crownboy

story here

Even though in reality this does not really do much to the anti-abortion/ pro-abortion debate (since the debate mostly has to do with early term pregnancy), I could still see religious conservatives rallying around a study like this as a reason to ban abortion.

As far as the study itself goes, it's a pretty interesting one and I'm not too suprised by the findings.

Toto

The emphasis should be on "shortly before birth," at a time when the fetus would have little trouble surviving if it were born prematurely.

This has nothing to do with a typical abortion, performed when the fetus has not developed hearing or a brain to hear sounds with.

Daleth

What Toto said. It's worth noting that the average age of the fetuses tested were 38 weeks, which is considered full term. They wouldn't even be premature.

Dal

gilly54

A full-term fetus is another way of saying a baby--able to survive outside the mother.

I don't consider being able to identify its mother's voice so special. Newborn sea lion pups can also identify their mothers' calls, and vice versa, in the midst of hundreds of other seal lions. I don't think humans can do that.

I was at an abortion debate, where an anti-choice woman said that a 14 day old "baby" already had brain waves that could be measured on an EEG. Anticipating this oft-repeated phrase, I told her that ANY creature with a developing brain creates electrical signals, i.e "brain waves", not just humans and backed up my statement with a picture of an EEG from a lizard embryo. Nothing special there, either! I also had a pictures of a human and a lizard embryo at the same stage of development. You could hardly tell which was which.

fromtheright

That is, at just the right age that a "doctor" can still suck the brains out of the child's skull before he or she is fully delivered (aka partial birth abortion).

brighid

The term "partial birth abortion" is an erroneous term used to incite an emotional response and has no medical foundation and the proper term is late term abortion. An intact D & E is one procedure that can be performed, but there are other forms of late term abortion (such as hysterectomy and induction of labor) and it is the least used method of late-term abortion. - (edited to add that the controversial "scissors" evacuation is a D&X)

"The AMA recommends that the intact dilatation and extraction ( procedure not be used unless alternative procedures pose materially greater risk to the woman and that abortions not be performed in the third trimester except in cases of serious fetal anomalies incompatible with life. "

Here are some reasons for late-term abortion:

Doctors can choose among several late-term abortion procedures. Intact D&E is one of the least-used procedures, but is selected when other procedures would present greater risk to the women's life, health, or future childbearing, usually when the fetus is severely deformed and other procedures would cause greater blood loss or greater risk of tearing the woman's cervix and uterus. In both the second and third trimester, the intact D&E procedure is often the method which can best protect a woman's health and future fertility. In this procedure, the woman's cervix is dilated over a period of time (it is a 3 day procedure), and then the fetus is removed. In some cases, in order to remove the fetus without injuring the woman's cervix or uterus, a spinal needle is used to remove cerebrospinal fluid, decreasing the size of the head enough to bring it out safely

http://www.korrnet.org/choicetn/late.term.html

Brighid

capsaicin67

Maybe these headlines would work too:

Scientists Find Full Term Fetus Different From Sperm or Egg Alone

Teenager Found To Enjoy Reading Books Just Like Adults



etc.....

hezekiah jones

I would really like to hear how many times partially delivered live fetuses have had their "brains sucked out of their skulls" in this country. Anyone know?

fromtheright

From nrlc website:

{fix URL - Toto}

hezekiah jones

What method (your link is busted)? Sucking the brain out of the skull?