Wednesday, June 28, 2017

VIDEO: Davenport Hooker's Fetal Experiments

In the 1930's, 1940's and 1950's anatomist Davenport Hooker filmed a number of fetuses produced from induced and spontaneous abortions to document fetal behaviour. They were aged between 8.5 and 14 weeks (LMP). It represents the first time in history that the unborn were seen on film. They were dying of course, but they were not quite dead when Hooker had them poked and prodded for science. The explanations in the video are little bit tedious, but the images are well worth waiting for (they start at about the three minute mark.) I would not put too much stock in the menstrual age-- it can be unreliable. I was especially struck by the older children, and how bothered they seemed to be by the needle.