Elephant (innards) on parade.

January 20, 2012 3:26 PM

Inside Nature's Giants is a ridiculously educational British science documentary series featuring dissections of very big animals, including a giant squid, a sperm whale, a giraffe, and many, many more.

It's been running since 2009 on Channel 4(UK), but premiered on PBS last Wednesday.

posted by sawdustbear (19 comments total)

It is an amazingly fantastic programme. Has this really never been an FPP before? Ah well, the filters of meta sift slowly, but they sift exceeding small.
posted by howfar at 3:27 PM on January 20, 2012 [1 favorite]

I searched the hell out of it thinking "no WAY this has never been posted." But apparently, it hasn't!

My highlight so far is the part where an air compressor is jammed down a giraffe's windpipe to inflate its lungs.
posted by sawdustbear at 3:29 PM on January 20, 2012 [1 favorite]

many squids died to bring you this information
posted by nathancaswell at 3:32 PM on January 20, 2012 [2 favorites]

I've seen quite a few of these, but one of the most impressive was about racehorses. The centuries of artificial selection have produced a beast that is capable of amazing athletic feats, but is so near the edge of what the bodyplan can sustain that it would be too delicate to exist in the wild. The knowledge and enthusiasm of the presenters is fantastic. The whole series is definitely recommended.
posted by Jakey at 3:40 PM on January 20, 2012 [3 favorites]

Hurrah! The company I work for made the iPad app for this. You should totally try it. And now it behooves me to hang around this thread, being criticised and flamed whilst trying to earnestly answer your many questions about it. And also, inexplicably signing all of my posts.

Joe Saunders
posted by Jofus at 3:41 PM on January 20, 2012 [1 favorite]

[squids swimming about in a tank; scientist-presenter lowers his hand into the tank and grasps a squid]

Woman: Wow, it's just going to let you pick it up like that?
Scientist-presenter: Sure, I'll just... Yow! Fuck! It bit me!

[scientist-presenter sucks thumb]
posted by KokuRyu at 3:43 PM on January 20, 2012 [1 favorite]

Yay! I just saw the sperm whale one a couple days ago (and can I just tell you holy shit?). I didn't realize it was a series. Thanks!
posted by heyho at 3:53 PM on January 20, 2012 [1 favorite]

Recently there was one where they dissected a Baboon: showing how the hand works, how the tendons connect to make it grasp, was pretty awesome.
posted by selenized at 4:06 PM on January 20, 2012

Amazing stuff, thanks for posting!

This is a 21st century version of this. Anatomical theatre is a great tradition in the history of medicine. It's really the best way to teach anatomy.
posted by carter at 4:27 PM on January 20, 2012 [1 favorite]

This is great! Can't wait to watch them all.
posted by JujuB at 4:45 PM on January 20, 2012

Anatomical theatre is a great tradition in the history of medicine.

Along that vein Channel 4 also did a series with the guy who plastinates people, Gunther von Hagen, in which he did autopsies of cadavers to describe the function of various parts. It is available on youtube, but appears to be region locked.
posted by selenized at 5:21 PM on January 20, 2012 [1 favorite]

I did see the whale dissection one, fascinating! Thanks for this post!
posted by Katjusa Roquette at 5:47 PM on January 20, 2012

Along that vein ...

That's a bit hard to stomach.
posted by carter at 6:17 PM on January 20, 2012

Appeals to the Neanderthal in me.
posted by bonobothegreat at 6:50 PM on January 20, 2012

Are there recipes at the end?
posted by Kabanos at 7:28 PM on January 20, 2012

Best [more inside] joke ever!
posted by TedW at 5:04 AM on January 21, 2012

These are excellent! Thanks for the post.
posted by painquale at 10:35 AM on January 21, 2012

I just watched the sperm whale episode and it is fantastic. Joy, or Dr Reidenberg, is particularly awesome and in so many ways she reminds me of my butcher.
posted by peeedro at 4:07 PM on January 22, 2012

Thank you. We've been watching these every night since you posted them. I get all frustrated when they don't show enough dissection footage and keep wishing for better microscopy shots, but I'm loving it still.
posted by sciencegeek at 6:38 AM on January 26, 2012