October 26, 1998
The Museum of Questionable Medical Devices

An Eye Opener

By: Jennifer Bahou

Museums-AMST205

Museums have many functions, yet the main function is to teach or educate the vistors through visual objects. Written in, Who Owns History?: History in Museums , by Spencer R. Crew states that "museums develop a strong interest in creating an educational enviornment of the vistors." The Museum of Questionable Medical Devices conveys the message that all medical devices are not believable. Some of the useless devices exhibited through the museum are; MacGregor Rejuvenator which reverses the aging processes; A Shoe-Fitting X-Ray ; Electropathy a machine that generates electricity using a magnet, Radium Cures that cures diseases, restores youthful vigor, and revitalize an ailing sex life; and, Radium Ore Revigator which claims to have a ratioactive water that will curve your illness and/or prevents you from being sick again.

Above are the pictures of the ACU-DOTS device and Psycograph device.

The two that I found really amusing were the Psycograph and ACU-DOTS Magnetic Analgesic Patches. The Psycograph is a machine buildt to detect your personality by measuring and reading the bumps on yor head. It tells a person how "they are doing on any of the 35 personailty characteristics like intelligence, spirituality, suavity, and chasity" (http://www.mtn.org/quack). It is said that if you have a flat head you have no personaitly. ACU-DOTS Magnetic Analgesic Patches is a magnet that attracts to the irons in your blood which increases your circulation. Therefore, the increased circulatoin then relieves pain (minor aces, muscles or joint pains) and heals it. However, knowing that iron is not a metal but a mineral in the blood, shows that a magnet cannot attract to a mineral "iron". (http://www.mtn.org/devices) In results, leaves us to believe that this device is not accurate and would not work.

I found this site, The Museum of Questionable Medical Devices, very interesting, yet amusing at the same time. The word "questionable" is what attracted me to view this site. I thought it would be fascinating to see what kind of devices were considered "questionable". This was a learning experience for me. The fact that there are questionable medical devices made, is scary. Therefore, this museum is very benefical. It is an eye opener,to me, to the world of medicine. I am a person who if I saw, on TV or was told by a doctor about a new medical product, that seemed believable I would try it. If this museum can open the eyes of one human being, like myself, than I believe this museum is excellent and is worth showing to the rest of the world. Ivette Nessim , a pre-veterinary student who has also viewed the exhibit throught the web site, shares a similiar view, on how this "museum places these inventors out in the open where the entire community can learn and understand that scientist are not always honest.

The stucture of the web page was very appealing, the way it was designed makes the readers want to continue viewing the whole site. The color and flashing words: COME ONE! COME ALL!....Step right up...!!!, brings the readings in. Then the head line words FRAUD, DECIET, DECEPTIONS, CHICANERY, MAYHEM leads the readers to want to know more about the information. By showing a couple of devices on the hompage engages the viewer to want to know what other kinds of questionable devices are made.

"By the end of the 1990s, the museum will replace the sports arena as the primary venue of leisure activity in the United States," stated Richard Guber, Director of the Wichita Art Museum. I found this quote to be veracious or truthful to a certain degree. Museums are a big part of everyday life, which display information out to the public about the past, present, and future history. History museum topics can range from the Holocaust, Slavery in Atlanta, American Indian to Photography, Contemporary Art and Questionable Medical Devices. All which attrach the public's knowledge. Museum have become a leisure activity which can mainly tie into family fun yet i dont believe it can top sports.

I enjoyed this site. If the location of the exhibit was in Maryland, instead of Minnesota, I would of gone and viewed the exhibit inperson. Maybe, i would of even try some of the devices like the Psycograph devices, which detects your personality characteristics.
WORK CITED

Spence R. Crew, Who Owns Histor?:History in the Museum

The Museum of Questionable Medical Devices

Nessim, Ivette. Back to Home