While the singularity may still be a ways off, mankind has long marveled at analogies between the inner workings of the human body and the industrial processes of the modern world. The most famous of these design-minded biologists, German doctor, illustrator and author Fritz Kahn, not only revealed startling similarities between the two, he invented the medium of infographics to do so.
Kahn’s ability to reframe the functions of the human body as industrial processes is quite uncanny. His drawings explained complex anatomy-like the circulatory, gastric, and cognitive systems — in terms that anyone can understand. Plus, they were funny. Take a look at three examples below, excerpted from a new book about Kahn published by Taschen in November. See how fast you can figure out what each one is depicting, below.
Viermal um den Erdball! (Four times around the globe!) – 1943
Der Mensch als Industriepalast (The Man as Industrial Palace) – 1926
Was sich in unserem Kopf abspielt, wenn wir ein Auto sehen und „Auto” sagen (What goes on in our heads when we see a car and say “car”.) – 1939
Excerpted with permission from Taschen Books. Fritz Kahn by Uta and Thilo von Debschitz is available at Amazon.