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dailymeruem · 4 years

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Royal Guard Nomenclature

You might know the Royal Guards for having some creative names, and if you’re anything like me, you’ve probably read HxH Wiki trivia on where the names came from. However, I haven’t seen any comprehensive post getting right into it, so lets have some fun research time and look into the origins of the Chimera Ant Royal Guard’s namesakes and how they might have affected Togashi’s characterizations of them!

While i’m trying to keep everything as brief as I can, this will be a longer post so if you want to gain some knowledge and kill some time, read on! I’ve linked sources throughout the post for further research!

Naming Origin Sources

All three of the Guard’s names - Neferpitou, Shaiapouf, and Menthuthuyoupi, respectively- were chosen by the Chimera Ant Queen prior to their birth in the story. They are mashups from two sources - Ancient Egyptian mythology, specifically the pantheon of traditional gods and goddesses, and a French children’s book series entitled Caroline et ses amis (Caroline and her Friends) written by Pierre Probst.

The Guard x Egyptian Gods

In Ancient Egyptian life, people worshiped a large number of deities which represented natural forces and phenomena (sunlight, life, childbirth, etc). The people regularly offered sacrifices and performed rituals to please the gods so that these forces would continue to function according to divine order (ma’at). Each god or goddess had complex relationships, characteristics, and symbolism associated with them. {x}

Neferpitou x Nefertem

The first half of Neferpitou’s name, “Nefer-”, is derived from the Egyptian deity Nefertem. A very ancient god by Egyptian mythos standards, this god is associated with the lotus flower, as he was believed to have emerged in a water lily from the primal waters at the creation of the world. He also represented the first sunlight and the lovely smell of the Egyptian blue lotus. Nefertem is usually depicted as a young, beautiful man, and sports titles such as “He Who Is Beautiful” and “Water Lily of the Sun”. {x} {x}

In HxH, Neferpitou is the first Royal Guard to be born, which ties in nicely to Nefertem’s being a very early god born from the creation of the world as well as being associated with the first sunlight. As for the beauty aspect, Neferpitou’s androgynous appearance could play into this factor, as some gods in the Egyptian creation myths were depicted as androgynous.

Nefertem’’s mother is often credited as being Bast/Bastet, the guardian goddess of cats, or Sekhmet, the warrior goddess of healing (both goddesses are often considered to be two aspects of the same goddess). These goddesses are both depicted with cat or lioness heads, and so Nefertem is often depicted with a lion’s head or as a lion. I needn’t say more about this tie to Neferpitou! Aside from the cat aspect, Sekhmet’s being a goddess that both goes to war and heals is reflected in Pitou’s dual nature- both a ruthless killing machine in their own right and with their Terpsichora ability making instant armies, and a reliable healer using the Doctor Blythe ability, showcasing a compassionate side. {x} {x}

Shaiapouf x Shai

Shaiapouf’s Egyptian name component comes from Shai, which, interestingly, is not so much an entity as it is a concept- the deification of the concept of Fate. The name Shai is usually translated as “that which is ordained”. This god was said to determine the span of each person’s life; he was with each person at their birth and remained with them through their life until their final judgement in the underworld (duat). Shai would offer the true life story of the individual at their judgement, and could either protect or damn them. This deity has so much power in the Egyptian mythos that even pharaohs and other gods were subject to it. {x} {x}

Now, although Shaiapouf as a character doesn’t have an omnipotent power over fate, the concept of fate runs really strong in Pouf’s characterization. Pouf, along with the other Royal Guards, was present at King Meruem’s birth, and intended to stay at his side throughout his whole life, guiding and protecting him. This is a role that Pouf seemed to take to heart, almost to an extreme. As we know, Pouf saw the King’s destiny of becoming the ruler of the world and dominating all other species as being absolute, and began to actively work against the Guard and even the King himself when he began to stray from the fate that Pouf had “preordained” for him. Going so far as to attempt to kill Komugi, who was the most important person to the King, Pouf’s actions, although out of a motivation to protect the King, would have been damning for the King had he succeeded.

Shaiapouf’s nen ability, Spiritual Message, gives us a hint as to his namesake as well. The god Shai hid nothing from Osiris (god of the underworld) at the final judgement of that person’s life, and so does Pouf’s ability allow him to see the absolute truth about a person’s emotional state by reading their flow of aura. This gives Pouf the ability to come to conclusions about that person’s personality, thoughts, and possible course of action, seemingly allowing him to predict their “fate”. {x}

Also, this may be a trivial fact, but Pouf has the habit of ending his sentences with, “That’s all there is to it”. A very final and fateful statement indeed.

Being a concept, Shai is neither male nor female, but is more often depicted as being male. In this form, he is often said to be married to Renenutet (cobra goddess of child rearing who gave newborn babies secret names), or Meskhenet (goddess of childbirth). These three are often depicted together which gives us a definite picture of the cycle of birth and death. {x} {x}

In HxH, after Meruem is mortally wounded by the Miniature Rose Bomb, we get the lovely and terrifying experience of seeing Pouf and Youpi feed themselves to the King in order to revive him. In this scene, both guards are ecstatic as they have ascended to the level of a Chimera Ant Queen and are filled with an unconditional motherly love for their King. The ties here between this occurrence and these trifecta of gods associated with birth and life are pretty strong.

A few final small factoids: The Greek people associated Shai with their god Agathodaemon, a god of fortunetelling that was considered to be a serpent. As well, the word Shai was also an Egyptian word for “Pig”. Thus, Shai was sometimes depicted as a serpent-headed pig, also called the Shai animal. I am reminded of the time Pouf was shown to be able to rearrange his cells to impersonate a certain blind Gungi player.

Menthuthuyoupi x Montu

The final Royal Guard, Menthuthuyoupi, bears the name of Montu, a very powerful and ancient god in the Egyptian pantheon. Montu (also written as Monthu or Menthu, the latter which Youpi uses in his name) originally was a manifestation of the scorching effects of the sun (Ra), but over time this was modified to mean destructiveness in battle, which led to Montu being known as a god of war. He was said to attack the enemies of cosmic order (ma’at).Montu is usually depicted with a falcon head or a bull head. Falcons were a symbol of the sky, and bulls symbolized strength and war. {x} {x}

Montu was often linked with other gods and is depicted as a fusion of those gods. For instance, because of his association with Ra, he often appears as Montu-Ra. Occassionally he is linked to Atum (another creator god) and Set (god of scary natural phenomena and deserts). Over time, Montu was also linked to Horus, a god associated with the pharaoh, and therefore Montu is sometimes seen as being a symbol of a Pharaoh as a ruler and conqueror.

In HxH, Menthuthuyoupi definitely embodies the warlike aspect of his namesake. Being the only guard not made from human genetic material, he is able to act on instinct and devote himself completely to being a soldier for the King, attacking anyone who threatened the King’s divine rule. Being immensely powerful, Youpi was capable of immense damage with his Rage Blast and Rage Incarnate nen abilities. As well, just as Montu gradually evolved over time to represent more complex aspects of life in Ancient Egypt, so too did Youpi evolve over the course of the Chimera Ant Arc, which gave his life new and more complex meaning.

The many forms Montu can take reminds us of Youpi’s unique Metamorphosis ability, which allows him to change any part of his body at will to suit his needs. Youpi’s Rage Incarnate form, in which his body takes the worm of a winged centaur, is a callback to Montu’s two most common depictions; as a Falcon (Youpi’s wings), and as a Bull (Youpi’s hooves). {x}

One of Montu’s wives was thought to be Tjenenet, another goddess of childbirth, which has ties to the event of Meruem’s rebirth discussed in Shaiapouf’s section above.

An interesting tidbit of info is that Montu was sometimes though to be a guardian of family life. He is sometimes mentioned in marriage documents to enforce commitment; infidelity is described as “the abomination of Montu”. While this doesn’t really have anything to do with Menthuthuyoupi aside from maybe reflecting in his loyalty to the King, the next time you feel tempted to cheat on your significant other, imagining a frowning Youpi may dissuade you.

One thing that each Royal Guard has in common with all of their Egyptian namesakes is that all strive to support what they see as the Divine Order using their individual strengths, even if their methods of supporting this order greatly differ.

The Guard x Caroline et ses amis

The Caroline series is a series of French childrens picture books, or albums, written and illustrated by Pierre Probst. There are 44 books in the series, which were written from 1953 to 2007. They follow Caroline, a little blond girl who is independent and active, and her 8 mischievous animal friends, who talk like humans. The series was adapted into an animated TV show titled Caroline et ses amis in 1994, which is most likely the source Togashi got the names for the Royal Guards from (and you can find on youtube!) {x} {x}

Neferpitou x Pitou

Pitou is one of the 8 animal characters in Caroline. Pitou is a panther, and he appeared in a collection called “Les Albums roses” (The Pink Albums) in 1952, which were a precursor to the Caroline books, thus making Pitou the first character of the future Caroline series. Pitou is characterized as being lazy and cunning.

In HxH, our Neferpitou was the first of the Chimera Ant Royal Guard to be born, just as Pitou was the first character that began the Caroline series. Both of them being a cat is also a very obvious connection that both share. While there are other cats in the Caroline series, Pitou being a panther harkens to Neferpitou’s wild nature. Caroline’s Pitou being both lazy and cunning are character traits that show up in HxH’s Pitou as well; we see them exhibit extreme intellect in science, military strategy and manipulation, but at the same time they are the most playful of the Guard and get distracted very easily.

Shaiapouf x Pouf

Pouf is a white kitten that wears a blue bowtie. He is characterized as being elegant, snobbish, and eccentric. He is prone to going on rants about his dreams of greatness, much to the annoyance of everyone else, and he has little quirks such as hating water and the cold.

If it weren’t for the physical description, you might have thought I was describing HxH’s Pouf- he too is elegant, snobbish and eccentric and often goes on long, intellectual rants, which are mostly never followed by the rest of the guard. Shaiapouf is also always wearing a flowy white dress shirt that features a bowtie-like collar which is reminiscent of Pouf’s white fur and bowtie. While Shaiapouf isn’t known to hate water or cold, he does manifest peculiar quirks such as melodramatic monologues and playing his violin when he is upset.

Menthuthuyoupi x Youpi

Youpi (also spelled Yupi), is a cocker spaniel dog. He is naive, turbulent, and a little bit grumpy, but also generous, devoted and affectionate. He can be fearful and prefers staying home to going out on adventure. He really likes being cuddled by Caroline, the main character.

Menthuthuyoupi in HxH displays a lot of similar characteristics to his namesake: naive, turbulent, and devoted are all adjectives you could use to describe him. Because of Menthuthuyoupi’s lack of ego, he is solely devoted to the King and his divine destiny, not bothering to give a thought to other courses of action, which could be a reflection of Caroline’s Youpi prefering to remain in the safety of home. After Meruem’s revival, when Youpi and Pouf share a affectionate spiritual bond with him, Youpi is shown to cherish the new bond he has with his King, just as Caroline’s Youpi is affectionate towards Caroline.

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One thing that all the Royal Guard share with their Caroline namesakes is that both sets of characters unquestioningly follow an independent leader character that they love and support. As well, in the case of Neferpitou and Shaiapouf, their manner of dress is a homage to Caroline- Pouf dresses in a very elegant and frilly ensemble, very French of him, in my opinion- and Pitou’s outfit is reminicent of both an old school French military uniform and a child’s school uniform.

A bonus Caroline homage in HxH: The titular character Caroline is famously depicted with her pigtail hairstyle. A certain blind Gungi player is also famously shown sporting a similar hairstyle.

Bonus Section: Meruem’s Name

Although not containing as much lore as his Royal Guard, the King’s given name can give us a few fun tidbits in keeping with the etymology of the Guard.

As you know, in-universe, the Chimera Ant Queen states her son’s name, Meruem, to mean “the light that illuminates/shines on everything”. His name is very close to the common Arabic name, Maryam (مريم), which has multiple romanized spellings. The most notable use of this name is in Biblical history as a form of the name Mary, who was the mother of Jesus, and Miriam, who was the sister of Moses.

It is thought that the name might have roots originating in the Egyptian language; the words “mry” (beloved) and “mr” (love) are thought to have been derivatives of the name.This root meaning would work in portraying the love that the Ant Queen had for her son, even before birth.

Other scholars have thought that the Hebrew root words “mr” (bitter) or “mry” (rebellious) were the basis of the name in the case of Miriam, as she was born at a point in history when the nation of Israel was subject to bitter slavery by the Egyptians. “Bitter” and "Rebellious” might be words you could use to describe Meruem, at least when he is first introduced to us. {x} {x}

Other fun tidbits: Meruem’s characteristic “neutral” face expression, young and feminine facial structure, and characteristic “cat eyes” is very reminiscent to a lot of ancient Egyptian art. One that stands out in my mind is the famous Head of Nefertem statue, found in the tomb of King Tutankhamun, which depicts the Pharaoh in question as a child in the form of the god Nefertem (remember him?). Interestingly, both Meruem and Tutankhamen were kings that ascended the throne (and died) very early in their lives. I’ll let you look at the piece and notice the similarities yourself!

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And that about does it for all the conclusions I’ve drawn. I hope you enjoyed reading through this and that it prompted you to do some reading and research of your own! Togashi chocked HxH full of fun little references to things in our real world, and it’s so much fun to do a deep dive to find all this trivia. If you think of/find any other fun things too add to this post, feel free to reply/reblog with additions. Cheers!

#hxh #hunter x hunter #chimera ants #chimera ant royal guard #hxh meta #i totally didnt spend 6 hours on this labour day monday no siree #ive been thinking about this a lot so i hope you enjoy!!!!!!!#long post #mod words #meta

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inscribed-in-asteroids · 4 years

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AN: Here’s chapter two!

Title: The Ripple Effect

Characters: Hordak, Entrapta, Odessa, features original characters

Pairing: Entrapdak, features other canon couples (and some fanon)

Rating: M

Read on AO3. It’s always posted there first.

Evaluation

“You want us to help you… find your dad’s… home planet?” Hydrangea questions.

“Not necessarily that,” Odessa replies. “I’ve been mulling over this the last couple of years. Wandering through space, it’s apparent that my father’s species has predominantly settled into Etherian life. But when I ask my father where we are from, he has no answer.”

“Not in the withholding information way,” Tristan clarifies.

“Exactly. In the sense he has no answer to give. Period. I’ve discussed it with my mother, and she believes it could be an exciting chance to find out where he’s from!” Odessa claps her hands together. “We know about the biology, physiology, mental health, behavior of one person. My father has been studied thoroughly for years, but his makeup can only tell us so much.”

They nod in understanding. It does make sense. He has been genetically manufactured over and over, thousands of versions of him co-existing among species that still have yet to see anything like him before. Hordak has lived among Etherians, has explored world upon world, but they know he is an anomaly. They all do.

Odessa looks down at her hands, an anomaly herself. Her parents have always been supportive of her intellectual pursuits, and this could very well be one of the greatest. She has filled a medical textbook composed of both Entrapta’s research, Hordak’s explanations, and her own observations, theories and notes about how his species operates. But what good is it if it simply applies to a single individual; that’s not applicable to how science or medical practice works.

Hydrangea pours them tea. She knows how determined Odessa can be once she sets her mind to something. There’s no stopping her once her brain gains traction on an idea. Tristan’s set face comprehends this as well.

Tristan speaks first, “When would you like us to begin?”

Odessa smirks, “Soon as you’re done with your drink.”

“Hm, of course you’d say that.”

“Damn right,” Odessa answers.

Hydrangea places her hands on her hips, “Alright, Des. We’ll get going soon as we’re done!”

“Or you could chug your chamomile in one go.”

“No.”

Dryl is etched further into rocky cliffs, its labyrinth excavated deep inside the mountain. Its residents welcome their princess, happy to see her return. Entrapta’s kingdom had been left to its own devices for years, even prior to Entrapta’s departure; yet they view Odessa as the rightful heir, and treat her as such. She supposes it's something to be grateful for, as it does leave them with a place to rest and organize without much interference.

Though she could do without the large paintings of herself lining the walls.

“I never get over how cute you were as a baby,” Hydrangea says, giggling. “Look how chubby you were!”

“You were so adorable,” Tristan gushes. “So innocent.”

“The sweetest little baby,” she continues. “I still want to pinch your itty bitty face!”

“Shut up,” Odessa pouts, blushing. Curse these portraits… and curse their laughter...

“Odessa! Hello, hello!”

Relieved, she turns, smiling at the friendly face, “Hi, Uncle Wrong-Man.”

Crushing her to his chest, he presses their cheeks together, “It’s been so long since I’ve seen my most favorite niece in the world!”

“You’re going to make all the other nieces jealous,” she says. Then smiles, “But it’s true.”

“I can’t help it, you were the first niece I had!”

Back on her feet, Odessa glances at the vicinity. Normally, there’s more of her uncles wandering through the halls. “Where is everyone?”

“Oh, they’re working outside or in the kitchens. We heard you were back and we felt a welcoming party would be fun!”

“You don’t have to throw one every time we come back.”

