My Life on this planet.

In this article I write about something amazing in life: developmental biology (more specifically about human development although most apply also to other animals and even plants) and how out of two tiny cells an organism arises with billions of cells. I mention also briefly about the effects of our knowledge on society: new applications such as IVF and stem cell research or even gene therapy to cure genetic diseases. Science: embryology The cell: introduction Our bodies consist of two types of cells: reproductive cells or gametes and body cells or somatic cells . Somatic cells (e.g. liver cells, skin cells, nerve cells) are found all over our body except in the reproductive organs where in addition gametes are found: these are egg cells or ova ( ovum = one egg cell) in the ovaries of women and sperm cells or spermatozoa in the testes (balls) of men. Fig. 1. C ell with nucleus and chromosomes that consists of DNA. Eukaryotic cells (including human cel...

Merry Christmas and peace to everyone. In the Christmas story, we mostly talk about the mother and the child. Indeed, Mary had to suffer (as all women have) while delivering her child. And this child, as so many others in the world, was born in the gutter because his mother was not welcome in the hotels and (I assume) hospitals didn't exist in those days. But what would we do when all rooms are full (or not) and a pregnant (unknown) woman would like to deliver her child in our house. Indeed, ... . Christmas decorations in Brussels But poor Joseph. He is mostly ignored while I think he brought the greatest sacrifice. How many men would stay with their wife and support her and her child when she became pregnant from another? How many men would believe her when she says it was God who made her pregnant? Would most men not say she could have refused? And why didn't God choose a woman who was free and not married? But probably He couldn't choose a free woman because the...