Free Republic

Sir Albert William Liley is often called the “Father of Fetology” for all of his research in embryology and the development of the unborn baby. Here, he talks about fetal development: The prerequisites for motion are the muscles and nerves. In the sixth to seventh week, nerves and muscles work together for the first time. If the area of the lips, the first to become sensitive to touch, is gently stroked, the child responds by bending the upper body to one side and making a quick backward motion with his arms.… By the beginning of the ninth week, the baby...

Day 1: Sperm joins with ovum, to form one cell smaller than a grain of salt. The new life has inherited 23 chromosomes from each parent, 46 in all. This one cell contains the complex genetic blueprint for every detail of human development – the child’s sex, hair and eye color, height, skin toneDays 3 – 4: The fertilized egg travels down the fallopian tube into the uterus, where the lining has been prepared for implantationDays 5 – 9: During this time, the fertilized egg implants itself in the rich lining of the uterus and begins to draw nourishment.Days 10...

German zoologist Ernst Haeckel is perhaps most famous for defending evolution with the argument that creatures replay their evolutionary past when developing in the womb. Since Darwin's time, textbooks have reiterated that early embryos of many vertebrates, including humans, have tiny pouches that reflect an evolutionary fish stage. More recently, embryologists thoroughly refuted that concept, and others have shown that Haeckel's drawings were partially faked. And a new online video taken from 3-D scans of a developing baby's face should bury Haeckel's old and uninformed argument. Embryologist and evolutionist Michael Richardson and colleagues dropped a bomb on Haeckel's long-held concept...

A number of state legislatures are passing legislation outlawing abortion after the twentieth week on the basis of "fetal pain". This is just one of many, unscientifically founded assertions regarding abortion that are being codified into our laws in different states. Part of the misunderstanding of "fetal pain" has to do with the idea that a developing fetus feels pain the way an adult feels pain. This is an impossibility.

Alexander Tsiaras, an image-maker and the author of the book “From Conception to Birth: A Life Unfolds,” gave a recently-published TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) talk, during which he unveiled a spectacular video about fetal development. Alexander Tsiaras's book, "From Conception to Birth: A Life Unfolds" The video, which graphically shows the process of human progression, begins by showing an egg being fertilized and ends by illustrating a baby’s actual birth. Throughout the clip, viewers see the full fetal development, with explanations about what, exactly, is happening at each phase. But the imagery is spellbinding. Watch the astounding video, below. The...

"Hello baby, is it dark in there?"Like reader jackie31337, who asked this question when she was a small child, scientists don't remember what life in the womb was like. If they want to know what a fetus can see—not to mention smell, hear, taste and touch—they have to go right to the source. Unfortunately, the unborn are not the world's greatest communicators. To find the answers, researchers study animal fetuses, healthy human newborns only hours old and premature infants finishing their pre-natal development in an incubator. What they've learned about the fetal experience and the development of the senses...

Dancing With the Baby Stars - The Amazing Feats of Fetal Development You may not think of yourself as the next Kristi Yamaguchi, but long before you could walk, you could dance. Not on the floor, mind you, but in the womb. If you want proof of an unborn baby's dancing ability, check out http://www.yourdevelopingbaby.com/sampleChapters/7.htm. There, under the headline "Baby aerobics," you'll see a baby 15 weeks after conception, doing a unique form of hip hop. The incredible video comes courtesy of two Harvard radiology professors, Peter Doubilet and Carol Benson, a married couple who have written an eye-catching book...

TOLEDO, OH, April 15, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - In an effort to present pre-natal development "in an educational and non-confrontational manner," the Foundation for Life organization has rented space in a local mall for its "Truth Booth," featuring a set of ultrasound images tracing the development of a child from seven weeks of age until birth.The unmanned display is in a rented kiosk in Westfield Franklin Park Shopping Mall."Being unmanned will actually help people just wander up to it. They won't feel threatened. They won't feel like there's any pressure. Any preachiness or debate that will take place…They'll debate this...

After an initial showing earlier this month, the documentary "In the Womb," which chronicles the development of a child from fertilization to birth, will be aired at least five more times on the National Geographic channel. The two-hour film, which uses the latest high-tech 4-D ultrasound images to capture a developing girl in the womb, first aired on Sunday. National Geographic reportedly received thousands of calls in support of the documentary, prompting the rescheduling for tonight, tomorrow and March 18.