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Hello K:
The earth doesn't care.. Whether it's a jar of ashes, a pine box, or a cement mausoleum, nature WILL claim it back.. It just might take an extra 1,000 years or so..
excon
It takes a lot of fuel to cremate a body then to do it in a $4.000 box that people only see for a week seems like a real waste. Human ashes could be used for lots of useful things like brick mortar or a soil conditioner for gardens. I imagine some peoples ashes could be used for making crazy glue. Burying people in a $4.000 box also seems like a waste if they would just place people in the ground with a natural fiber cloth over them the body would decay faster and benefit certain bugs and micro organisms that help things grow. Cheers and happy weekend!
I want to be buried in a large bottle. What's it to you?
Regardless of how it "seems", there are various reasons behind burial traditions. If dead people are simply left in the elements like animals, they will decompose like animals. That would stink. Furthermore, people have cultural views of taking care of the dead in such a way that they do not get dismembered or dragged away by wildlife, as bears have done after digging up graves in Siberia, or munched successively by buzzards, maggots, and then rodents that gnaw down the last of the bones.
Cremation breaks down remains more quickly, but it requires a very hot and/or sustained fire. Before crematoriums, burial was easier.
Societies with a Christian tradition also have a tradition of "Christian burial". The Bible Belt state of Mississippi has the lowest rate of cremations at 11 percent, and Nevada the highest at 74 percent.
In the whole of USA, cremation is becoming a more often-used option. In 1958, one body in 28 was cremated. Now the rate is 43 percent. Some of those who prefer disposal by burial will, by the survivors' choice or by the previously stated wishes of the deceased, opt for a green burial or natural burial, by which the remains are placed in bio-degradeable materials.
I am giving mine to the local medical college. When they are done and put me back together, I am going to have a Naval sea burial and become crab food. I guess that is recycling.
Back in the 70's, I was walking in the Johnson's Island, Ohio graveyard for the old civil war Confederate prisoners who died there. As I strolled between the gravestones, I noticed my foot sinking into the ground. I guess the pine boxes were giving way.
Dr. William M. Bass established the Forensic Anthropology Center in 1987. Beginning with a modest spot of land for the Anthropology Research Facility, the Forensic Anthropology Center has grown into a leading institution for forensic anthropology research and training. Our resources and facilities include the Anthropology Research Facility, a dynamic body donation program, the Bass Donated Skeletal Collection, the McCormick Skeletal Collection, professional trianing courses and much more. These resources are available to students, researchers, and law enforcement agencies.
The purpose of the Forensic Anthropology Center is to provide research, training and service with compassion. The body donation program is the heart and soul of the Forensic Anthropology Center, and we ensure that all of the families and donors are treated with the utmost respect and compassion. The donation program enables individuals to contribute to science in a direct and meaningful way.
Each donor is of tremendous scientific value and we are grateful to our donors and their families