His eyes turn watery, a sad, morose frown on his features, “Oh… I see… You don’t… like my parties anymore…”

“No, no, that’s not it!” Odessa says, trying to cheer him back up. “I just meant you don’t need to go through all the trouble each visit.”

He looks up at her, ears drooping lower, “Do you like them?”

“Yes, Uncle Wrong-Man, I love your parties,” she insists. “You’re the best at it!”

In seconds, his bubbly personality returns, “Excellent! I look forward to giving you another party suited to your tastes!”

Tristan leans toward Odessa, hand held up to his mouth, “Wow, for a minute I thought I heard violins.”

“He has that dramatic flair to him,” she agrees.

“How have your parents been? I haven’t seen them yet!” W.H. asks.

“Mom and Dad are fine,” Odessa tells him, following him through the halls. The maze has been modified to be easier to map out. The first time she had come here, they had gotten lost since Entrapta couldn’t quite recall where all the secret entrances were. Odessa took it upon herself to make her own layout, and added to it whenever a change had been made. “They went to Beast Island to see how it is there.”

His ears fall for a moment, “Aw, I hope they’ll visit soon!”

“I’m sure they will,” she assures him. “They had some business to conduct over there.”

“In the meantime, what brings you to Dryl?”

“I wanted to talk to you and some of the others regarding your past,” she explains.

W.H. enters the closest kitchen, walking toward the oven. Tucking on mitts, a perplexed expression crosses his features, “Our past? My dearest niece… have you been afflicted by amnesia?”

“No, my memories serve me right,” Odessa says, patient. “I am asking for information regarding where we had come from, as a whole species. What world we originated from, what our culture was like. I had spoken with father about the matter, but he said he didn’t know due to being younger than the rest of you.”

W.H. crosses over to the countertop, removing the cookies onto a cooling rack. He is silent for a few moments, and it is clear he is choosing his words carefully, trying to understand what she’s asking. He turns, a serious mien about him, unusual on his face. “I… I’m not sure, either.”

Odessa walks over to him, “Is it because you were separated from the hivemind?”

“I don’t believe so,” he replies. Folding his arms over his chest, the fact they’re all one person reveals itself in his posture and tone. “We had been created to serve Horde Prime. Nothing more or less. And I do think that I myself had been cloned after your father. He had been Horde Prime’s general as well, and if he didn’t know, one of our elder brothers might have the knowledge you seek.”

Odessa glances at Hydrangea and Tristan, then back to her uncle. “Do you know who would?”

W.H. ponders for a minute. “Hm, no one here, I am certain. The residents of Dryl are like myself—of the younger group, since we have more people skills to associate with the Etherians.”

Hydrangea says, “I always wondered how that worked. Where you were designated and why.”

W.H. nods, “Oh, yes, we put thought into what our new purposes would be. After I helped my brother and sister with Beast Island, I came here to demonstrate how to function with Etherians!”

Tristan walks over to the counter, “Where do you recommend we go, then? Also, can I have one?”

W.H. beams, nodding enthusiastically, “Please do! I am going to make much more. But in regards to your first question, I would suggest visiting family in Mystacore or Beast Island.”

Odessa takes a cookie off the rack as well, munching. Mystacore is closer, so it would be prudent to try there before traveling to Beast Island. There are portals stationed throughout Etheria, but it’ll be worth stopping by Mystacore. She hasn’t seen anyone there at all yet. Although, it’s not as if there are many who live in the clouds, visiting her family there is always exciting.

“Thank you, Uncle Wrong-Man,” Odessa says, reaching up to kiss his cheek. “We’ll head there now!”

“Take some food with you to go,” he insists. In a flash, he’s bagging the cookies into a cellophane sack, tying it with a pink ribbon that shapes into a butterfly. “Healthy meals are important, but so are treats! Otherwise, you get moody.”

Hydrangea and Tristan are handed their own bags, much to their surprised delight. Before Odessa can accompany them out the door, W.H. stops her, giving her another, “Would you mind taking this with you for your cousin?”

Odessa smiles, “I wouldn’t mind at all.”

Hordak and his brothers were categorized not by their clothes, or hair dye choices, but by their eyes. Odessa and her mother had noted the various shades of eye color, their teeth matching them the most; however, inside of their mouths, it adjusts to mimic the change as well, affecting the tongue and beneath it, gums, hard and soft palates, uvula, even extending down to the oropharynx. All her uncles are in good health, and with none of them dead, she can only assume that the change continues down the esophagus. She got it in writing several years ago that, should any be willing to be dissected for scientific purposes, she has a few choices for her study.

Their eye colors are fascinating: while they all reflect light to glow, which is meant to intimidate opponents, she has observed the change serves as behavioral distinction. The lighter the color, the more mellow and passive the personality; the darker or more intense, the more independent and aggressive. A chameleon-like feature, reflecting mood. And, in turn, signifying mental and physical health, as peppier individuals tend to be less plagued by feelings of inadequacy, anger, and low self-esteem. W.H. had his eye color eventually become the joyful chartreuse yellow she’s known since birth, and her father’s returned to their fiery red sometime after the war. This is the one true variation that doesn’t need attire or fanciful hair styles and dyes to show that no matter how alike they are by DNA, they are their own separate people.

So when she teleports to Mystacore, and she finds dark blue eyes staring at her from above, she remembers, quite immediately, that sometimes, darker eye colors don’t indicate low self-esteem but rather, an egregious amount of confidence.

Her uncle jumps down from his perch, landing daintily on his feet. He narrows his eyes, leering, “Odessa… it has been ages since you’ve arrived on Mystacore.”

“Hi, Talon,” Odessa says.

He looks at her friends, “You two are faring well, I hope.”

Hydrangea smiles, “Yes, thank you for asking!”

Tristan nods, “You look good, too, Talon.”

“Indeed,” Talon answers. “It would be a shame if I lost my abilities.”

With that, he throws knives out from his sleeve. Tristan dodges the attack by barreling to the side, somersaulting along the ground. Hydrangea calls up plants from underground, knives embedding into the sides. Odessa leaps into the air, reaching behind her to draw out a handheld bar. With a click, it extends to a staff, and another morphs it quickly into a pilum.

Reeling back her arm, she launches it with full ferocity at Talon. He avoids it, jumping to the left and pulling out more knives, but he aims them at Tristan, who runs toward the nearest fountain to pull water out from its containment. Tristan moves his arms upward, pushing out enough water to create a vertical depth, the knives slowing down as they pierce its surface and float inside.

Odessa tugs her spear out from the dirt, cornering her uncle at the right. Hydrangea pulls plants forward, fingers splayed in the air. From her fingertips, electricity strings across her exoskeleton. Tristan rushes to their side, water sloshing around them, encasing Talon in its center, creating a barrier.

Talon sneers, then bursts out laughing. His stance loosens, standing upright, “Your senses haven’t weakened. Good. I’d be vexed if you squandered my generosity to teach you combat.”

Odessa smirks, minimizing her staff and settling it behind her back, “We wouldn’t do that.”

Hydrangea grins, “Tristan and I do practice on our own.”

Tristan shifts the water back toward its source, then rubs the back of his neck, “Which is great, since there was no holding back from that attack.”

“Enemies don’t show mercy,” Talon says. Adjusting his collar, he nods his head, “But tell me, what brings my niece and her companions to Mystacore?”

Odessa speaks, “I wanted to ask you something.”

“Me?” he replies, curious.

“Yes. It’s about your origins. Uncle Wrong-Man said it might be beneficial to come to Mystacore and question my relatives here.”

Talon raises a brow. He looks up at his home, then addresses the trio, “Are you intending to stay for longer than an hour?”

“Most likely.”

“I will invite you to my home, then. Come. Dinner will be prepared soon, and we may discuss the topic during.”

Accepting this, they head in the direction of his home. An impressive, ornate building that’s three stories high; they tread up wide steps, where one can overlook the weigela bushes lined around the vicinity’s front entrance, a fountain spouting water in the garden’s center, surrounded by lilacs and roses. Cool air wafts over their bodies, welcome from the heat outside. Odessa remarks that the decor has only slightly changed, the furniture taking on silver, blue, and white qualities, polished until they gleam.

Going to the stairs, Talon nods at them, “Make yourselves at home. As usual, do not break anything. I will see you at dinner promptly.”

Once he’s gone, Hydrangea chuckles, “He’s still intense.”

“He’s gonna kill us one day,” Tristan sighs.

Odessa pats his shoulder, “Only if we let him.”

He lips thin out, “Not reassuring, Des.”

Climbing the steps, they decide to wait until they are called, and opt to entertain themselves by bothering someone else.

Magic radiates within the room, energy felt even behind the door. Odessa carefully pushes it open, seeing a slim figure move around. Putting a finger to her lips, she leads her friends into her cousin’s quarters. His face is stern, staring at the spell hovering over the ground at shoulder height.

Hydrangea sits quietly on a cushion on the floor, and Tristan does the same. Odessa leans against the wall, and they all watch. Eon is her cousin, and their similarities begin and end with their fathers having chosen Etherian women as their partners. He differs from her, and any other potential cousin, by having the capability to do magic. Real, Etherian magic.

Eon takes measured breathing, focusing on the spell. It elongates toward the ceiling and floor, then narrows to a thin line. Reaching for it, he plucks it with his forefinger. It snaps, and a discordant sound follows, uncomfortable and shrill. Hydrangea and Tristan cover their ears, as Odessa winces.

Eon looks at them, brow raised. He grins, “Did you all enjoy the show?”

“We did, until that,” Hydrangea complains, glaring at him. She frowns, lightly slapping her ears, “Aw no, there’s some ringing!”

“It’ll pass in a few moments,” Eon explains. “Besides, you three coming into my room unannounced and unwelcome deserves a bit of retribution.”

“By popping our eardrums?” Tristan asks, deadpan.

“Exactly,” Eon says, one hand on his hip. He turns to Odessa, and smiles. “You’re here sooner than expected.”

“I believe we arrived on time,” she answers, grinning back. She hasn’t seen him for a while, but he has gotten taller since then. He takes after their species' propensity for large heights, but she knows he’s grown a few inches and might continue to grow for the next couple of years as well.

Eon begins putting away his spellbook and notes, arranging them neatly, “What are the three of you doing here? With you on Etheria, you normally visit me later on your returns.”

“I came to ask your father some questions, but then he invited us to dinner.”

“He can be standoffish, but oddly enough, never when it comes to hosting meals.”

Hydrangea sits up, “We got into a sparring session with him right away too.”

Eon joins them on the floor, one knee bent to prop up an arm, “I had mine early this morning. You know him, he’s never done with training.”

Crossing outstretched legs, Tristan reclines against the wall, “Your parents don’t let up, huh?”

“No, but I head to my place at Bright Moon later in the month. I check in biweekly to continue my sparring and magic training, then head back and repeat.”

“That’s a lot of back and forth,” Hydrangea adds, holding a pillow to her chest.

Shrugging, Eon says, “I don’t mind. Keeps me busy.”

Odessa chuckles lightly, taking a seat beside Tristan, “For being super busy, Uncle Wrong-Man said to give you this.” Pulling out the bag, she tosses it to him.

Eon catches it deftly, a quiet ‘yes’ of triumph leaving his lips. His diet is strict when he’s with his parents, for optimal nutrition and betterment. But he has a sweet tooth that rivals Odessa and Entrapta, thus any opportunity to consume sugar is taken. Using a levitation spell, he has it placed atop his desk, and an invisibility spell follows after, keeping it from view.

“Won’t your parents find it? It’s not like you can’t smell cookies,” Odessa states.

“I’ll say it was one of you.”

Hydrangea laughs, “I don’t think they’ll be entirely fooled by that.”

“If not, that’s fine by me too,” Eon says. “I let them think they’re savvier than myself.”

Tristan smirks, “How often has that worked?”

“More than for you,” Eon says, smirking back.

Odessa and Hydrangea whoop at Tristan, who laughs in good humor.

Stretching his arms up and to the side, Eon turns to his cousin, “How did the last journey go?”

“It went as planned. We went to Pilan, and my parents found what they needed for research.”

“And you two?” he asks, addressing the others.

Hydrangea lays on her stomach, drawing circles on the pillow, “Hm… my moms have started taking me to council meetings, which is interesting. We had a gathering with some of the leaders in Plumeria that are helping to manage its growing space. And New Chelicerata has been thriving for years now, since we removed all the machinery in the Fright Zone and expanded it into the Flower Field.”

“Not all the toxins have been removed, I’m assuming.”

“Some of the groundwater had been too polluted, and it leaked into larger bodies of water, but, as a whole, we started seeing real progress six years ago.”

“I’ve been helping the residents there by removing water too far gone,” Tristan adds. “We’ve been separating them into larger containers as instructed, and we’re hoping that newer technology from Entrapta and Hordak will yield positive results in another decade or so.”

“Even if it’s slow, progression is always good.”

Odessa glances to her left, letting her mind drift. Time doesn’t pass by the same when traveling through space. She watches her mother age, while her father stays the same, and that’s the extent of how often she pays attention to the changes happening around her. It’s not from ignorance, but from not giving too much thought to it, even with the years she has spent returning to Etheria to evaluate and aid her people here.

Settling against Tristan, Odessa yawns. He keeps his body still as she falls asleep, finding their chatter relaxing. Dinner will arrive sooner if she’s napping. Even closing her eyes is enough for her body to rest, breathing quietly as she listens to them discuss any topic they happen upon.

Her friends are interrupted mid-conversation, a knock at the door grabbing their attention. Odessa opens an eye. The housekeeper bows her head, addressing Eon, “Your parents are waiting for you in the dining room. Please, follow me.”

Odessa knows her uncle, Talon, is a force to be reckoned with in combat, but her aunt, Nyxia, is a woman with severe features and a severer personality. If there was ever given a choice between fighting him or her, they may have to weigh their options a little more carefully.

She is seated next to Eon, with Hydrangea and Tristan placed across from them. Odessa leans toward her cousin, “Did Nyxia poison the food this time?”

Eon shakes his head, “Maybe Tristan’s.”

Tristan bawks, “Hey!”

Waving his hand, Eon smiles, “I’m teasing. It’s more than likely Hydrangea.”

“What?!” she demands, worried.

“You two are making this easy,” Eon grins, shaking his head. “Really, after all this time, you continue to doubt my parents’ hospitality.”

“I haven’t seen your mom in a while, okay? I wouldn’t know if I offended her last time,” Hydrangea breathes out, leaning back in her chair.

Ear twitching, Odessa catches the sound of footfalls, her aunt coming into view from the corridor, chin-length, violet hair framing lithe, dark features, gown flowing behind her. Definitely not a person to be out of line around.

But that only applies to non-relatives.

Nyxia smiles warmly at her niece, “Odessa! My charming girl, how have you been?”

“Wonderful, Aunt Nyxia, thank you,” Odessa replies, nodding her head in respect.

“Excellent. I heard all of you did well in your impromptu session with my husband earlier,” she says, making her way to the other end of the table. Standing beside her chair, she looks at her son’s other friends, “Talon remarked that you’ve improved considerably.”

“Thank you, ma’am,” Hydrangea and Tristan reply at once.

Talon comes from the opposite corridor, walking toward Nyxia. Pulling out the chair for her and sliding it beneath, he moves to the other end and takes his place at the head. The staff bring out their meal: roasted pheasants and potatoes, slathered in its drippings, with baked seasoned vegetables on the side. Wine is served to all of them, as Nyxia and Talon are lax in this department of child-rearing, though the option to have different beverages is always available. Odessa requests her usual fizzy drink, as Hydrangea asks for lemon water. Tristan and Eon have no qualms with the choice displayed in front of them.

“Smells delicious, Miss Nyxia,” Hydrangea compliments.

“Thank you, my dear,” she answers, laying a cloth on her lap. “When I heard you three were in Mystacore, I chose to make this instead.”

Odessa and Eon twiddle each other’s fingers under the table, a silent ‘fuck yeah’ to the change in menu. Nyxia is a phenomenal chef, but she abhors cooking. The usual staff do lovely work, except they are meant to keep things simple, clean, and balanced. Nyxia, despite agreeing with her husband on meal preparation, manages to create rich, satisfying food each time. Normally, when Odessa and her family are visiting.

Relishing this opportunity, Eon cuts into his pheasant, stabbing a portion of potato with it, melting on his tongue. Trying not to pretend-weep. Or actually weep.

“What was your question, Odessa?” Talon asks, swirling the wine in its glass. “It’s not like you to come without your parents.”

Dabbing her mouth, Odessa looks at him, “I wanted to ask you questions about your time serving as a soldier for Prime.”

He doesn’t break the smooth motion of his wrist, not minding that part of his life, “Yes?”

“I was told that older clones might have information regarding our origins. A life before Prime sought out to conquer the universe. My father and W.H. are too young to remember, or were never privy to it. You’re one of the eldest, so I figured to come here before heading to Beast Island.”

Talon sets down his glass, lifting his fork and knife. He takes a bite of his food, chewing quietly. Swallowing, he says, “I will be blunt: it is not possible to know such a thing. Our purpose, our life, was to do Prime’s bidding.”

