Graham: Hypothetical Human Who Can Survive High-Speed Car Crash

Australian artist Patricia Piccinini, trauma surgeons and crash investigation experts have collaborated to produce ‘Graham,’ an educational tool for discussion about human vulnerability.

Graham 

has been designed with features that might be present in humans if they had evolved to withstand the forces involved in high-speed car crashes.

“Graham is an educational tool that will serve the community for years to come as a reminder of why we need to develop a safer road system that will protect us when things go wrong,” said Joe Calafiore, Chief Executive Officer of the Transport Accident Commission of Victoria, Australia.

Graham. Image credit: Transport Accident Commission of Victoria, Australia.

Studies have shown that the human body can only cope with impacts at speeds people can reach on their own, unassisted by vehicles.

“People can survive running at full pace into a wall but when you’re talking about collisions involving vehicles, the speeds are faster, the forces are greater and the chances of survival are much slimmer,” Mr. Calafiore said.

“Cars have evolved a lot faster than humans and ‘Graham’ helps us understand why we need to improve every aspect of our roads system to protect ourselves from our own mistakes.”

Graham’s ribs. Image credit: Transport Accident Commission of Victoria, Australia.

The general public will be able to use Google Tango to look beneath Graham’s skin and better understand how his unique features would work to cushion him from serious injury in a crash.

“Although our bodies will never look like Graham’s, there’s a safe system in place that can help protect us in much the same way,” said experts from theTransport Accident Commission of Victoria. “And at the center of this system is the belief that human health is more important than anything else.”

“Our bodies are strong, but there’s only so much force we can withstand before we break.”

“That’s why we need to ensure we have a safe system in place – one that protects us from our own mistakes and those of others.”