Among the most intriguing new body technologies developed
Among the most intriguing new body technologies developed
Among the most intriguing new body technologies developed during the 1980s are techniques of visualization that redefine the range of human perception.1 New medical imaging technologies such as laparoscopy and computer tomography (CT) make the body visible in such a way that its internal status can be assessed before it is laid bare or opened up surgically.2 Like the techniques that enable scientists to encode and “read” genetic structures, these new visualization technologies transform the material body into a visual medium. In the process the body is fractured and fragmented so that isolated parts can be examined visually: the parts can be isolated by function,