Visible signs and characteristics. 1  There is a noticeable break in the pattern of the waves: the water often looks flat at the rip, in contrast to the lines of breaking waves on either side of the rip. 2  A river of foam: the surface of the rip sometimes looks foamy, because the current is carrying foam from the surf out to open water.
At the same time, without circulation to keep it moving through the body, blood starts to pool and settle. Rigor mortis, or a stiffening of the body, sets in about two to six hours after death [source: Marchant, Middleton]. While the body as a whole may be dead, little things within the body are still alive. Skin cells, for example, can be viably harvested for up to 24 hours after death [source: Mims]. But some things that are still alive lead to the putrefaction, or decomposition, of the body -- we're talking about little organisms that live in the intestines.
How long does it take for an embalmed human body to decompose? Yes, I know this is a mobid and distasteful question! I've always had a fascination with the whole funeral business (hence, I greatly enjoyed HBO's Six Feet Under). I only ask this question because my dear mother died three years ago this month. Her body was embalmed and was prepared for two days' of viewing before burial. I am wondering how long it will be before her body begins to decay. For that matter, her father has been dead for 33 years and her mother for 14.