“There isn’t anything you can think of?”

Talon mulls the question, glancing up at his wife, then back to the plate. He narrows his eyes, and they flicker to an even darker shade of blue for a fraction of a moment. He gives a minute shake of his head, imperceptible to all but his wife.

Odessa waits for him to speak, slipping out her recorder with a strand of hair.

“I… cannot remember a time before Horde Prime. There was only war. Ravaged lands, and screaming,” he leans forward. He meets his niece’s gaze, “You might have to go to Beast Island for your answers, though I do not trust they will know more. Many of us have been alive for decades, but not millennia.”

“Is there a reason for that?” Tristan wonders. “The hivemind was the source of connection. Did you lose memories once it left?”

“No, it doesn’t seem to be that way,” Talon answers, sipping his drink. “It’s more… you have recollections, starting from the present. And it continues backwards until it stops. A wall in your head, which is the moment of when we, for lack of a better word, are ‘born.’ From what I’ve gathered, raising Eon, and observing all of you growing up, an infant that develops naturally can have memories that are faint—both in sensation and imagery, and the mind’s eye develops scenarios of what could’ve happened. Piecing puzzles in your memory banks. Attempting to make sense of your childhood and surroundings, and it even causes you to feel certain emotions into adulthood on a subconscious level. For us, and my brothers, there is no guesswork. There is the instant of emerging from the vitrine, and from there it goes on. Our memories are crystal clear, and gaps do not occur. If we feel emotion, it’s from direct experiences, not preconceived ideas of maybe how we experienced living. The hivemind being removed made us how we are now, but its absence didn’t seem to affect anything else.”

“Fascinating,” Odessa says, forgetting her meal. “So, you remember everything?”

“Yes. It would seem my brothers and I recall memories at greater capacities than most.”

“Would you say you have photographic memory?” Hydrangea asks, leaning forward.

“Our superior intellect allows us to retain knowledge quicker, and we remember things for longer, but a true photographic memory isn’t an aspect we have considered.”

Nyxia cuts into her pheasant, “It’s not unlikely. Your brothers and you have shown an uncanny ability to remember things more greatly than Etherians. It might be prudent to research it further, wouldn’t you say?”

Nodding in agreement, Odessa would not rule it out. She’ll discuss it with her mother for an unbiased opinion later.

Dinner finishes with chiffon cake and fruit, leaving guests and hosts satisfied. Talon and Nyxia wave at the door, as Eon walks them to the portal.

“It was good to see you all,” Hydrangea says, turning to Eon. She clasps his hands, “You should visit more!”

Eon blushes slightly, still not used to open demeanors, “I’ll try to make an effort.”

Tristan pats his shoulder, “You have to get out more. Between you and Odessa, I don’t know who’s more of the hermit.”

“It’s definitely me,” Eon replies. “Odessa’s too needy.”

Punching him in the arm, Odessa gives a side-hug right after. She and her friends step onto the portal, “I’ll drop by again soon! And visit my parents sometime, dumbass.”

He flips her off, smirking.

Hopping through the portal, they arrive in Plumeria, where she bids goodbye to her friends. Then, she heads to Beast Island.

“Odessa! My little cupcake, how was your trip to Mystacore?” Entrapta asks. Imp, crawling around on the walls, chirps his greetings with Emily beeping at her return.

“It was very interesting,” Odessa says, pulling out her recorder. “Would you like to listen with me?”

“You bet!” Entrapta shouts, sidling over to sit on her hair. Odessa takes a proffered seat before playing back the conversation at dinner. She listens with rapt attention, the two of them quiet. Afterward, Entrapta grins, “That was fascinating! I had noticed that your relatives tend to be more affluent with recollection than most, but this requires more study.”

“Do you think there is a possibility that they have photographic memory?”

“We won’t know unless we test the hypothesis,” Entrapta turns to her daughter, grinning wide. “You know what that means!”

Odessa grins wide too, saying it with her.

“Time to experiment!”

Odessa and Entrapta had to decide what and how to measure. The test is simple on paper, but part of the reason memory tests can be difficult is due to fallibility of nature. Recalling a memory does not equate accuracy. They also had to take into account that Etherian children were more susceptible to false memories, which could affect them as adults, hence, why Talon said that there’s no guesswork for his brothers and himself. And when it came to the ethics, Entrapta reminded Odessa that it’s part of experimentation, much to the latter’s chagrin. Odessa would’ve followed, regardless, but she’s more determined to see things through without obstacles.

A lack of true full-blooded children for Hordak’s species, and Eon and Odessa were not little anymore, that wasn’t necessary to entertain. However, Odessa and Entrapta believed it would be prudent to test the memory of Eon and any other hybrid cousins simultaneously to the Etherian and Horde groups, sans Odessa.

After deliberating, they chose to experiment by gathering Etherians between the ages of 15-50, to cover the age bases of both Etherian teens and adults, hybrid offspring, and Horde descendants. After age 14, correct absolute judgments and relative judgments have better succession rates and are not as affected by false positives. With this in mind, Odessa sends out a mass message asking if anyone would like to be part of a study.

She receives her answers quickly from her uncles, who would be more than delighted to aid her in any quest. She splits them into four groups, Group A, B, C and D. To accommodate for the choice in subjects, they will be separated into three sections, Etherians being the first, hybrids the second, and her uncles will be the third subsect. Over the course of the week, she receives the rest of her subjects at Beast Island.

Tristan and Hydrangea are the first to arrive, looking forward to spending time with her and her family in the meantime. Hydrangea gives Emily and Imp hugs and kisses, cooing over them incessantly. Imp clings to Hydrangea’s neck, completely at ease.

Tristan pats Emily’s surface, smiling at her beeps, “It’s good to see you too.”

She beeps even louder and harder, spinning around in place.

Entrapta grins, “Aw, you made her day!”

“No one else is my favorite robot, are they, Ems?” Tristan asks. She spins again, and the whirring becomes softer, almost shy.

Odessa nudges his ribs, “Great, my sister has a crush on you.”

Tristan rolls his eyes, smiling.

Odessa peers at his face, “Hey, you shaved!”

“Yeah, you were right. It was horrible,” Tristan remarks.

“You look better this way,” Odessa affirms, pinching his cheek, and he lightly whacks her fingers away.

Scorpia comes a moment later, and immediately bolts over to them all. Once the hugs are done, Scorpia and Entrapta discuss things on their own. Entrapta settles into the crook of Hordak’s arm, resting easily over her shoulders. Scorpia gushes over how cute they are. Hordak humphs in disdain, despite the blush on his cheeks.

Another five minutes pass and the portal hums. Catra, Adora, and two of their children come through.

Odessa sighs. Not looking forward to having some of them here. But she smiles, walking to Adora, “Hi! Thanks for coming.”

Adora smiles, giving Odessa a warm hug. She pulls back, holding her at arm’s length, “It’s no problem. We’re glad to help! You’ve gotten taller.”

“You’ve definitely sprouted more than we thought. I remember when you were knee-high,” Catra says. “You were the worst ankle-biter in Etheria.”

Odessa teases, “Still am.”

Laughing, Catra pats her back, walking hand in hand with Adora to their friends.

Her smile falters after that, though she manages to keep it in place. If Catra and Adora weren’t there, she wouldn’t hide her contempt or indifference.

They have four children in total. Quadruplets in fact. All a year younger than her at 15. Two of them, Clawdeen and Marlena, tend to spend their time in Bright Moon, and she has no opinion of them other than they’re not her sort of people. Well, that’s not true. They’re surprisingly elitist and refuse to associate with anyone they find unworthy of their time. They mind their business enough, however, so Odessa doesn’t pay them attention.

Barely coming to five feet tall, Molly is one of the children here today, a skittish, timid thing; the runt of her litter. She inherited Catra’s heterochromia, one eye blue, the other green, and that’s the one interesting thing about her. She stands, unsure, by the portal. Her appearance here is odd, since she tends to be alone. Odessa doesn’t hate her, or even dislike her, but the girl’s meekness doesn’t make her striking enough to have an opinion on either.

Adam, their one son, is another story. His eyes are bright blue, and slightly jarring in the feline face. The opposite of Molly, he is loud, prone to temper tantrums, and his temerity leaves much to be desired. She prefers the company of confident, open people, but he’s, without a doubt, the most obnoxious fucker she’s ever had the misfortune of knowing.

His eyes, the only one to resemble Adora’s, land on hers, and he leaps over, grinning. Placing an arm on her shoulder, leaning, he says, “Yooooo, what’s up, girl?”

Odessa turns to him, narrowing her eyes, “Please don’t take my smile for welcome, you complete ass.”

“Ooh, baby, you need to chill,” Adam says, poking her nose.

“Try that one more time and I’ll bite it off.”

He winks, “That a promise, thottie from space?”

Odessa smiles wider, eyes flashing, “It’s a threat, you parasitic fool.”

Sensing her growing irritation, her friends bound over. Hydrangea waves at Adam, “Hey! We haven’t seen you in a long time. How’ve you been?”

Adam turns to her, “Hey, Dragon Fruit! You know how I be—taking care of all this,” Adam gestures to his thin body, puffing out his chest. “What you been up to lately? Those flower braids are doing everything for your look.”

Hydrangea urges him to walk far, far, far, far away from Odessa’s area.

Rubbing her temples, Odessa takes a breath.

Tristan rubs her back, “Remember, Des: think of the experiment.”

Odessa nods at him. Science. Her one true refuge. “I know. It’s a little… irritating that he’s here. But I’m sure that empty-headed dolt will yield some results for me.”

Tristan smiles at her, ensuring she doesn’t lose her cool. Once he’s sure she won’t murder, he looks at Molly, “Hi! I didn’t think I’d see you here.”

Molly brushes hair away, looking briefly at the ground before addressing him. “Yeah… Um, my moms thought it would be cool to take one or two of us. To help Odessa out.”

Odessa shakes her head, “So glad about that.”

“Um… I’m sorry about Adam...” Molly starts.

“It’s fine,” Odessa replies, focusing back on her clipboard, walking away.

Sighing, Molly bites her lower lip, feeling uneasy.

Noticing that, Tristan smiles at Molly, “Come on. We can wait over here.”

“Sorry you’re stuck with me,” she mumbles.

“I’m not stuck with you,” Tristan answers. He leads her to an unoccupied stone ledge, the occasional pooka darting across it. “Though, I didn’t think this was your sort of thing.”

“It isn’t. I don’t really want to be here,” Molly answers, pulling her legs to her chest.

“It might be fun, right?” Tristan asks.

Shrugging, Molly places her chin onto her hands.

They both watch the portal light up, a plethora of clones marching through. It has to pause for a brief moment, then it continues to spew individuals out of it. Tristan glances down at Molly, knowing there’s no point in attempting to converse. The silence doesn’t bother him, and she seems to take more comfort out of not having to make dreadful small talk. He hates it too, so this works.

Eon and his parents eventually pass through. Waving at him, Tristan reclines in his seat, “You and your folks actually came. I didn’t think any of you left the house.”

Standing with his arms behind his back, at ease, Eon smirks, “You’re all lucky we don’t come out more often.”

Tristan sticks his tongue out at him. He gestures to his left, “You remember Molly?”

Eon looks down at her, “Yes, we have met before. Nice to see you again.”

Molly flushes, turning away, “Nice to see you too…”

He glances at Tristan, who gives a one-shoulder shrug.

She keeps quiet, looking at the people around her. Hordak and his brothers all stand out as one unit, and other cousins similar to Eon slowly arrive. Not as large in number, with more variation than Hordak’s species but less than natives. She watches Etherians coming forth as well, and doesn’t wave or acknowledge them. Hoping to blend with the background, she scoots further away, sinking behind Tristan.

Tristan notes her discomfort and doesn’t move.

Eon, however, waves at some relatives, who rush over to greet him.

Molly frowns, accepting her fate. She takes to watching Eon speak with his family, his tall, sleek body impressive even among those similar to him in build. His hair, cropped shorter at the sides, falls in front of his forehead, a darker hue than his cousin Odessa. His eyes are a lovely shade, bordering on magenta with a stronger red tint, the sclera an equally pretty color, lighter than his irises. His usual confident smirk remains on his face throughout, bright, sharp teeth against the usual backdrop of pale face with the sides of his cheekbones and neck becoming a shock of dark blue or purple. It seems to be a common male trait, since Odessa’s face is white all around, but she isn’t sure. She doesn’t see the other cousins close enough to tell.

She spies Odessa wandering with her device, either barking orders or quietly checking off things. Long, lilac hair floats behind her when not in use, her frame just as slim and tight as the others, and inheriting a tall height seems to be the norm for them. Despite her gorgeous features, Molly finds it interesting, also intimidating, how much redder Odessa’s eyes and sclera are compared to Eon’s.

Hydrangea is speaking with Odessa now, platinum blonde hair brushing against her body, falling in the softest of waves to the small of her back. Her lithe frame befits the gentler, kinder nature she has, which isn’t surprising considering who her parents are. But there’s that powerful change in limb, her arms spiking at the shoulder in dark red, the skin of her arms mottled with it, until it reaches her elbows, where it spikes again, hardens, forming another patch of chitinous skin that reaches her fingertips, claws neatly filed down. And then there’s the tail, shorter, but as potent as Scorpia’s. Deadly and graceful.

She looks up at Tristan, beautiful, brown eyes staring off to the distance. Long lashes frame them, delicate yet full. His hands rest lightly over his knees, fingernails painted black. Hair reaching the end of his neck, lightly touching muscular shoulders, it enriches brown skin with its color, more than a mere dark purple. It’s the color of wine in the dark, of a gorgeous night as the last remnants of light dash away. The blue of his clothes highlight everything further, lavish gold trim clashing against the bright colors, revealing every taut muscle without meaning to, and she traces the curve of his spine with her eyes.

She feels a gaze on her, and finds her brother staring at her from a distance. Molly, snapping from her reverie, darts her sight to the ground. Unaware of Tristan looking in her direction.

Once enough participants have arrived, Odessa claps her hands, “Alright, people! Listen up: I have divided you all into the following groups. Step up this way, where I will assign you all with a place to go to.”

Adam bounds up out of nowhere, whispering, “Can whatever group I’m in be called Team Sexy?”

Odessa ignores him, “Let’s begin, shall we?”

HYDRANGEA

Age: 15

Species: Etherian

“Alright,” Odessa says. “I’m going to show you 10 pictures. You will have seven seconds to absorb all the details for them, and afterward, I will ask you one simple question about what you can remember.”

“You got it!” Hydrangea sits in her chair, comfortable. “Sounds easy enough.”

Odessa smiles, “Here’s your first one.”

She holds up a simple image of table mats atop a wooden surface, decorated with plates of breakfast foods, drinks, and fresh fruits.

“Okay, ready for the question?”

“Yep!”

“What fruits topped the waffles?”

“Oh, um… berries and apples?”

Writing it down, Odessa proceeds with the next image.

TRISTAN

Age: 17

Species: Etherian

“Hello!” Entrapta says, bringing him in. “I’m going to show you 10 pictures for less than 10 seconds each, and you’ll let me know what you remember.”

“Sure thing,” Tristan replies, sitting upright.

She pulls out an image of miscellaneous items and personal effects on a desk, three photographs in the middle, a drawing in one of the corners, a grey notebook, and a folder with intricate patterns.

“Okay, ready for the question?”

“Yes.”

“Were there tickets on the table?”

Tristan mulls his answers for a moment, “No.”

MOLLY

Age: 15

Species: Etherian

Odessa approaches the girl, relieved that she doesn’t have to deal with the handful that was her brother. She looks at Molly, “I’m going to hold up 10 pictures for you, and you will have seven seconds to absorb the image. Afterward, I will ask you questions.”

“Alright,” Molly nods, nails clicking against each other.

The image is of a mountain peak, glinting from the light; the moon shines above it, and a trip of hoofed animals moving along its surface.

“What was the total number of baby goats in the image?”

Molly thinks over the total, and says, “Five.”

ADAM

Age: 15

Species: Etherian

Entrapta comes into the room, “Hello! I’m going to be showing you some pictures—”

Adam interrupts her, “Is this going to take long?”

“Nope! It takes less than five minutes for this segment to be complet—”

“Do we get paid to do this?”

“...No.”

Scratching his nose, Adam leans back in his chair, “Got it, got it. Lay it on me, girl!”

Entrapta smiles, “Great! So, I have 10 pictures and I will show them to you for about seven seconds. I will ask you questions after each one about what you saw.”

“Question real quick: is this one of those tests that explain anything about your psychosis?”

“What do you mean?”

“Is it gonna tell me anything, like, am I gonna learn about who is the most likely to be a murderer or nymphomaniac?”

Raising a brow at him, Entrapta says, “I can’t divulge too much about the study to participants. But this is not that kind of test.”

“Aw… okay,” Adam shifts back further in his seat, lifting the front legs from the ground. “Well, that’s less fun.”

Entrapta proceeds to bring out a picture: a series of potted plants are lined on shelves, different heights and colors smashed closely together in the frame, their pots not resembling the others save for a few.

