Dr. Herculano-Houzel is a real life Indiana Jones of the brain. She's an absolute jewel in science. I remember her telling a group of us about her efforts in Bo

Dr. Herculano-Houzel is a real life Indiana Jones of the brain. She's an absolute jewel in science. I remember her telling a group of us about her efforts in Botswana(?) to get elephant brain specimens. Normally, to preserve a brain, you pump fixative in via the arteries at low concentrations. Even in a mouse, this takes a few hours. For megafauna, it can take a few days. To get good elephant data, she told us that you have a new problem: scavengers. You take the elephant (per game-park regulations) and then get the skull off and gain access to the massive arteries. Then you have to find a tall enough tree to hang fixative from, as you can't get a pump out into the veld that will run for days. You just have to let gravity do the work. Then you slowly fix the brain in the skull in some random place in the bush. However, the rest of the elephant is very good at attracting lions, hyenas, etc at all hours of the day. So you have to fend off the skull from very hungry predators. It's not a 'fun' experience, in her recollection. I remember something about 4-bore rifles being used a fair bit. Finally you have to get the brain out of country, which, depending on international regulations and local bribery customs, can also be difficult. Honestly, this woman is AMAZING. Here's her website: http://www.suzanaherculanohouzel.com/lab http://www.suzanaherculanohouzel.com/lab