I was a big fan of Elementary (CBS). I love when I recognized science that I read in popular science magazines or journals. In an episode titled, “Ears to You,”Elementary (CBS) Season 2 episode 17 written by Lauren MacKenzie and Andrew Gettens
A man named Gordon Cushing, whose wife disappeared in 2010, receives two severed human ears along with a ransom note. The ear DNA matches that of Cushing’s wife, Sarah. At the ransom exchange, Cushing pursues the suspect and accidentally kills him. Clues on the suspects body lead Sherlock and Joan to an AA meeting, where they find Sarah, who is both alive and not earless. Sarah says that the DNA they collected when she disappeared was not hers and belongs to her husband’s mistress, who, as it turns out, died in 2011. Sherlock realizes that Sarah’s new plastic surgeon husband grew two exact replicas of her ears on Sarah’s back and then cut them off in an elaborate attempt to collect ransom from Cushing. Meanwhile, Lestrade is mugged and Joan encourages him to solve his own case to improve his spirits. (Episode summary from Wikipedia)
I know wild, right? But this idea was based on actual research where scientists grew a human ear on the back of a mouse (Exclusive: Whatever Happened to the Mouse with the Ear on Its Back?).
This idea not only made for a fascinating twist in the plot — the DNA of the ear matches his wife, who is alive AND has BOTH of her ears!
Who wants to talk more about how you can use this idea in your current or next story?
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