“What was the centre motif for the pots?”

Adam scratches his chin, “Frog, I think.”

EON

Age: 18

Species: Etherian and ?

Odessa approaches her cousin, sitting relaxed in the seat. She had gone through the first ten pictures with him already. She glances at him, “Are you ready to continue with the process?”

“Whatever this study is, I’m assuming that you need me to come back again for another trial run.”

“Yes, you will be returning a few times after today to aid in the study, as per your agreement on the written form.”

“Of course.”

“You went through the first half, and you’re going to begin the second half now. This is slightly different,” Odessa explains. Instead of photographs, she holds up a pad, similar in size and weight to her telecommunicator. “I am going to hold up one image: a grid of white and black squares. Then, I will show you a second image, of the same number of squares on the grid; however, you will choose the one square you believe was white in both image one and image two. Image three will have the grids with numbers in the squares instead for you to pick. The amount of time will be the same, seven seconds. There are four levels of difficulty, and you will proceed until we reach the last level.”

Nodding, Eon watches her lift the screen to his eyes. A grid of white and black appears, and he keeps in mind which are white only. The second image appears. Then the third. He makes his decision. He will not know if he is right, as the data is processed within for the researchers alone.

Odessa keeps her face neutral the entire time, intrigued at what this part of the test will yield from everyone else.

TALON

Age: approx. 90 (total) | approx. 52 (mental) | approx. 52 (physiological)

Species: ?

Entrapta smiles, “We do appreciate you helping with the test.”

“It is no trouble,” Talon states. “You and my niece are a select few that do not leave me…”

“Irritated?”

“We’ll use that word.”

Entrapta approaches her brother-in-law, setting herself down on swathes of hair, “Are you ready for the second half of the test?”

“Yes. By all means, little sister, proceed.”

“Excellent! I’m going to show you a grid with black and white squares. Another image will appear after on the device. The number of squares will not change, however, you have to decide what is the one square that remained white. You will pick that in the third image, where the squares will all be numbered.”

“Understood. You may show me the first image.”

W.H.

Age: approx. 40 (total) | approx. 23 (mental) | approx. 27 (physiological)

Species: ?

“This must be exciting for you, isn’t it?” W.H. asks. “You haven’t done a study like this in a while.”

Readying the pad, she nods, “It has been a few years since I’ve conducted anything in this manner.”

“I still remember when you were little, and you insisted on having your first experiment be a methane explosion. You were so cute!”

Odessa smiles, “Speaking of memory, we’re going to begin the second half of the test. You will have the same amount of time to memorize the image on screen. Another will follow right after, and your task is to choose which square on the grid remained white. The image will be your selection on a numbered grid.”

“Sounds fun!”

Holding it up for him, Odessa watches his eyes stay in place, focused. A flicker to indicate change on the screen, then another before he makes his decision.

HORDAK

Age: approx. 56 (total) | approx. 57 (mental) | approx. 35 (physiological)

Species: ?

Entrapta can’t help but smile at him, “Thanks for helping, Lab Partner!”

Hordak smiles back, rising from the chair, “Of course. The experiment seems to be going well.”

“It’s been so fascinating!” Entrapta lifts herself up in the air, at his height. “Everyone has been super helpful, even when they’re rambling about their own assumptions!”

“Who was rambling?”

“One of Catra’s kids—the boy. He was very interesting when he talked, but I had to stay focused! We’re collecting so much data… Odessa is going to be ecstatic!”

Happy to see her in good spirits, Hordak leans forward, kissing her cheek, “When you’re done, I will be waiting for you in our room.”

Entrapta waggles her eyebrows at him, wrapping her arms around his neck, “Ooh! Is this about that new maneuver you wanted to show me?”

“We’ll see if your memory serves you just as well tonight,” Hordak smirks.

Squealing, Entrapta kicks her legs behind her, pecking his mouth with her own. “Can’t wait!”

The results, overall, took two months to compile through the data machine and to check back in with the participants. None of the groups had different numbers, pictures, objects, or words. Odessa and Entrapta tested everyone on their eidetic and photographic memory ability. Group A had no distractions, Group B had Etherians with distractions only, Group C was where her cousins had the disturbances, and Group D it was her uncles with diversions.

When it came to eidetic memory, the numbers didn’t vary too much. But the photographic memory yielded noteworthy results. Each group was brought back a month after being tested to see if they could recall things better. A few Etherians showed some promising ability for it, but overall it wasn’t strong. Her cousins showed stronger signs for photographic memory, Eon being one of the best candidates.

But her uncles were nearly at a 97% rate of accuracy. Talon and W.H. showed an adeptness for remembering things weeks later. Hordak was somewhere in the middle. She wonders why.

“Mom,” she says, holding the charts in her hair. “I know that photographic memory is rare, but these numbers are unreal.”

“I know! The majority of your relatives have a knack for it! That’s so fascinating.”

“I have a theory that it might be due to the hivemind, and perhaps the military training they underwent. It would make sense why they have such capability, even two decades later,” Odessa says. She pulls another chart toward them, tapping her forefinger in quick successions behind it. “It may or may not be that, since we’re not certain of Dad’s origins, but it would explain aspects of it.”

Entrapta’s hair moves her behind her daughter, peering over her shoulder, “It may. I saw that Wrong Hordak was remarkable with photographic memory, and Talon as well.”

“I believe it’s possible that it might be due to neither having depressive episodes. It may have been a group study, but I saw that clones similar to Dad in terms of mental health had a tendency toward memory loss or confusion. It’s not as often or strong as Etherians, or a couple of my cousins, but it’s there. Brains are brains after all.”

“It is exceptional to write this in our records. I wish we had more examples to go by,” Entrapta says. She smiles, “I think it says quite a lot when you compare it to Etherians and your cousins, though.”

“I do find this riveting. Even if it’s Dad cloned thousands of times, there’s something in their brains, their minds, that can provide clues to them as a whole. It’d be prudent to conduct more research, but I’d like to begin as soon as possible, and I can add notes as I go along.”

Entrapta pats her daughter’s head, “And now that you have this information, what do you intend to do with it?”

Odessa looks up at her mother, then back at the data. “I’m going to have Tris and Gea come with me on a little field trip.”

#entrapdak #entrapta #hordak #entrapdak fankid #odessa #shera #spop

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vice-admiral-vergo · 4 years

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♘ Vergo is connected to Vegapunk’s and Judge’s lineage factor research, being the prototype they created, named as Prototype-V ( lat. vergo: to bend, incline, verge, to draw to an end ), as the word itself represented what he was supposed to stand for, someone inclined to do as told, to have his will bent to his masters, to represent a perfect soldier.

♘ As it is trial and error with experiments, Vergo ended up being a failed product. While tweaking his lineage factor and modifying him, the scientists messed up his short-term memory, caused the “stickiness” of his cheeks and problems with inhibitory control, but at the same time enhanced his long-term memory, decision making, physical abilities and learning capabilities ( which is why he’s able to quickly adapt to situations and learn new skills or languages ).

♘ After observation, they soon realised that the boy, while physically almost a perfect soldier was mentally a commander, someone higher in military hierarchy. That by itself was dangerous as superhumans could easily turn on their masters just because of logical and objective approach to situations and decided to get rid of him. Vegapunk was against execution and Prototype-V was sold to the first buyers on the Black Market, which happened to be Trebol and Diamante.

♘ Vergo remembers his childhood prior to meeting them and later, Doflamingo, and while he’s unable to feel fear, he does feel uncomfortable in closed-off tight spaces or near drugs and needles. Since he’s been exposed to many drugs, he does have certain immunity to most of them.

♘ His highly sensitive eyes are also a result of experiments. As he was exposed to genetic modification since birth and wasn’t exposed to light, his eyes never adjusted to it.

♘ Vergo isn’t able to have a devil fruit, as it is better for him never to try eating one. Devil Fruits affect one's lineage factor and to someone like Vergo, whose lineage factor has already been tweaked, it is very dangerous to have it tweaked again as it could cause severe problems or in worst case, death.

#♘ under the black lenses ( headcanon )#[ no one asked but have my headcanons ]#[ he's been through so much 😭 ]#[ my poor baby ]#[ he doesn't have the exoskeleton like vinsmokes ]#[ because he was the prototype ]#[ but getting out and meeting Doffy was the best thing to happen to him 😭 ]#[ he got to be human; he learned to love and form bonds ]#[ *clenches heart* my baby ]

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mobius-prime · 4 years

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252. Sonic the Hedgehog #183

Desperate Times

Writer: Ian Flynn Pencils: Tracy Yardley! Colors: Jason Jensen

Just a note - for whatever reason, this story doesn't actually list a colorist. I'm making my best guess that it's Jason based on the style and the fact that he colored for the second story in this issue. That said, we open this issue with Julie-Su and Locke screaming in each other's faces with a concerned Sonic stuck in the middle. Julie-Su is adamant that they can't kill Knuckles to stop him, while Locke insists that Knuckles is gone, and only Enerjak remains. Locke, buddy, have you completely forgotten that even Dimitri, who remained as Enerjak for hundreds of years, was able to be returned to his former mortal state?

Julie-Su, obviously not used to Sonic's "I have a plan and I'm only playing along to put it into action" face, is outraged, but Locke is pleased, and throws a warp ring to take them to its location in the Grand Conservatory. However, the moment they step through, they're confronted by the Destructix along with Scourge and Fiona, who are here to take the weapon developed by the Brotherhood for themselves. While this is going on, Eggman has begun the process of sapping the energy from Enerjak within his modified Egg Grapes, intending to use him as a living battery due to his immense power reserves. Snively interrupts his uncle's glee by bringing him none other than Dimitri, who explains why he's here, believing that Eggman is a better bet for destroying Enerjak than the Freedom Fighters were. Eggman assures him that he has everything under control, but Dimitri is less than convinced, an attitude which turns out to be completely warranted.

We literally all saw this coming, buddy. Sonic, Julie-Su, and Locke put up a fight against the Destructix, but they're too overwhelmed to really hold their own. Things are looking bad until none other than Archimedes shows up, laying down a wall of literal cover fire for them to all get inside the conservatory safely. Once they're inside, Archimedes teleports in after them, and immediately lays into Locke for even thinking about using the weapon on Enerjak. He points out that Knuckles is only in this position because of Locke's genetic experimentation on him and the burdens that the both of them as well as the entire rest of the Brotherhood placed on him from birth. Locke is irritated at the callout, but the conversation is interrupted when Sonic, whom no one had even realized was gone, returns with the weapon in hand. It's not at all clear how it's supposed to be used to defeat Enerjak, given that it just kind of looks like some generic metal rod, but that doesn't really matter, as the Destructix enter the facility looking to steal it…

Sonic simply brushes Locke off and reminds him that Knuckles is, y'know, his son and therefore he should definitely have a better plan than to just kill him. He then informs him and Julie-Su both that he's come up with his own plan and speeds off without explaining, hoping to both defeat Enerjak and get Knuckles back. Enerjak, meanwhile, has been busying himself with destroying as much of New Megaopolis and Eggman's robotic ground forces as he can, which a horrified Snively relays back to Eggman. Eggman, however, is confident that his Egg Fleet, which still stands, can take Enerjak down, and orders his ships to fire every bit of weaponry they have at once.

Absolutely smashing job, Eggman! Enerjak, though pleased with his "punishing" of Eggman, is surprised at just how much energy the Egg Grapes drained from him, so he teleports himself back to the Chaos Chamber to get a power boost, where Finitevus awaits him. Finitevus begins reciting Tikal's prayer to power Enerjak back up, but Sonic, true to form, speeds into the chamber faster than anyone can react and heads straight for the Master Emerald.

Sonic attains his Super form, and without hesitation, states his intentions to just straight up beat on Enerjak until his power goes away and Knuckles comes back. I suppose that in the end, that is exactly how he forced Perfect Chaos back to normal, so not a bad plan, all things considered!

Ashes and Dust

Writer: Ian Flynn Pencils: Tracy Yardley! Colors: Jason Jensen

This story takes place several hours before Enerjak's return, beginning with Finitevus catching Scourge trying to use the Master Emerald to power up a warp ring. Scourge, though clearly not expecting to have been caught, seems unconcerned, merely informing him that the ring is a contingency plan for himself just in case the whole Enerjak thing doesn't work out. When he flippantly mutters that he doesn't even understand the whole plan to begin with, Finitevus begins to explain it, starting by recapping for the ten thousandth time in the comic the story of Edmund and Dimitri, the Brotherhood's inception, and its clashes over the years with the Dark Legion. When Finitevus expresses his disgust with how the conflict between the two has accomplished precisely nothing in all this time, Scourge becomes confused, as he thought Finitevus was a part of the Legion.

Ah, so this is the true final fate of the Brotherhood. Though it doesn't explicitly state the other members died, it's pretty clear that's what's meant to have happened - and, of course, this is yet another example of Ian carelessly erasing Kenders' prior worldbuilding. Seriously, I know I keep bringing this up lately, but it's really frustrating how he put in all this work, like it or hate it, and yet 90% of it is completely irrelevant now. But anyway, Finitevus then explains that he chose Knuckles to become Enerjak based on his strong connection to the Chaos Force, and ends his little speech by creepily embracing the Master Emerald and looking like he's seriously considering making out with it. As Finitevus debates on whether or not to use tongue, Scourge quickly vacates the chamber with his warp ring, leaving us to wonder what the hell Finitevus' kinks are, besides destroying the world and all.

#nala reads archie sonic preboot #archie sonic #archie sonic preboot #sonic the hedgehog #sth 183 #writer: ian flynn #pencils: tracy yardley #colors: jason jensen

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amyy2810-blog · 4 years

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Concerns and Questions of Genetic Modifications in Humans

Recently, the powerful technology of genetic modification in humans has been huge in human biology, understanding and researching how we can enhance and manipulate the human genome. The availability of this technology is assessed on how ethically right this may be. Genetic engineering is the changing of base pairs A-T and C-G to create a new DNA sequence that encodes for different characteristics.

Many ethical concerns arise from the act of gene modification, such as the safety of the procedure and how morally right this may be. Gene modification is ethically positive if an embryo is genetically mapped and found to have a dominant homozygous for a disease such as Huntington's disease. “Huntington’s disease (HD) is a fatal genetic disorder that causes the progressive breakdown of nerve cells in the brain. It deteriorates a person’s physical and mental abilities usually during their prime working years and has no cure” (web MD) and symptoms typically arise around the age 30 to 50, with the prognosis of a shorter life span. If this is caught early in development, genetic splicing techniques are used to prevent the development and delete the genome sequence that expresses this dominant genetic disease. Typically, genetic disorders are influenced by more than 1 gene to be expressed, genetic modification can prevent these debilitating disorders, so the fetus has a right to life and a future just like anyone else.

Genetic modification should be allowed to cure genetic diseases but for enhancement purposes, these are regulated through policy and regulation because it is an unnecessary medical procedure. It is also unknown the effect of offspring from the genetically modified child is safe and how future generations may be affected. This is also relevant if the parents should make the decision for the child, because the mother does have a right to autonomy, but the fetus has the right of a future and may not want to be genetically modified, does this make it ethically right to do this without the consent of the child, or should we assume implied consent of the unborn fetus.

Justice and equality should also be considered, just because we have the availability of having this new technology. Should we create a new class in society of the genetically modified, that the procedure is insanely expensive and only the wealthy would have the availability to alter the characteristics of the fetus, setting a whole new class in society in wealthy communities and creating a high class in society. The NIH (National Institute of Health) will not provide any federal funds from the government for the middle class and lower class families to use the technology, since it is an unnecessary medical procedure. Genetic modification is only used for science and human biology research at this time. Genetic modification is only allowed to be tested on non-viable embryos and also if they have the consent, leftover eggs from IVF therapies that are no longer going to be used.

On November 25th, 2018, the first ever genetic manipulated babies were born. Twins, Nina and Lulu had a father who was positive for HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) and Dr. Jiankvi modified their genes prior to birth using CRISPR technology. He altered their DNA and removed a genetic sequence that codes for a gene required for HIV to enter human blood cells, without it the gene sequence, it is near impossible to contract HIV. Even though this human biology experiment was successful, Dr. Jiankvi is currently under investigation for the irresponsible use of CRISPR technology, due to that he might have modified the twin’s intelligence while he was altering their genome.

“Could it be conceivable that at one point in the future we could increase the average IQ of the population? I would not be a scientist if I said no. The work in mice demonstrates the answer may be yes. But mice are not people. We simply don’t know what the consequences will be in mucking around. We are not ready for it yet” (MIT technology). Currently, there is a redline for using gene modification to manipulate the fetus’s characteristics, rather than utilizing the technology to “cure” genetic disease. Hopefully we will see growth in this area in the upcoming future.

