Embalm corpses.

Embalm corpses. is a detailed work activity in O*NET — a concrete unit of work shared across 4 occupations and seen in 13 occupation-specific tasks. It rolls up into the broader work activity Embalm corpses. in Handling and Moving Objects .

Detailed work activities are the most granular shared layer in O*NET's work-activity hierarchy (Generalized → Intermediate → Detailed → occupation-specific task). The figures below describe how this activity shows up across the economy and what independent studies measure about AI and this kind of work — not a prediction that the work will be automated.

AI exposure

Of the 13 tasks under this activity that the OpenAI / Eloundou “GPTs are GPTs” study rated, 0 (0%) are flagged as directly exposed to language models (E1) or exposed via model-powered tools (E2).

Exposure estimates overlap with model capabilities — whether a model could speed the task up — not whether the work will be done by software. Observed AI use is augmentation and assistance today, not jobs replaced.

Member tasks

Occupation-specific tasks O*NET maps to this detailed work activity, most important first.

• Perform embalming duties, as necessary. · Morticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Arrangers · importance 4.8 · no direct exposure
• Join lips, using needles and thread or wire. · Embalmers · importance 4.7 · no direct exposure
• Close incisions, using needles and sutures. · Embalmers · importance 4.7 · no direct exposure
• Embalm, dress, cosmeticize, and casket the deceased. · Funeral Attendants · importance 4.7 · no direct exposure
• Incise stomach and abdominal walls and probe internal organs, using trocar, to withdraw blood and waste matter from organs. · Embalmers · importance 4.7 · no direct exposure
• Make incisions in arms or thighs and drain blood from circulatory system and replace it with embalming fluid, using pump. · Embalmers · importance 4.6 · no direct exposure
• Attach trocar to pump-tube, start pump, and repeat probing to force embalming fluid into organs. · Embalmers · importance 4.5 · no direct exposure
• Pack body orifices with cotton saturated with embalming fluid to prevent escape of gases or waste matter. · Embalmers · importance 4.5 · no direct exposure
• Reshape or reconstruct disfigured or maimed bodies when necessary, using dermasurgery techniques and materials such as clay, cotton, plaster of Paris, and wax. · Embalmers · importance 4.5 · no direct exposure
• Insert convex celluloid or cotton between eyeballs and eyelids to prevent slipping and sinking of eyelids. · Embalmers · importance 4.5 · no direct exposure
• Perform special procedures necessary for remains that are to be transported to other states or overseas, or where death was caused by infectious disease. · Embalmers · importance 4.2 · no direct exposure
• Press diaphragm to evacuate air from lungs. · Embalmers · importance 2.9 · no direct exposure
• Embalm, dress, or otherwise prepare the deceased for viewing. · Crematory Operators · no direct exposure

Occupations that perform this

• Morticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Arrangers
• Embalmers
• Funeral Attendants
• Crematory Operators

Sources for this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

• O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
• “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

@misc{singulariki-embalm-corpses,
  title  = {Embalm corpses.},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/detailed-activities/embalm-corpses}
}