Sparks of life

摘要

IN 1817, the natural philosopher Karl August Weinhold removed the brain from a living kitten and replaced it with a mix of zinc and silver, essentially a battery. According to Weinhold, the animal "opened its eyes, looked straight ahead with a glazed expression... hobbled about, and then fell down exhausted". The following year, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein was published to a public hungry for the author's take on one of the most pressing scientific issues of the day: is electricity the key to animal life? And if so, can a short sharp jolt reanimate the dead?