Citations

Department of Obstetrics. (n.d.). Genetically Modified Babies and a First Application of... : Obstetrics & Gynecology. Retrieved April 5, 2020, from https://journals.lww.com/greenjournal/Fulltext/2019/07000/Genetically_Modified_Babies_and_a_First.23.aspx

Madhav, N. (2017, November 27). Pandemics: Risks, Impacts, and Mitigation. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK525302/

Ross, R. (2019, February 1). What Is Genetic Modification? Retrieved April 5, 2020, from https://www.livescience.com/64662-genetic-modification.html

What are the Ethical Concerns of Genome Editing? (n.d.). Retrieved April 5, 2020, from https://www.genome.gov/about-genomics/policy-issues/Genome-Editing/ethical-concerns

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bluewatsons · 6 years

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Reuven Brandt, Sperm, Clinics, and Parenthood, Bioethics, 30 Bioethics 618 (2016)

Abstract

In this article I examine a recent approach to regulating assisted reproduction, whereby use of some kind of medical intervention ‘triggers’ laws governing legal parenthood that are more favourable to intending parents and sperm providers. I argue that although perhaps an improvement on the previous legal framework, these laws are problematic for three important reasons. First, they are prone to violating parental rights and unjustly imposing substantial burdens on individuals. Second, they are discriminatory. Third, even if we take a pragmatic approach to the question of parenthood in these cases, these laws fail to properly consider the welfare interests of children. Finally, I conclude by showing that my argument does not entail adopting a laissez-fair attitude to conception using third-party sperm.

1 Introduction

Many jurisdictions have enacted legislation specifically governing the ascription of legal parenthood in cases where pregnancies occur by use of third-party sperm.1 One legislative approach, the focus of this article, is to depart from the weight common law normally places on genetic ties by making intending parents who use third-party sperm a child's sole legal parents, but only when conception occurs through use of some specified type of medical intervention. I will call legislative approaches that have this effect ‘modified parenthood by medical intervention statutes’ (MPMIS). As a consequence of MPMIS, it is not only the consent and intentions of the sperm provider and intending parent(s) that the legislation takes into consideration when determining how to ascribe legal parenthood; whether conception occurs via the right kind of medical intervention plays a substantive role in determining which individual(s) the law recognizes as a child's legal parent(s). One example is the current regulatory framework in the United Kingdom, where the rules governing legal parenthood following use of third-party sperm are different for individuals who are not married or in a civil partnership if conception takes place under the auspices of a medical clinic licensed to provide fertility treatments.2

In what follows I will argue that MPMIS are morally problematic for three principal reasons. First, they are prone to both (a) ascribe legal parenthood in ways that violate moral parental rights, and (b) unjustly burden individuals with weighty financial obligations. Second, they discriminate against certain reproducers by requiring them to undergo medical scrutiny that is not required of other reproducers. Lastly, the status quo cannot be defended by arguing that the law must take a pragmatic stance to the question of legal parenthood because there is uncertainty about what moral facts ultimately determine parenthood.

I will begin by briefly describing two legal decisions where medical intervention was relevant for determining which adults were a child's legal parents, and offer these as initial motivation for thinking that the legislation that led to these decisions is problematic. In the second section I will explain why MPMIS came about, their potential benefits, and why they are ethically suspect. In the third section I will briefly explain why my view does not entail a laissez-faire approach to reproduction via third-party sperm.

Although one of the examples I present is a case from the US, my discussion will focus on the law in the UK, and the Human Fertilization and Embryology Act (HFE Act) 1990 & 2008 in particular. This is because the development of the law in the UK was done in a relatively transparent fashion that provides some degree of access to the motivations behind the legislation. Despite my focus on UK law, I take the ethical analysis to apply to similar legislation elsewhere.

Throughout the text I will use the subscript m to distinguish moral conceptions of parenthood, parental rights and parental responsibilities from their legal analogues.

2 Cases

Bruce v Boardwine

The Court of Appeals of Virginia awarded Robert Boardwine custody and visitation rights for his genetic child following a private sperm donation arrangement that broke down.3 Boardwine had provided sperm to his friend, Joyce Bruce, with the understanding that Bruce would be the sole parent of the child. Bruce then inseminated herself with Boardwine's sperm using a turkey baster. However, following a dispute with Bruce, Boardwine changed his mind about the relationship he wanted with his genetic child and petitioned the court to recognize his parental rights. In its decision, the court found that a Virginia statute4 excludes sperm donors from legal parenthood only when insemination occurs with the aid of medical technology. Since Bruce used a turkey baster, which the court found does not satisfy the definition of ‘medical technology', Boardwine could not be legally treated as a sperm donor. Reaffirming the decision of the lower court, the judge therefore granted Boardwine access to his genetic child. Importantly, had conception taken place using medical technology rather than a turkey baster, the original agreement (which was not disputed by either party) could have been upheld by the court.

Langridge

In the UK, Mark Langridge reported that he was ordered to pay child maintenance by the Child Support Agency over a decade after privately providing sperm to a lesbian couple.5 Though the children's birth mother disputed that she and Langridge had agreed that Langridge would be a mere sperm provider, this factual question was rendered immaterial by the legislative framework governing legal parenthood at the time. The HFE Act 1990 (which will be discussed in greater detail below) excluded sperm providers from legal responsibility for their genetic offspring only when sperm is transferred through a licensed medical clinic.6 Consequently, Langridge was the legal father of the children created using his gametes, despite any prior agreement between himself and the children's mother. However, had Langridge donated sperm through a licensed medical clinic, he would not be a legal parent of the resulting children (unless he had explicitly entered into a parenthood agreement with the intending mother), and thus would not have child maintenance obligations.

Discussion

Even at first blush the importance placed on the use of medical intervention in these cases seems strange, since it is not immediately clear why technical details regarding the method of conception ought to be relevant for determining which individuals have parental rights and obligations for particular children. This is most acute in the Boardwine case, where the type of device (a turkey baster) used to deliver sperm was central to the court's finding that Boardwine was a legal parent. However, even in the Langridge case, it might seem odd that legal parenthood depends, in part, on whether a type of medical intervention (use of licensed healthcare provider) is involved in the fertilization process. As these cases demonstrate however, MPMIS make these factors relevant to legal parenthood. In what follows I will explain what brought about MPMIS, and why they are indeed morally problematic.

Examination of MPMIS

Parenthood Under Common Law

MPMIS arose, in part, out of the realization that parenthood under common law poorly accommodates reproduction via third-party sperm because of the importance traditionally placed on biological ties when determining legal fatherhood. Though the relationship between genetic kinship and legal fatherhood is not strict, it is a factor that is given considerable weight, and in many cases is sufficient for legal parenthood.7 Perhaps the clearest example is unintended pregnancy. Consider a single woman who gives birth to a child conceived during a one-time tryst. Despite the absence of any ongoing relationship with the child's mother, or any intention to parent a child, the genetic father is generally deemed the child's legal parent. In fact, in a case where a clinic accidentally used the sperm from the wrong man when treating a couple who were seeking to reproduce using their own gametes, the High Court ruled that the man whose sperm was accidentally used (and not the intending father) was the resulting children's legal father.8 In the case of sperm the law places such enormous weight on genetic ties that courts have even found men to be legal parents in circumstance where their sperm was purloined via fraud, and even when they were the victim sexual assault.9

When applied to assisted reproduction, this importance placed on genetic ties gives rise to worries for both sperm providers and individuals who wish to create families using third-party sperm. For sperm providers, the worry is being deemed a legal parent of the child created using the provided gametes, as exemplified in the Langridge case described above. For individuals making use of third-party sperm, the worry is that they risk having their family life disrupted by the parental claims of a sperm provider, as exemplified in the Boardwine case. Though in cases where a woman is married there is a common law presumption that her spouse is the child's legal parent, this presumption can be rebutted by genetic tests requested by either the presumed father, or another man who asserts a claim to paternity.10 In earlier decisions, courts were hesitant to permit contestations of paternity when they risked disrupting a functioning family unit.11 However, at least in the UK, there has been a shift towards determining a child's legal paternity on the basis of genetics once a challenge is made,12 despite potential disruptions to the existing family structure that might arise as a consequence.13

The traditional legal approach to parenthood thus raises several problems for individuals wishing to reproduce using third-party sperm. As in the Langridge case, it puts sperm providers at risk of being deemed the legal parents of their genetic children, which brings with it significant obligations, despite their intentions when providing sperm. As in the Boardwine case, it puts intending parents at risk of having sperm providers granted the legal authority to interfere with their private family life.

Purpose of MPMIS

MPMIS arose to create a framework specifically governing reproduction via third-party sperm that is more favorable to the interests of intending parents, gamete providers, and arguably their offspring,14 than legal parenthood under common law.15 For instance, in The Report of the Committee of Inquiry into Human Fertilization and Embryology (hereafter referred to as ‘The Warnock Report’) which laid much of the conceptual groundwork for the HFE Act 1990, the committee recommended that reproduction via third-party gametes be accepted as legitimate treatment for infertility, and that third-party sperm providers not have any legal rights or responsibilities in respect of the children that result from their gametes.16 The committee's recommendation was an explicit call to depart from the consequences of reproduction via third-party sperm under common law, in favour of legislation that treated such procedures as assisted reproduction for intending parents. To this effect the committee stated:

Clearly in view of our recommendation (4.17) that the AID child should for all purposes be treated as the legitimate child of the couple who have benefitted from successful treatment, the donor should have no responsibilities towards the child. We therefore recommend a change in the law so that the semen donor will hnave no parental rights or duties in relation to the child.17

A similar recommendation was made in respect of ova donors, though in this case it affirmed the common law approach that gestation and not genetics should determine motherhood.18

That the Warnock Report recommended altering the conditions that give rise to legal parenthood does not fully explain MPMIS because this suggestion alone in no way implies that use of specially licensed clinics ought to have any bearing on how courts determine legal parenthood. At least in the UK, the key motivation for including licensed clinics as part of the framework governing parenthood, which in turn motivates MPMIS, was to ensure the health and safety of the individuals involved, including the children who would eventually result from third-party gametes. For example, later in The Warnock Report the committee states that they see ‘the protection of the public…as the primary objective of regulation’ and that they ‘believe that all the techniques require active regulation and monitoring, even though, as we realise, such restrictions may be regarded by some as infringing clinical or academic freedom’.19 Under the HFE Act 1990, such measures include limiting the number of donor offspring in order to prevent accidental consanguineous relationship, screening donors and their gametes in order to prevent the transmission of diseases, and screening both donors and recipients in order to ensure that they are medically fit to undergo their respective procedures.20 MPMIS thus rest on the dual concerns that the common law does not adequately accommodate reproduction via third-party sperm and that the state has an interest in ensuring that any such reproduction is done in a safe manner.

We might reasonably think that The Warnock Report's proposal is a welcome one. First, it creates a mechanism for individuals reproducing by means of third-party sperm to become legal parents from the moment of birth, while also excluding third-party sperm providers from later gaining parental status. That third-party sperm providers are excluded from being legal parents also means that they do not face the possibility of being burdened with child maintenance obligations. Second, the medical requirements that clinics are obligated to fulfill protect the health interests of the individuals seeking treatment and any children that may result. However, in the following section I will argue that coupling the modified criteria for legal parenthood to the clinical requirements is in fact morally problematic. I will argue that, at best, MPMIS discriminate against individuals reproducing via third party sperm by unjustly requiring them to undergo clinical procedures and screening that are not required of other reproducers if they want to ensure legal recognition as the child's parents to the exclusion of sperm providers.21 At worst, MPMIS are prone to violating moral parental rights, and imposing unjust financial burdens on those proving their sperm for the reproductive use of others.

MPMIS and Harm

Moral Rights and MPMIS

The purpose of MPMIS is to codify the ascription of legal parenthood, and presumably we want this ascription to track the facts that are relevant to moral parenthood in so far as this is possible. Ideally, legal parents would be moral parents (parentsm), and vice-versa. When we consider the normative features of parentalm rights, two important questions to be addressed are, (1) what is the content of parentalm rights? and (2) who are the holders of these rights? A particular theory regarding what ultimately grounds parentalm rights might have consequences for each of these questions.22 For instance, individuals who take a strong child-centric approach to parentalm rights might think that it is the individual(s) best suited to promote the interests of the child that have parentalm rights, and that these rights are constrained by the obligation to always act in the child's best interest. Alternatively, individuals who take a more parent-centric approach might think that the interests of a person or people reproducing with the aim of parenting play a significant role in determining who has parentalm rights, but that these rights are limited to a certain extent by the interests of the children they parent.23 Turning to the first question, though the philosophical literature is very much divided on the precise content of parental rights, authors from both parent-centric and child-centric approaches broadly agree that parents ought to have a certain degree of privacy and autonomy when raising their children.24 Outside philosophical debates about parenthood, the right to private family life is also considered important, as evidenced by its inclusion in the European Convention on Human Rights,25 The Human Rights Act26 and the UN's Universal Declaration of Human Rights.27 Although defending a particular view about the normative extension of the right to private and autonomous family life is beyond the scope of this paper, there are examples that I take to be relatively uncontroversial. Consider, for instance, a family that plans to take their young child on a road trip to celebrate a cultural festival with their extended family. Although a neighbouring family might like to include the infant in their family event, and might even make the case that the event they propose will be more beneficial to the young child, we still think that the child's parents have the right to take their child to their family's celebration.

The second question, identifying who is the holder of parentalm rights, is equally controversial. In the philosophical literature, four kinds of theories dominate the debate: genetic accounts,28 gestational accounts,29 intentional accounts,30 and causal accounts.31 According to the genetic account of parenthood, individuals acquire parentalm rights because their progeny's genetic material is derived from their own. According to intentionalists, parentalm rights arise from the intention to parent a child. On the gestationalist account, parentalm rights arise primarily from the act of gestation, and others’ parental claims or status as a moral parent arises from their social relationship with the gestating woman. Lastly, causal accounts of parenthood determine parentalm rights on the basis of the kind of causal role individuals have in bringing a child into existence. What is important for the purposes of this discussion is that the involvement of a licensed clinic plays no role in determining parentalm rights in any of the major accounts. Use of licensed clinic does not alter: the genetic link between reproducers and their offspring, the intensions of the involved parties, or the identity of the person who gestates a child. And although some causal theorists might include clinic employees as individuals who have some responsibility towards the children they help create,32 that the clinic is licensed is irrelevant to the nature of the causal role they play in bringing a child into existence. So while causal theorists might conclude that the involvement of additional parties in the creation of a child, such as medical professionals, affects the structure of the responsibilities various adults have towards a child, it seems unlikely that being a licensed professional is of any importance to the causal relationships from which responsibility is ultimately derived.

It is therefore reasonable to conclude that the presence or absence of licensed medical treatment is unlikely to determine which individuals have parentalmrights and responsibilities for particular children. Individuals who have an intentional or gestational view of parenthoodm will think that granting legally protected contact to a sperm provider who changes his mind about the kind of relationship he wishes to have with the child he helped to create, merely because conception occurred outside the auspices of a licensed clinic, violates the parentalm rights of the commissioning parent(s) and/or gestating parent. Similarly, individuals who have a genetic or causal view of parenthood will think that refusing to recognize a sperm donor as a legal parent merely because a licensed clinic was used violates the sperm provider's parentalm rights.33Consequently, MPMIS will assign legal parental rights and responsibilities in ways that diverge from their moral analogues, at least in some cases. This in turn will result in some individuals being denied their parentalm right to privacy and autonomy in raising their children, regardless of which theory of parenthoodm is adopted.

A similar argument also arises concerning the legal obligations that follow from legal parenthood. In a recent case in the UK, a private sperm donor who was found to be a legal parent claimed that his financial obligations to his genetic offspring were preventing him from starting a family of his own.34 And as noted by Elizabeth Brake, child maintenance obligations can result in substantial burdens, so imposing them ought to done in an ethically acceptable fashion that considers the rights and interests of all parties.35 Determining exactly what kind of involvement in procreation brings about a moral obligation to provide child maintenance is as contentious as determining what kind of procreative involvement results in parental rights. However, as in the case of parental rights, it is unlikely that the use of a licensed clinic will play any role in determining which individuals have a moral obligation to support the children they have helped to create. Thus, just as MPMIS risk violating parental rights, they also risk either burdening individuals with child maintenance obligations in a morally problematic way, or legally ‘letting off the hook’ individuals who have the moral obligation to support certain children.

One defence of cleaving legal parenthood from moral parenthood in these sorts of cases, as I have argued, occurs as a result of MPMIS, might be that we are justified in departing from the moral facts governing parenthood if it is to encourage other important moral ends, like the health of the involved parties and of future generations. As was noted previously, the justification offered in the Warnock Report for regulating assisted reproduction was the health and safety of the involved parties. Although sperm provision is not a procedure with many inherent risks, we might think that MPMIS are an important tool for ensuring that IVF and other similar procedures are done safely, given the significant health complications that are possible. We might also think that MPMIS are important for ensuring that: (a) women undergoing treatment are sufficiently healthy to undergo pregnancy, (b) the gametes do not pose a risk of infectious disease to the woman gestating or the resulting child, and (c) the risk of passing congenital diseases to the resulting children and future generations (including through accidental consanguineous relationships) is minimized.

