Psyc210_Prenatal_Development

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1 When do Human Beings Begin? Department of Psychology, Liberty University PSYC 210: Developmental Psychology

2 When do Human Beings Begin? The question of when life begins is a highly debated topic. There are those that believe that life begins at conception and those that believe that life begins around fourteen days or more. This topic is important to discuss in order to find out if abortions and the experiments performed on the zygotes are ethical. Human Life Begins at Conception One argument for life beginning at conception is that fertilization produces a human being with forty-six chromosomes. Irving argues that once the sperm and oocyte are merged, fertiliization begins. The outcome of this process is called a zygote that produces proteins and enzymes which means it is a living organism. (Irving, 1999) The process as to which the being is formed and the transference of chromosomes, according to Irving, is evidence for life to begin at conception. Gametogenesis converts primitive sex cells into mature sex cells which have 23 chromosomes. In oogenesis, as the primitive germ cells in females mature, they produce oogonia, become oocytes, and have 46 chromosomes. Once the oocyte is fertilized, its chromosomes reduces to 23. Since the chromosomes come from living humans, and forty six chromosomes are required to be classified as human, the offspring created is also a human being. (Irving, 1999) Human Life Does Not Begin at Conception The proponents of this theory argue that the embryonic period begins at implantation, fourteen days, or three weeks. The belief is that the zygote is not an individual until the second week after fertilization when implantation occurs. Until then, it is not a human being, but a potential human being. (Irving, 1999)

3 It is also argued that there is no embryo before the fourteen days. Instead, it is a pre- embryo. They claim that until twinning cannot take place, after fourteen days, the pre-embryo is not an individual. Since the belief is that the pre-embryo is not yet a person, several types of human embryo research such as stem cell research, chimeras, and cloning are believed to be ethical forms of experimentation. (Irving, 1999) Summary and Reflection Both sides of the conception debate had some good points, but the advocates for life beginning later in life were incorrect about many of their claims. It was also discouraging because their argument is based on the fact that they want to experiment on the zygotes/embryos. Since many of their claims were incorrect, the argument for life beginning at conception presented better scientific information. The points made about the parents creating life through their chromosomes really resonated with me. At the point when fertilization occurs, a living individual is created. “Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. (Psalm 127:3) Whether it is a zygote or embryo, when fertilized, it is a living human being.

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4 Reference Irving, D. N. (1999). When do human beings begin? Scientific myths and scientific facts. International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, 19 (3/4), 22-46. doi:10.1108/01443339910788730

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