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Man lives as goat to try and not be human
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A British man who wanted to “take a holiday from being human” is sharing his experiences after spending time in the Swiss Alps — living as a goat.
Thomas Thwaites, a graphic artist from London, used specially made prosthetic limbs to enable him to walk on all fours and even underwent experimental neurological changes to make himself more goat-like.
The goal was to see how the experience of being human could be transformed.
“I was kind of at a low ebb... depressed, a bit annoyed with all complexities of being a human and trying to make money,” he told AFP, explaining why he embarked on the project.
Inspiration struck when the 34-year-old was looking after a relative’s dog which looked “joyful, just happy being in the world,” Thwaites said.
“I thought, ‘wouldn’t that be a lovely feeling... I want to be an animal for a bit, I want to take a holiday from being a human being.’”
In a project supported by the Wellcome Trust, a global health foundation based in London, Thwaites spent nine months exploring the potential of becoming a goat, or as near to it as humanly possible.
He looked at getting a fake stomach that would help him digest grass, but had to abandon the idea after being advised of likely health problems.
Eager for insights into goats’ non-vocal behaviour, he even underwent experiments which temporarily blocked his power of speech.
The technique, called trans-cranial magnetic stimulation, entails holding an electromagnet close to a person’s skull to disrupt neuron activity in the speech center of the brain.
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