However, similar potential health risks arise from sperm in traditional sexual reproduction, and yet there is no similar regulatory framework in place that encourages reproducers to minimize those risks.36 Individuals reproducing sexually risk acquiring infectious diseases, passing infectious diseases to their offspring, and passing congenital diseases to their offspring. Crucially, there is no need for individuals wishing to become parents through sexual intercourse to proceed in a manner that meets some health and safety standard in order for the law to grant them legal parental rights and responsibilities. This is the case even when individuals wilfully engage in high-risk activities, like reproducing with a known carrier of an autosomally dominant genetic disease, or sexually transmitted infection. Thus, even if we think that encouraging responsible reproductive practices justifies assigning legal parenthood in a manner that departs from parenthoodm we have a problem of parity: the law only takes these welfare factors into consideration when individuals reproduce using third-party sperm. As will be discussed in more detail in the following section, this raises a problem of discrimination against individuals reproducing in this way.37

One possible explanation for this asymmetry might be that assisted reproduction necessitates medical intervention in a way that sexual reproduction does not, and so we might think that MPMIS are primarily about setting standards for medical procedures and thus are not that unusual. However, there are several reasons to reject this explanation. First, as the case Bruce v Boardwine discussed above exemplifies, artificial insemination by donor (AID) is not a particularly technical procedure that necessitates medical intervention. Though we might think that this is an unforeseen exception to the general framework of the HFE Act 1990, the Warnock report does explicitly note that ova donation is importantly different from AID in that ova donation necessitates medical intervention in a way that AID does not, yet still concludes that all procedures ought to be regulated.38 Second, it is unclear why failure to respect medical guidelines ought to have any bearing on how legal parenthood is determined. Presumably medical guidelines are in place largely for welfare reasons, and so if we think that an individual risking her own or her future child's welfare has no bearing on legal parenthood in the case of sexual reproduction, it is unclear why similar risk-taking ought to play a role in legal parenthood when individuals reproduce via third-party sperm.

I would like to emphasize that my argument up to this point is not merely that MPMIS rely on an ethically contentious theory of parenthoodm as a basis for assigning legal parental rights and obligations. Rather, my argument is that MPMIS take no morally principled stand whatsoever on the features that give rise to parentalm rights and responsibilities. Consequently, MPMIS will result in violations of parentalm rights and unjust impositions of weighty burdensregardless of the account of parenthoodm that is adopted. Furthermore MPMIS cannot be defended on the grounds that they promote the heath interests of reproducers, their children, and society at large, because these concerns are not considered in other instances of reproduction, despite similar risks.

Discrimination

Despite the theoretical problems discussed above, individuals who endorse an intentionalist account of parenthood, at least in gamete provision cases,39 might somewhat approve of MPMIS. Although MPMIS require reproducers wishing to become legal parents using third-party sperm to undergo greater medical scrutiny, they at least provide a route to guaranteed legal parenthood for certain parentsm where none was available before. While this might make MPMIS an improvement to the previous legal framework (depending on one's view of moral parenthood), it does not mean that they are free of serious moral problems. Consider the following analogy.

We could imagine a state in which a body of law developed such that inter-racial couples were incapable of being recognized as a child's legal parents, regardless of whether a child was a product of their gametes. We could further imagine that, after much public consultation and debate, the state decided it was time to amend the law to include inter-racial couples as legal parents of the children they create through sexual reproduction, despite looming questions about the ethics of inter-racial parenthood. However, under the new law, inter-racial couples would be required to first undergo medical screening and be certified ‘safe’ or the previous law denying them legal parenthood would apply. For the same-race couple, no screening would be required. Although we might think that this law is an improvement to the preceding legal framework, we would still think it was problematically discriminatory. So if we think that individuals who use third-party gametes to reproduce, such as same-sex couples, infertile individuals, and infertile heterosexual couples, should be just as much parents from the moment of birth as intending parents who reproduce using their own gametes, then we have reason to find MPMIS problematic.40

There is however a difference between assisted reproduction and the inter-racial case that might make MPMIs seem more palatable. In the case of the inter-racial couple, part of what makes the modified legal framework seem so unacceptable is that the identity of the parentsm is clear, and so including them as legal parents could be easily accomplished with a legislative change. In the case of reproduction by third-party gametes, circumstances might arise where it becomes difficult to determine which individuals the law should recognize as a child's parents, even if there is agreement about what approach the law should take when determining parenthood. Disputes might arise about the nature of the sperm-provision arrangement. For instance, a man who has intercourse with a woman with the understanding that they would co-parent any resulting children might, during the course of the pregnancy, change his mind about wanting to parent. As a means of escaping child maintenance obligations, he might later claim that his genetic child was actually the product of a third-party sperm provision agreement.41 Alternatively, a sperm donor might change his mind might about the relationship he wants to have with his genetic child, and later deny that he provided sperm with the understanding that he was not to be a parent. Unlike in the inter-racial example, we are therefore left with a pragmatic problem: we require a method for distinguishing private third-party sperm provision agreements from reproduction where the genetic parents are also the legal parents. Someone might think that MPMIS are acceptable because they resolve this problem by creating clear guidelines for establishing that a third-party sperm provision agreement was in force.

The question that looms large in these cases is where to place the burden of proof, since at some point the state must determine which individual(s) have legal rights and responsibilities for a child. For reasons that I will not fully articulate here,42 it might makes sense to presume that legal parental standing should follow the common law approach, barring conclusive evidence that there was an agreement to depart from this norm. In this vein, use of a licensed clinic ought to be strong evidence, if not definitive proof, that such an agreement was in fact in place. But the need to resolve these kinds of disputes cannot justify MPMIS, because although use of a clinic is probably sufficient for refuting a presumption in favour of genetically determined parenthood, it should not be necessary. For instance, I see no reason why the law could not be amended so that a signed and notarised document outlining the intentions of the involved parties would suffice to outweigh any presumption in favour of biological parenthood. Given the lifelong and serious implications for intending parents, children, and individuals who intended to be mere sperm providers, determining legal parenthood ought not to rest entirely on a single point of procedure that imposes more burdens on some reproducers than others. This is especially the case when the individuals most likely to be affected, like same-sex couples and intending single parents, have historically been discriminated against when seeking to become parents.

Permitting individuals to demonstrate that they have entered into a sperm provision arrangement without requiring them to seek the services of medical professionals is not unprecedented. Under current UK law this is in fact possible in certain circumstances. Individuals who are in a civil partnership or are married and who reproduce using third party gametes become the legal parents of any resulting children to the exclusion of the gamete provider, so long as they can establish (a) that a gamete provision agreement was made prior to conception and (b) the civil partner/spouse of the woman receiving treatment consented to the use of third party gametes.43 Other jurisdictions apply this approach more generally. For example, the Family Law Act in British Columbia requires only that some agreement making clear the intentions of the involved parties be made prior to conception in order that a pregnancy to be legally considered the result of assisted reproduction.44 In such cases, legal parenthood goes to the intending parent(s), regardless of genetic relatedness and regardless of whether conception occurs under the auspices of a medical clinic.45 Under this model, cases like Boardwine's would not arise because the agreement would be enforceable even if insemination took place using a turkey baster.

MPMIS on pragmatic grounds

If we take moral uncertainty about parenthoodm as a background condition, we might think that the best any legislation could do is offer a pragmatic solution in the face of competing views about parental rights and responsibilities. This is because although there is philosophical disagreement about what makes an individual a parentm, the law does not have the luxury of waiting for the dust to settle, and must adjudicate disputes about parenthood in a timely fashion. This possible defence of MPMIS on pragmatic grounds might proceed as follows. In cases where we are relatively certain about determinations of parenthoodm, keeping legal parenthood consistent with the moral facts ought to be prioritized.46 In cases where determining parenthoodm is less clear, we are justified in crafting laws that assign legal parenthood in ways that promote other important ends, such as the health of reproducers, their children, and future generations. We might think that focussing on promoting these other goods is an acceptable aim of policy because, due to uncertainty about parenthoodm, ensuring that parentalm rights are protected is not possible. On this view, then, MPMIS are justified because they discourage individuals from reproducing in risky ways; the consequence of not following the proper medical route that minimizes negative health consequences is having legal parenthood assigned in a manner that is not in keeping with the stated intentions of the involved parties.

A major problem with this defence of MPMIS, however, is that it considers only the benefits of discouraging risky reproductive behaviour, and fails to adequately take into consideration the future welfare interests of the children to be parented. Although it may be true that the state should take measures to encourage individuals to reproduce in a responsible manner, it is far from clear that this aim ought to determine who has rights and obligations towards a child. Consider the following hypothetical case. A woman decides to reproduce using third-party sperm, but does not want to go through the hassle of using a licensed clinic. Instead, she illegally purchases sperm from a self-described ‘party animal’ who has neither the financial means nor the disposition to adequately parent a child. Because she does not use a licensed clinic, the state later determines that the sperm provider is one of the child's legal parents.

Even if we presume uncertainty about parenthoodm, it is still intuitively inappropriate for the state to discourage this kind of ‘black market’ sperm provision by making the sperm provider one of the child's legal parents, rather than mother's partner/spouse. This is because doing so worsens the resulting child's predicament, which seems wrong because the child is an unconsenting innocent party to the arrangement made between the couple and the sperm provider. Not only are the child's health interests put at risk because unscreened sperm is used, but her family life is rendered prone to interjection47 from an individual far less suitable to parent. A more reasonable approach in circumstances in which (a) there is uncertainty about parenthoodm and (b) procedures put in place to regulate assisted reproduction were not followed, is to decide parenthood on the basis of the best interests of the child.48 This approach would discourage ‘black market’ transactions by discounting the interests of reproducers in favour of those of the children they create, while also ensuring that children are not further harmed by the state's attempt to promote more careful reproductive practices.

Discussion

I have argued that MPMIS are morally problematic for three major reasons. First, they risk assigning weighty legal rights and obligations in ways that depart from the underlying moral facts. Importantly, this argument does not rest on taking a position on which parties in a third-party sperm provision case ought to be the child's legal parents. Second, even if we think the state should provide some mechanism for accommodating intentional parenthood when individuals reproduce using third-party sperm, MPMIS are not justified. This is because MPMIS impose medical scrutiny as a condition of legal parenthood, which is a burden not imposed on other reproducers, and one that is not needed for determining whether a third-party sperm provision agreement was in place. Finally, MPMIS cannot be defended on the grounds that in the absence of relative certainty about parenthoodm, crafting laws about parenthood that promote goods other than protecting parenthoodm, like promoting more health-conscious reproductive practices, is justified. This is because MPMIS fail to adequately take into consideration the welfare interests of the existing child and instead focus on ‘punishing’ the adults who violate regulations governing reproduction. In closing I will briefly discuss what implications this argument has for the regulation of third-party sperm provision more generally.

3 Should Regulation be Abandoned Completely?

The preceding argument might be interpreted as advocating for a relatively laissez-faire attitude towards reproduction via third-party sperm, if it is to be permitted at all. Since I argue that there is no good justification for requiring individuals reproducing using third-party sperm to use a licensed clinic in order to be recognized as legal parents, someone might think that my view entails opening the floodgates to all kinds of unscrupulous practices. We might envision unregulated IVF practitioners that place little weight on the safety of their patients, and instead focus on providing low-cost and high-profit services. However, my argument is much narrower.

First, I argue that there are no good justifications for making the promotion of health-conscious reproductive practices relevant to legal parenthood when reproduction occurs via third-party gamete provision, but not in traditional reproduction. If a strong argument could be made that promoting heath was more important than having legal parenthood track parenthoodm, and society adopted heath-screening requirements for all reproducers, then having legal parenthood in third-party gamete cases depend on health screening would not be problematic. Second, if we do not think that promoting health-conscious reproductive practices ought to be relevant to determinations of legal parenthood in traditional reproduction, which is the stance currently reflected in law, my argument merely implies that the same should be true in third-party gamete cases. This implies nothing about consequences for violating regulations governing assisted reproduction that do not impinge on legal parenthood. For instance, we might still think that providing IVF services without a licence constitutes practising medicine without a licence and ought to be criminal. We could similarly think that storage and distribution of sperm ought be done in accordance with strict safety guidelines, and fine or imprison individuals who violate these regulations. This approach would be consistent with how we currently treat intending parents who use their own sperm when reproducing, but might otherwise violate medical regulations. For instance, acquiring and using restricted fertility drugs without a prescription violates health regulations, even if the individuals making use of the drugs reproduce using their own sperm. While we may punish individuals who violate health regulations in this way, the consequences they face do not include alterations to how legal parenthood is determined. My argument therefore leaves open room for regulating assisted reproduction, but shows that violations of these regulations should not rule out intending parents as legal parents or automatically include gamete providers as legal parents. So although someone might think that individuals using third-party gametes who reproduce with a turkey baster rather than following the mandated procedure should face some consequences (and I am not suggesting there should), my argument shows that legal parenthood should not necessarily lie in the balance.

Footnotes

By third-party sperm I mean sperm provided to intending parents with the understanding that the sperm provider will not be the parent of any resulting children. I find this terminology better than ‘donor sperm’ because the argument here applies equally to sperm that has been commercially acquired.

Human Fertilization and Embryology Act 2008; Human Fertilization and Embryology Act 1990.

Court of Appeals of Virginia, Record No. 1250–14-3 (Bruce v Boardwine).

Code of Virginia. Title 20, Chapter 9.

M Brignall. 2012. Gay sperm donor told to pay child maintenance for 'his' two children. The Guardian. 26 October.

Note that later amendments arising from the HFE Act 2008 allow for some exceptions to this rule. See the discussion at the bottom of page 18 and footnote 43.

For a good discussion on tensions that arise in legal approaches to fatherhood see: A. Bainham. 2004. Contact as a Right and Obligation. In Bainham, Lindley, Richards and Trinder, ed. Children and Their Families. Portland: Hart Publishing: 61–88.

Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust v A & Ors [2003] EWHC 259 (QB).

For examples and discussion see: S. Sheldon. ‘Sperm bandits’, Birth Control Fraud and the Battle of the Sexes. Legal Studies 2001; 21: 460–480; and D. Benatar. 2012 The Second Sexism: Discrimination Against Men and Boys. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons: Chapter 3.

Currently such a rebuttal is possible only if the civil partner/spouse of the woman seeking treatment did not consent to the treatment. HFE Act 2008. op. cit. note 2. Sec. 35 and 42;

L. Morgan. Child Support Fifty Years Later. Family Law Quarterly 2008; 42(3): 365–380. p. 373.

In Re H, (Blood Tests: Parental Rights) [1997] Fam 89. It is also worth noting that there has been some push in the other direction. See L v P (Paternity Test: Child's Objections) [2011] EWHC 3399.

It is worth mentioning that though the common law places great importance on genetic ties when determining legal fatherhood, this is not so in the case of motherhood. There is a common law presumption that the gestational mother is a child's legal mother, regardless of whether she was the source of ova. This presumption possibly arose due to the fact that until recently the woman gestating was also always the ova provider, and so there was no impetus for the law to distinguish between the two kinds of contribution when determining a child's legal mother. Many jurisdictions (including the UK) have codified this presumption (HFE Act 2008, sec. 33), though it is not without controversy. Some scholars have pointed out that if the contribution of gametes alone suffices for men to be a legal parents, then it is unclear why the same should not hold for women as well.[T. Bayne & A. Kolers Towards a Pluralistic Account of Parenthood. Bioethics 2003; 17(3): 221–242.] There is room for much ethical debate about the relative weight that should be afforded to different types of reproductive contributions when resolving conflicts over legal parenthood and about the structure of legal parenthood more generally, but as it stands it is gestation and not the provision of ova that determines motherhood in the UK.

The HFE Act 1990 requires that clinics consider the welfare interests of future and existing children when determining whether to provide fertility treatment to intending parents. See Human Fertilization and Embryology Act 1990 sec. 13 (5).

This move is not uncontroversial, and some legal scholars have argued that that legal parenthood should track biological ties as far is possible. For instance Andrew Bainham states that, ‘The concept of parentage should rather be confined, to reflect as far as possible the unique position of biological parents and, through the child's filiation with them, the wider kinship links to the extended maternal and paternal families’. A. Bainham. Arguments about Parentage. Camb Jaw J 2008; 67(2): 322–351. p. 349.

Committee of Inquiry Into Human Fertilisation and Embryology Report. Committee of Inquiry Into Human Fertilisation and Embryology Report Her Majesty's Stationary Office, London (1984) (July) Sec. 4.17; Sec. 4.22; Sec. 6.8.

Ibid: Sec. 4.22.

Ibid Sec. 6.8.

Ibid. Sec. 13.1; Sec. 13.3.

See Human Fertilization and Embryology Code of Practice, 8th Edition. 2015; Sec 11.; E. Jackson. 2015. The law and DIY assisted conception. In Revisiting the Regulation of Human Fertilization and Embryology. K. Horsey, ed. New York: Routledge: 31–49.

For women using donated gametes, being a legal parent is not the problem but, as in the Boardwine case, they risk having the sperm provider gain status as the child's legal parent. This might cause serious disruptions to the woman's private family life.

