Scans uncover secrets of the womb
A new type of ultrasound scan has produced the vivid pictures of a 12 week-old foetus "walking" in the womb.The new images also show foetuses apparently yawning and rubbing its eyes.
The scans, pioneered by Professor Stuart Campbell at London's Create Health Clinic, are much more detailed than conventional ultrasound.
Professor Campbell has previously released images of unborn babies appearing to smile.
He has compiled a book of the images called Watch Me Grow.
I wouldn't make this distinction if I didn't know that most of the people reading this are pro-life, and thus won't misinterpret it, but 12-week-old fetuses are not "human persons" in the strict sense. To be a person, you have to be capable of thinking, willing, and acting. A baby that young can't do that. "Human being" is more accurate.
None of that implies that they are any less worthy of legal protection than any other human being, I hasten to add. I think it's important, though, because "lack of personhood" is a specious test that the pro-euthanasia crowd likes to apply. The issue isn't "personhood," it's life, which deserves to be defended.