|
Books > Science & Mathematics > Biology, life sciences > Developmental biology
|
Buy Now
The Ovary of Eve (Paperback)
Loot Price: R985
Discovery Miles 9 850
|
|
|
The Ovary of Eve (Paperback)
Expected to ship within 12 - 17 working days
|
The first thing children ask about sex is typically, "Where do
babies come from?" This, the most perplexing scientific question of
all time, was hailed by the ancient Greeks as "the mystery of
mysteries". Throughout history the most intelligent and
well-educated men and women have struggled to understand how we
reproduce, and the full picture is far from complete. In the
mid-17th century, a theory of reproduction - preformation - sparked
a heated debate that continued for over 100 years. Preformation
proposed that miniature creatures waiting to be born existed inside
each potential parent much like a Russian nesting doll. It was
thought that God placed these beings during Creation and
predetermined the precise moment that each would unfold and exist.
In "The Ovary of Eve", Clara Pinto-Correia traces the history of
this much-maligned theory, ultimately revealing its critical
influence on the modern view of conception. Opinion on preformation
was sharply divided. "Ovists" believed that preformed individuals
existed in the egg, but "spermists" argued that the locus of
perfection before birth was in the sperm. This controversy ranged
beyond the narrow confines of biology. Most scholars were reluctant
to allow perfection to women. After all, these debates occurred in
a culture which held women responsible for the Fall and original
sin and which saw women as imperfect or incomplete males. Yet
spermism entailed a moral dilemma, - why would God allow millions
of preformed individuals to die with each ejaculate? Pinto-Correia
recounts this controversy in all its complexity, revealing the
religious, cultural and social climate of the day. Acknowledging
that several modern authors have presented preformation as little
more than an entertaining interlude in the study of reproduction,
Pinto-Correia nonetheless seeks to recast preformation as an
important theory with a precious legacy. Her book shows that the
basic tenets understood by the old preformationists are still a
crucial part of developmental biology and effect such state-of-the
art techniques as cloning.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
|
You might also like..
|
Email address subscribed successfully.
A activation email has been sent to you.
Please click the link in that email to activate your subscription.
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