H. Brighouse & A .Swift. Parents’ Rights and the Value of the Family. Ethics 2007; 117(1): 80–108.

Ibid.

For a child-centric approach see S. Hannan & R. Vernon. Parental Rights: A Role-Based Approach. Theory and Research in Education 2008; 6(2): 173–189. For parent-centric approaches see: F. Shoeman. Rights of Children, Rights of Parents and the Moral Basis of the Family. Ethics. 1980; 91(1): 6–19; Brighouse and Swift, Ibid.

Council of Europe. European Convention on Human Rights. Article 8.

The Human Rights Act, 1998.

United Nations General Assembly. Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Article 16.

For examples see JD. Velleman. Persons in Prospect. Philos Public Aff 2008; 36(3): 221–288.; JD. Velleman. Family History. Philosophical Papers 2005; 34(3):357–78.

For an example, see S. Feldman. Multiple Biological Mothers: The Case For Gestation.J Soc Philos 1992; 23(1): 98–104.

E. Brake. Fatherhood and Child Support: Do Men Have a Right to Choose? J Appl Philos 2005; 22(1): 55–73.; E. Brake. 2010. Willing Parents: A Volunturist Account of Parental Role Obligations. In. Procreation and Parenthood. D. Archard & D. Benatar, eds. Oxford: Oxford University Press: 151–177.

For examples see, J. Nelson. Parental Obligations and the Ethics of Surrogacy: A Causal Perspective. Public Aff Q 1991; 5(1): 49–61; G. Fuscaldo. Genetic Ties: Are They Morally Binding? Bioethics 2006; 20(2): 64–76.

L. Porter. How and Why to Prefer a Causal Account of Parenthood. J Soc Philos 2014; 45(2): 82–102.

A similar argument also holds true for child-centric defences of genetic parenthood. If, for example, we thought that genetic parenthood was defensible on the grounds that it is in the best interest of the child, then the status quo would still be problematic because it is unclear why this would cease to be the case when a licensed clinic is involved.

R. Williams. Sperm Donor to Lesbian Couple Forced to Pay Child Support. The Guardian 2007 4 December 2007.

Brake (2005) op. cit. note 30.

McLeod and Botterell raise similar concerns about regulations in adoption. See C. McLeod & A. Botterell. 2014. ‘Not For the Faint of Heart’: Assessing the Status Quo on Adoption and Parental Licensing. In Family Making. F. Baylis and C. McLeod, eds. Oxford: Oxford University Press: 151–167.

For a discussion of injustices caused by the invocation of welfare concerns in the regulation of assisted reproduction see: E. Jackson. Conception and the Irrelevance of the Welfare Principle. Mod Law Rev 2002; 65:176–203; E. Jackson. 2007. Rethinking the Pre-Conception Welfare Principle. In Human Fertilisation and Ebryology: Reproducing Regulation. K. Horsey and H. Biggs, eds. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge-Cavendish: 47–68.

Warnock Report. op. cit. note 16. Sec. 6.6.

T. Bayne & A. Kolers. Towards a Pluralistic Account of Parenthood. Bioethics 2003; 17(3):221–42.

See discussion about injustice in Jackson op. cit. note 37.

One solution is to take a strong intentionalist approach to parental responsibilities along the lines of Elizabeth Brake, and deny that the legal parenthood ought to necessarily arise in one-night-stand cases. See Brake (2005). op. cit. note 30. and Brake (2010) op.cit. note 30.

For instance, given the historical importance placed on genetic ties, most people engaging in sexual reproduction do so with the understanding that responsibility for ensuing children will be shared between procreators. Given that this is already the default position, it makes sense that the burden of proof should be on demonstrating that the involved parties consented to depart from this norm.

That this option is not available to single people is problematic, especially given that single women are able to become the sole legal parents of a child if they use donor gametes through a licensed clinic. It is unclear why having a civil partner or spouse should replace any legitimate role that clinics play in the determination of legal parenthood, or why the consent of an individual not receiving treatment (the civil partner/spouse) is relevant to how the law determines legal parenthood; HFE Act 2008, sections 35 and 42.

British Columbia. Family Law Act. SBC 2011; Part 3.

Ibid.

We tend to think that moral parents ought to be given the opportunity to parent their children, unless there is strong evidence that they pose a serious threat to the future welfare of their children. For a discussion see, D. Archard. Child Abuse: Parental Rights and the Interests of the Child. J Appl Philos 1980; 7(2): 183–194.

For instance, the legal parent could petition for contact rights, or even shared residency. At a minimum, this would put the child through the ordeal of a series of legal proceedings, and if the petition is successful could result in the child having to spend significant amounts of time away from the more suitable parent, with someone whose influence may not be in the child's best interest.

This proposal raises two important questions which I cannot fully address in this article. One is determining the group of individuals that are appropriate candidates for being a particular child's parent(s). On this question, Bayne and Kolers’ paper on parental pluralism (op. cit. note 13) might serve as good starting point. The second is how to determine what is in the best interest of a child. Here I suggest, as a good analysis, J. Herring. Farewell Welfare? J Soc Welf Fam Law 2005; 27(2): 159–171.

#reproductive ethics #bioethics #controversy #sperm donation #assisted reproduction #parenthood #gamete donation #law and medicine #biotechnology #HFE act

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Hartford: A fresh articulate portray displays the articulate’s utilities are “well attentive to the increasing dangers” of cyberattacks and appear to devour successfully thwarted latest threats they encountered. Four utilities participated within the third annual cybersecurity assessment of Connecticut’s electricity, natural gasoline and public water utilities. The list entails Eversource, Connecticut Water, Aquarion Water Co. and Avangrid. The portray says the utilities conducted “in depth fresh work” all the contrivance in which during the final year to carry their cybersecurity resilience, including vetting the hiring of all employees and vendors. Phishing, spear phishing, threats to cloud data storage and insider threats are cited as one of the most most worrisome threats going during the articulate’s utilities. The portray highlights a need for better data sharing between the federal Division of Location of foundation Safety and the articulate utilities touching on cyber compromises.

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Newark: ChristianaCare researchers bid they devour created a fresh computer program that can allow scientists to inspect the impact gene modifying has on tumor cells, a theory they hope to patent. It wasn’t invented by a health center doctor or a researcher, though they did lend a hand. The muse came from Rohan Kanchana, a junior at Newark Structure College who interned there final wintry climate. The 16-year-dilapidated is too younger to form technical lab work at ChristianaCare’s most cancers center, nonetheless he would possibly perhaps well per chance code. The fresh computer program revolves spherical a technology known as CRISPR, the genetic version of spell-check on a Discover file. If a individual has an wrong observe – or, in this case, a gene – the technology will name and ethical it, says Eric Kmiec, director of the Gene Editing Institute at ChristianaCare’s Helen F. Graham Most cancers Heart & Study Institute.

News top stories daily news hot topics District of Columbia

Washington: Plans are within the works to add presumably hundreds extra dockless scooters to D.C. streets, WUSA-TV reports. As of now, 6,210 dockless scooters are accepted within the district. For 2020, the District Division of Transportation is all in favour of a proposal that would possibly perhaps well per chance boost the number to 10,000. The observation duration to add extra scooters goes till the cease of October. After that, DDOT officials bid they're going to guage the responses and resolve the following steps. The proposal also entails the addition of dockless bikes, considering up to 10,000 within the district. The autos wouldn’t be designated to 1 dwelling nonetheless unfold out across all eight wards.

News top stories daily news hot topics Florida

Orlando: Gatorland has built fresh homes for some of its most distinctive-having a seek for residents, thus creating an novel for a rare albino gator and two even-extra-rare leucistic gators, the Orlando Sentinel reports. The White Gator Swamp would be the positioning of moderately one gator impart, officials hope. These very light-skinned residents are really being impressed to build offspring. “It’s the largest breeding facility for white alligators anywhere on this planet,” says Designate McHugh, Gatorland’s CEO. The white gators were launched to their fresh digs Oct. 4. Leucistic gator Trezos hesitated to enter the waters, whereas his brother, Feros Zombi, dived off the aspect of a ramp after uncooked-chicken inspiration. Albino alligator Pearl did a reptilian form of strut prior to making a splash. Albino gators have not any pigment at all, whereas leucistics devour some coloring in their skins. All three devour separate waters and likely mates to explore.

News top stories daily news hot topics Georgia

Brunswick: Marine salvage experts seeking to scheme halt an overturned cargo ship halt to the articulate’s seacoast bid they're going to haul it away in objects since it would possibly perhaps well probably't be safely righted and refloated intact. Their Unified Expose acknowledged in a assertion Saturday that the hull of the 656-foot Golden Ray would be dismantled, in conjunction with the ship’s diversified parts and cargo, and brought away in what it described as a “advanced challenge.” The Golden Ray overturned Sept. 8 approach the Port of Brunswick. Rescuers drilled into the hull’s steel plates and rescued four crewmen trapped within the bowels of the ship for added than a day in sizzling warmth and darkness. The Wing Guard has acknowledged it would possibly perhaps well probably per chance consume “weeks, if no longer months,” to scheme halt the ship, which overturned whereas heading to sea.

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Honolulu: As Salvage. Tulsi Gabbard travels all the contrivance in which through Iowa and Original Hampshire making an are attempting to kickstart her Democratic presidential bid, she is going through a serious scheme back lend a hand dwelling in Hawaii for her U.S. Residence seat. Divulge Sen. Kai Kahele, a fellow Democrat, is deciding on up endorsements and criticizing Gabbard for no longer paying sufficient consideration to constituents in Hawaii whereas she campaigns for president hundreds of miles away. The 45-year-dilapidated Native Hawaiian is a combat former and pilot for the Hawaii Air National Guard. He flies passenger jets for Hawaiian Airways and is a member of the pilots union, a helpful attribute in union-pleasant Hawaii. Gabbard hasn’t indicated whether or no longer she's going to flee for reelection.

News top stories daily news hot topics Idaho

Boise: Authorities devour released plans to quit devastating wildfires in southwestern Idaho, southeastern Oregon and northerly Nevada with one likelihood creating 1,500 miles of gasoline breaks up to 400 toes broad along novel roads. The U.S. Bureau of Land Administration on Friday released a draft environmental impact assertion for the Tri-Divulge Gasoline Breaks Challenge and is taking public comments during the cease of November. The BLM says creating gasoline breaks by clearing vegetation would possibly perhaps well lend a hand firefighters quit wildfires and protect key habitat for epic grouse and diversified natural world on land also old by ranchers and birth air fans. The BLM says alternate strategies encompass fewer miles of gasoline breaks the overall contrivance the overall manner down to no gasoline breaks at all. The placement in latest decades has seen repeated giant rangeland wildfires.

News top stories daily news hot topics Illinois

Marengo: A French non secular repeat has reached a preliminary settlement with a northern Illinois county that would possibly perhaps well per chance allow nuns to make a winery, brewery, gift shop and coed boarding college there. The consent decree between McHenry County and Fraternite Notre Dame Inc. would possibly perhaps well per chance cease honest about four years of litigation and local opposition to the repeat expanding its operation in Marengo. The repeat sued the county in 2015, alleging that by blocking off the expansion, the county changed into violating the U.S. Non secular Land Notify and Institutionalized Folks Act and the Illinois Non secular Freedom Restoration Act. The Chicago Tribune reports that U.S. Magistrate Deem Iain Johnston is scheduled to grab this month whether or no longer to approve the settlement. McHenry County Divulge Attorney Patrick Kenneally and county board Chairman Jack Franks declined to observation.

News top stories daily news hot topics Indiana

Indianapolis: Butler University has raised extra than half of of the $250 million it needs for a campaign to make investments in science training, carry enrollment beyond resident undergraduates and boost community outreach. The non-public college has pooled $171 million from extra than 27,000 donors at some stage in its greatest fundraising campaign, which runs through Could perhaps per chance per chance. The college plans to add a $100 million science facility. But college President James Danko says the campaign will also lend a hand fund efforts to abet working experts to enroll. Melissa Beckwith, vice president of approach and innovation, says the college would possibly perhaps well per chance partner with local companies to present training for employees who aren’t enrolled as undergraduates. The college will also are attempting to present Indianapolis public college college students dual degree credits.

News top stories daily news hot topics Iowa

Des Moines: Backers of a skateboard park below construction downtown bid they've reached their $6.3 million funding goal. The Lauridsen Skatepark would be the nation’s greatest when carried out in spring 2020. The 88,000-square-foot skate park is being built on 5 acres of land between 2d Avenue and the Des Moines River. Recent items by the Lauridsen Family Foundation and the articulate’s Toughen Iowa fund enabled organizers to prevail in their fundraising goal. Nix and Virginia Lauridsen devour donated an total of $1.6 million to the challenge. Moreover the skate areas, the park will encompass viewing platforms, handicap accessible walkways, colour constructions and landscaping. Organizers request about 40,000 skaters a year will employ the park. They novel skateboarding will be an Olympic sport in 2020.

News top stories daily news hot topics Kansas

Kansas City: The Kansas City T-Bones are officially locked out of their stadium. The Unified Authorities of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas, modified the locks and padlocked the gates to the stadium Monday since the crew has failed to pay heaps of of hundreds of dollars in unpaid debts. The government issued an eviction inspect in August after the T-Bones accumulated extra than $760,000 in lend a hand rent and utility payments. The crew changed into given a one-month reprieve in September after making a $50,000 payment. The Kansas City Star reports crew house owners devour acknowledged they're working to promote the crew, nonetheless no deal has been reached. The T-Bones done in an unbiased league and have not any Major League Baseball affiliation.

News top stories daily news hot topics Kentucky

Winchester: Daniel Boone National Woodland officials bid extra than one fires devour burned heaps of of acres there, with almost the overall fires precipitated by of us. WTVQ-TV in Lexington reports three crews from Puerto Rico devour volunteered to revive what they'll within the wooded space. Officials want to natty up destroy from fires prior to dry climate returns. The volunteers are working 16 hours a day performing such responsibilities as reseeding, battling erosion, and knocking down bushes that would possibly perhaps well per chance tumble and afflict somebody. Volunteer Roberto Martinez instructed the dwelling of us from the U.S. went to Puerto Rico to lend a hand when Hurricane Maria struck there, and now it’s his likelihood to return the favor. Daniel Boone representatives bid it would possibly perhaps well probably per chance per chance be a pair of extra weeks prior to aspects of the wooded space birth to the public.

News top stories daily news hot topics Louisiana

Original Orleans: The National World Warfare II Museum’s $25 million training and outreach building will birth Thursday. After a gap ceremony, this can destroy ground for its final novel corridor and fetch an birth rental at the fresh building, known as the Corridor of Democracy. It facets a be taught library, classrooms, an auditorium, the Institute for the Peek of Warfare and Democracy, and the WWII Media and Education Heart. There’s also a diversified novel gallery. The gap exhibition is set the consume, extradition and trial of Adolf Eichmann, who done a essential segment within the Nazi mass executions of Jews. The fresh building is the museum’s sixth, including three novel pavilions, a theater and a restoration building. Its 239-room resort and conference center is anticipated to birth in unhurried tumble.

News top stories daily news hot topics Maine

Portland: A scientist with an environmental community says she has chanced on what she believes is the first recorded appearance of a presumably unfavorable species of crab in Maine waters. Marissa McMahan of the Massachusetts-based mostly community Manomet says she located the refined mud crab earlier this month on a be taught commute. The crabs, that are regularly chanced on south of Cape Cod, can pose issues for aquaculture businesses because they prey on younger oysters. The one specimen is aloof alive, as McMahan silent it. Moderately a pair of birth air species of crabs already pose a likelihood to Maine’s ecosystem. Acadia National Park officials acknowledged earlier this tumble that a molted shell of an Asian shore crab changed into chanced on along the shore. It changed into among the first confirmed reports of the species within the dwelling.

News top stories daily news hot topics Maryland

Adamstown: A rural fireplace chief says an “elusive” 3-foot-prolonged alligator has finally been caught. WJLA-TV reports the gator changed into caught Saturday in a retention pond on a private property in Adamstown after animal adjust officers and others spent hours Thursday and Friday making an are attempting to consume it. The dwelling reports officers ended up inserting a live animal cage trap with bait on the muddy shoreline after initial efforts using a fishing line failed. Carroll Manor Volunteer Fire Chief Mike Smallwood says he chanced on the “artful and clean” reptile inner the steel cage about 6: 30 a.m. Saturday. Maryland residents will no longer be allowed to hold exotic animals, including alligators. The dwelling reports Frederick County Animal Administration says the alligator changed into likely abandoned by its owner as a result of its dimension.

News top stories daily news hot topics Massachusetts

Boston: Two articulate lawmakers want to build it simpler for communities to devour interplay dormant railroad tracks to convert into leisure trails. The MetroWest On every day foundation Records reports articulate Sen. Jamie Eldridge and articulate Salvage. Carmine Gentile, both Democrats, jointly filed legislation that, if authorized, would allow cities and cities to employ Neighborhood Preservation Act cash to devour interplay railroad lands to rework into trails for strolling, running and bicycling. Neighborhood Preservation Act cash is also old to protect birth articulate and ancient sites, build realistic housing and fabricate birth air leisure facilities. However the articulate Division of Income has dominated it would possibly perhaps well probably't be old to do away with federal rail banks and rights of contrivance. Eldridge, of Acton, says rail trails pork up public well being by offering net opportunities for exercise and boost economic trend.

