Lab Develops Artificial Womb

Meowharishi writes: "According to this article at the Observer, scientists from Cornell University have successfully developed the first artificial womb. Embroys successfully attached themselves to the walls of these wombs and began to grow but were terminated to comply with regulations. Developments like this really offer tremendous opportunities for creating a family for those who cannot have children the old fashioned way."

Comments

Ethical/legal/social implications

[abe ferlman]

As if it weren't obvious, this has tremendous implications. But perhaps it's worth pointing one of them out.

Currently, abortion is legal until the fetus has reached a point of viability- that is, until it could conceivably live outside of its mother's womb on its own. Advances in medical science have been pushing that date back slowly since Roe v. Wade, but this is very big.

It's a pretty arbitrary line to begin with, and this makes it even farther from being grounded in modern science.

I'm not interested in having the yet another abortion debate, but I am curious how folks think this will change the rhetorical landscape for politicians, religous figures and ethicists. And, of course, for women.

First BWC Post

[lww]

Imagine a Beowulf Cluster of these...

(just wanted to get it over with)