Nice wheels!

I checked out the Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum this past weekend; it's located in Pickerington, Ohio...just East of Columbus along I-70.

The American Motorcyclist Association, of which I've been a member for many years, operates the museum.
(Consequently, I got in for free)

Unfortunately, they were undergoing a massive renovation, so most of the collection wasn't on display at the time of my visit.

Anyway, I took a few pictures of what was there...

Here's what it says on the placard:

Replica 1885 Daimler "Einspur"

The first known gasoline-powered cycle was designed and built by Gotlieb Daimler as a test-bed frame for a prototype automotive engine. It was first successfully operated in Germany on November 10, 1885.

This replica was constructed by Jim Carlson, Roy Behner and Ray Behner of New Brunswick, Ohio and was purchased for the Museum through donations from AMA members and staff in 1985.

(Old Harley-Davidson "panhead" DuoGlide)

(Really old Indian)

(Old BMW)

(Old Excelsior-Henderson)

Those have nothing on my Harley...

Getting to the heart of the matter...

I was reading recently that doctors took a dead animal heart and after painstakingly removing the dead cells, were left with nothing but a collagen matrix. This they reconstituted it with living heart cells; after it had grown enough of them, it started beating again.

This was an unprecedented accomplishment.

It was done using a laboratory rat's heart. In theory a pig's heart, which is actually a close physiological match for the human heart, could be processed in the same way...thereby producing, once infused with human heart cells, a viable replacement suitable for transplant. In theory.

Here are some photographs showing various stages:


Also, here are couple of articles about it:

First bioartificial heart may signal end of organ shortage

'Spare part heart' beats in lab

It's still theoretical, but I think it's heartening news...
(I know, OUCH!)