera:
Rob Scallon
Huge thanks to John Zehren, Marie Georg, Nivine Tawancy, Greg Mercer, Emily Ward, and Simon Watson for your help in producing this episode! Congratulations on the completion of the Heat Theater! I'm so proud of all of you.
Production Assistant:
Katie Kirby
Filmed on Location and Supported by:
The Field Museum in Chicago, IL
(http://www.fieldmuseum.org)
Thanks to Caitrin McCullough for creating captions, and to Evan Liao, Barbara Velazquez, Seth Bergenholtz, and Martina Šafusová for translating them!
![Alligator Dissection [Live Stream]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Yd4LevXVfmc/mqdefault.jpg "Alligator Dissection [Live Stream]
Watch the short(er) version here: https://youtu.be/AQ2nS0AdIlY
Welcome to The Brain Scoops dissection livestream! This event took place in The Grainger Science Hub at The Field Museum in Chicago, Illinois on Friday, June 7th. ↓↓↓ Click below for for the FAQs. ↓↓↓
Got a question? Leave it in the chat box! Raven in the Grainger Science Hub will be moderating your comments, and passing along questions from you! Please be kind to one another. :)
FAQs:
1. Whos doing the dissection?
Me (Emily) and Josh Mata, Collections Assistant in Reptiles/Amphibians
2. What is this specimen?
Were preparing (skinning + dissecting) a juvenile American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis)
3. Who are all the people in the background?
The dissection is happening in the Field Museums Grainger Science Hub! It is open to anyone who paid for basic admission to the museum.
4. Why are you doing this?
For science! and education! The alligator was donated by researchers at the Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge in Louisiana. This specimens skeleton will be added to the Fields research collections.
5. Where is this specimen from?
The alligator was donated by researchers at the Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge in Louisiana.
6. Did you kill it?
We did not. It had been in the freezer for around 10 years after it was donated; we do not know how it died.
But, there are many instances where collecting animals for research is important, and to be supported. We made a whole video about it for you: Whered you get all those dead animals? http://bit.ly/2zDVLo8
7. What are you doing with it?
We will skin the specimen, remove the major muscles and organs, take a tissue sample for DNA research, run the skeleton through our flesh-eating dermestid beetle colony, and finally place the specimen in an educational collection.
8. Will I be able to watch this later?
Yes! The video will be archived on our channel for future viewing.")