News top stories daily news hot topics Michigan

Detroit: A church that served as a favored venue for nationwide civil rights leaders, including the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, is getting a grant for wished renovations. The National Park Carrier has awarded the Michigan Divulge Historic Preservation Location of job $500,000 for King Solomon Baptist Church. Work entails rehabilitating the roof and making ready construction drawings. The church inbuilt 1917 for a white congregation changed into sold in 1955 by an African American congregation. King spoke twice at King Solomon, and Malcolm X gave his “Message to the Grassroots” speech there in 1963. King Solomon’s pastor, the Rev. Charles Williams II, says the goal “is to continue the church’s custom of empowerment, training and be taught.” The church changed into listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015.

News top stories daily news hot topics Minnesota

St. Cloud: More than 100 mannequins in blaze orange sweatshirts were situation up along Minnesota Highway 23 within the metropolis Saturday. The label, organized by Pathways 4 Childhood, represented the number of childhood experiencing homelessness on any given night in Central Minnesota. “Heaps of of us within the neighborhood exact don’t know,” says Tim Wensman, board chair and president of Pathways 4 Childhood. The occasion kicked off the organization’s “Now That You Know” campaign, which targets to carry consciousness on childhood homelessness, apart from to specialize in how of us can toughen the organization’s efforts. Pathways 4 Childhood is a handy resource center for childhood ages 16 to 24 who're experiencing homelessness. The center helps them attain their training, secure net employment and compose stable housing. It also connects childhood with a quandary to bathe, meals and hygiene merchandise, and a warmth evening meal.

News top stories daily news hot topics Mississippi

Meridian: The metropolis guarantees there will be sunshine Oct. 26, although it’s a cloudy day. That’s the day Meridian will honor the unhurried David Ruffin, one in every of the lead singers of the Motown community The Temptations. He sang the hit “My Girl,” which included that sunny lyric. The Meridian Star reports the metropolis will add signs ceremonially naming four blocks of a downtown boulevard “David Ruffin Boulevard.” Born in nearby rural Whynot, Ruffin claimed Meridian as dwelling. Mississippi’s Arts + Entertainment Ride will also quandary Ruffin’s considerable individual on its plug of popularity, whereas Jackson Divulge University’s marching band, the “Sonic Notify of the South,” will lead a parade. LaMont Robinson, head of the National Rhythm & Blues Corridor of Popularity and Ruffin’s son-in-law, presented the thought to the metropolis.

News top stories daily news hot topics Missouri

Columbia: The CEO of Dow Inc. has donated $6 million to a fresh University of Missouri well being institute centered on customized pills. The college says the gift from Jim Fitterling is one in every of the first from a individual donor for the NextGen Precision Effectively being Institute. The $220.8 million center is anticipated to birth in October 2021. The articulate has contributed $10 million to this point, with diversified funding coming from a combination of non-public and company toughen. Fitterling acknowledged in a assertion that as a most cancers survivor, he's “keenly drawn to advancing be taught that helps patients and their households devour better outcomes and better qualities of existence.” He started working at Dow exact two weeks after graduating from the University of Missouri’s College of Engineering in 1983.

News top stories daily news hot topics Montana

Missoula: Divulge wooded space experts devour proposed a bushes harvest and prescribed-burns challenge to cleave the likelihood of wildfires within the Lolo National Woodland. The Missoulian reports the proposed treatments were designed to make contributions to the overall wooded space well being and gasoline-cleave price targets and build the wooded space extra resilient to drought, wildfire, bugs and illness. Woodland experts bid the challenge would cowl about 36 square miles in Missoula and Mineral counties and encompass harvesting bushes for mills, tree thinning and prescribed fires. Experts bid some novel roads are anticipated to be decommissioned for work. Experts bid they're seeking additional public input on the proposal at a assembly Wednesday. Submitted comments would be permitted by mail, electronically and hand-delivered for the following 30 days.

News top stories daily news hot topics Nebraska

Norfolk: These who want to lend a hand protect monarch butterflies can build free milkweed seed pods during the Nebraska Sport and Parks Commission. The pods, seeding instructions and monarch instructional data will be available whereas gives final at Sport and Parks’ Northeast District Location of job in Norfolk. Milkweed is the host plant for the monarch. Monarchs lay eggs most intriguing on milkweed, and it’s the easiest plant monarch caterpillars will consume. Scientists bid the monarch inhabitants has greatly declined all the contrivance in which during the final 20 years. Contact Jamie Bachmann at 402-370-3374 or [email protected] for added data.

News top stories daily news hot topics Nevada

Tonopah: Nye County has decided to abandon a controversial proposal that would possibly perhaps well devour extra diminutive the hours when exquisite prostitutes were allowed to plod away licensed brothels. The southern Nevada county had proposed an ordinance that would possibly perhaps well devour barred brothel crew from leaving for added than six hours at some stage in a 10-day duration. Brothel house owners, local prosecutors and others supporting the proposal acknowledged they were alive to prostitutes would devour unprotected sex once they left brothels. The Las Vegas Solar reports Nye County decided to tumble the design after receiving criticism from sex crew and advocates who acknowledged it violated their rights. Intercourse crew and advocates bid they also favor the county to repeal an novel rule requiring prostitutes to be retested for sexually transmitted diseases and HIV any time they leave for added than 24 hours at a time.

News top stories daily news hot topics Original Hampshire

Manchester: Shakers devour prolonged been known for the easy fabricate of their furniture and family objects, nonetheless a fresh novel at the Currier Museum of Art work explores their reducing-edge talents in impress administration. The Manchester museum is featuring a fresh novel known as The Shakers and the New World, drawn from both its hold collection and the holdings of Canterbury Shaker Village. Andrew Spahr, the museum’s director of collections, says the Shakers at one time precipitated apprehension with attempts to convert outsiders to their religion, nonetheless then they developed a branding approach to counter detrimental public conception and were mercurial to comprise printed media and pictures to promote a extra obvious seek for. The novel will be accompanied by public and instructional functions developed with Canterbury Shaker Village, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary.

News top stories daily news hot topics Original Jersey

Trenton: The articulate’s gloomy endure hunt is underway this week. The first three days of the hunt starting up Monday are for hunters armed with bows and arrows. Archers and muzzleloading rifle hunters can consume half on Thursday and Friday. The hunt is specific to 5 zones. Gov. Phil Murphy has again prohibited hunting on articulate lands. The endure hunt for firearms most intriguing is decided to open Dec. 9. Hunters killed 225 bears in 2018, the lowest quantity since 2003.

News top stories daily news hot topics Original Mexico

Albuquerque: Police data displays 42 Native Individuals devour been reported lacking within the metropolis to this point this year, after 36 in 2018. Smash of day Begay, the metropolis’s Native American affairs coordinator, says the figures signify birth lacking people circumstances in Albuquerque. Figures from U.S. Census Bureau’s American Neighborhood Survey impart the metro dwelling is dwelling to roughly 50,000 Native Individuals. Of the 36 lacking in 2018, 15 were ladies. Begay shared the numbers Friday at an occasion held to specialize within the arena of lacking and murdered indigenous ladies in Original Mexico’s greatest metropolis. An City Indian Effectively being Institute seek for final year listed Albuquerque among cities with the superb number of lacking Native American ladies. Authors of the portray had counted 37 lacking and homicide circumstances complete for Native American ladies and girls.

News top stories daily news hot topics Original York

Albany: The articulate Division of Environmental Conservation is promoting patches to toughen repairs work on birth air game facilities. The most fresh fabricate of the Original York Divulge Plod Supporter Patch resembles the spherical yellow disks marking connector trails on articulate lands. The old fabricate changed into red, devour markers old by DEC on east-west directional trails. The patch is supplied for $5 at carrying license stores or on-line at the articulate’s fishing and hunting license portal. The patch changed into launched in 2007 to lend a hand carry funds to carry up trails across the articulate. Gross sales devour raised extra than $41,000 to this point. Tasks supported by patch gross sales encompass a boardwalk in Texas Hollow Divulge Woodland, foot bridges on the Northville Placid Plod, repairs of Otter Creek Horse Trails and lean-tos within the High Peaks Barren situation.

News top stories daily news hot topics North Carolina

Raleigh: Gov. Roy Cooper targets to build a articulate-funded program to lend a hand residents in four counties increase from Hurricane Dorian after the federal government declined a demand for help focusing on them. The Federal Emergency Administration Agency final week instructed Cooper there wasn’t sufficient destroy from final month’s storm to people and households in Carteret, Dare, Hyde and Original Hanover counties to warrant a federal declaration. So Cooper wrote Friday to the U.S. Runt Industry Administration requesting one other extra or much less declaration for low-ardour loans within the four counties and those surrounding them. If it’s authorized, Cooper’s quandary of job acknowledged he would build a grant program to complement the loans for folks and businesses.

News top stories daily news hot topics North Dakota

Bismarck: The North Dakota auditor says the Commerce Division broke articulate law on bidding contracts for the articulate’s fresh “Be Legendary” logo. Divulge Auditor Joshua Gallion released the audit Monday. The logo sparked criticism earlier this year when the contract for it changed into awarded to a Minnesota agency headed by a girl who once worked for Gov. Doug Burgum’s dilapidated Fargo machine industry. The firm changed into awarded the $9,500 job without competition since it came in below the $10,000 threshold required for added bids. Gallion says the audit of the agency chanced on one other contract linked to the emblem, bringing its complete cost to extra than $87,000. The Commerce Division says it did nothing execrable.

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Dayton: A neighborhood air sinful is going during the an increasing number of overall pickle of an aging group. The Dayton On every day foundation Records reports about half of of the 30,000 of us working at Wright-Patterson Air Power Execrable are nearing the cease of their careers. Air Power Gen. Arnold Bunch Jr. says filling those jobs and taking care of employees is “serious.” More than a third of employees at the Air Power Study Laboratory are eligible to retire. This would per chance per chance also be no longer easy because honest about 70% of the lab’s group has at the least a master’s degree. Per a U.S. census estimate from 2017, most intriguing 10% of Ohioans 25 and older fetch an developed college degree. The president of the Southwestern Ohio Council for Elevated Education says the Air Power would possibly perhaps well per chance aloof focal point on attracting and recruiting nontraditional candidates.

News top stories daily news hot topics Oklahoma

Tulsa: A Republican articulate senator who unsuccessfully tried to criminalize abortion has announced plans to scheme back GOP U.S. Salvage. Markwayne Mullin next year. Sen. Joseph Silk, from Damaged Bow, says he’ll are attempting to u.s. Mullin, who has served four phrases representing jap Oklahoma within the U.S. Residence. In a assertion, Silk says he selected to enter the 2020 Republican valuable for the 2nd Congressional District because he changed into pissed off with what he known as the “very liberal” management within the Oklahoma Legislature. Republicans fetch overwhelming majorities in both the Oklahoma Residence and Senate. Mullin’s chief of crew, Mike Stopp, says Mullin intends to flee for one other term, nonetheless he declined to observation on Silk’s candidacy.

News top stories daily news hot topics Oregon

Portland: The pissed off owner of North Portland’s by no manner-old Wapato Jail has announced he's going to bulldoze the power except somebody comes up with funding to convert the power right into a homeless shelter within the following two weeks. Oregon Public Broadcasting reports Jordan Schnitzer, president of Harsch Investment Properties, acknowledged Thursday that he planned to tag a demolition contract by the month’s cease. Assuming no final-minute stakeholder steps in, Schnitzer acknowledged his firm will destroy ground on a fresh warehouse there by spring. Schnitzer acknowledged he changed into “sickened” that a year-and-a half of-prolonged quest to convert the 150,000-square-foot penal advanced right into a shelter would cease with the power reduced to rubble. But metropolis leaders, in conjunction with local nonprofits, had been reticent to quandary of us lacking shelter in tailored penal advanced cells 11 miles a long way from Portland’s downtown core.

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Doylestown: About a of Bucks County’s lined bridges will be getting a makeover as a result of a $2.5 million refurbishment challenge, to encompass all seven county-owned spans. At one point there were extra than 50 lined bridges in Bucks County, nonetheless now most intriguing a dozen remain. These aloof standing were built between 1832 and 1874, when horse-drawn buggies were the dear manner of transportation. Ten bridges aloof carry autos and autos apart from to the occasional walker and bicycle owner. The diversified two are in parks. Whereas largely made of wood, loads of the spans are held up by steel constructions that would possibly perhaps well per chance aloof be stripped and repainted. County operations director Kevin Spencer says diversified work entails fireproofing inner and exterior wood surfaces, changing cedar going through and siding boards, and diversified repairs.

News top stories daily news hot topics Rhode Island

Providence: A statue of Christopher Columbus changed into vandalized Monday, on the U.S. holiday named for him. The statue in Providence changed into splashed from head to toe with red paint, and a tag finding out “Stay celebrating genocide” changed into leaned in opposition to the pedestal. The observe “genocide” changed into written in orange paint on the rear of the pedestal. The statue has been the target of vandals on Columbus Day within the past. The Original World explorer has change into a polarizing resolve. Native American advocates devour pressed states to alternate Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day over concerns that Columbus spurred centuries of genocide in opposition to indigenous populations within the Americas. Police are investigating, and a spokeswoman for Mayor Jorge Elorza acknowledged the statue would be cleaned.

News top stories daily news hot topics South Carolina

Columbia: The articulate is adding a fresh dwelling code. The most fresh situation of digits will augment the Palmetto Divulge’s oldest dwelling code – 803. In the placement stretching from Aiken to Rock Hill with Columbia at its center, fresh numbers starting up with 839 will be available within the Midlands starting up Could perhaps per chance per chance 26, 2020. The Put up and Courier reports historically, the 803 dwelling code changed into the easiest one within the articulate after World Warfare II ended. In 1995, 864 came to the Upstate. The coastal 843 dwelling code changed into created within the unhurried 1990s. Sooner than the fresh number’s availability, tens of millions of landline callers are requested to exclaim dialing the dwelling code prior to each and every local number. Calls dialed without dwelling codes will quit going through April 25, 2020.

News top stories daily news hot topics South Dakota

Sioux Falls: Krystal Trull’s daughter went months without autism treatments after the family lost insurance coverage coverage. Trull lost get entry to to the treatment that first gave 4-year-dilapidated Nikole the gift of speech. She timid if Nikole would be ready to increase. Months after petitioning articulate leaders to require insurers to cowl an intensive compose of autism treatments known as Utilized Conduct Prognosis, Trull commended a resolution announced Friday that Sioux Falls-based mostly insurers would again cowl the treatment for some households. Sanford Effectively being and Avera Effectively being will open offering coverage in 2020 after a loophole in articulate law precipitated South Dakota households such because the Trulls to lose insurance coverage coverage this year. Gov. Kristi Noem, Sanford and Avera announced the coverage in a joint assertion Friday.

News top stories daily news hot topics Tennessee

Memphis: A girl whose father changed into accomplished for assassinate 13 years within the past requested a judge Monday to repeat the checking out of DNA evidence within the case. The hearing in Memphis centered largely on whether or no longer April Alley can legally carry a petition for DNA checking out on behalf of her father’s property. Sedley Alley changed into convicted of the 1985 assassinate of 19-year-dilapidated Marine Lance Cpl. Suzanne Collins in Millington. She had been out jogging when she changed into kidnapped, overwhelmed, raped and mutilated. Alley confessed to the crime nonetheless later acknowledged the confession changed into coerced. He changed into accomplished by lethal injection in 2006. April Alley’s attorneys encompass Innocence Challenge co-founder Barry Scheck, who instructed the court docket they filed the petition for DNA checking out after law enforcement officers in St. Louis contacted him a pair of that you just'd call to mind replacement suspect in Collins’ assassinate.

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Waco: The Mayborn Museum strikes the starting up air inner to coach kids some overall classes on the natural world in its fresh Yard Ecology Corridor. The Waco Tribune-Herald reports the corridor, a $1.2 million revamping of the museum’s first-ground teenagers’s articulate, contains 4 gigantic novel rooms and a big overall dwelling for live demonstrations – and households needing a quandary to sit down and relaxation. The rooms mix interactive actions, live reptiles, bugs and specimens from one of the most Mayborn’s collections to form classes with connections to local ecosystems. The displays, created particularly for the Mayborn, goal in class students from fourth- to eighth-grade phases nonetheless hold arena subject for youthful teenagers, older college students and adults, assistant displays director Rebecca Nall says.

News top stories daily news hot topics Utah

Clearfield: Two firefighters are receiving reward after they chanced on a ingenious approach to carry up a younger girl silent at the scene of a car accident. North Davis Fire District Fire Chief Designate Becraft acknowledged the firefighters let a younger girl paint their nails after she and her mother were in a car accident Saturday within the northern Utah metropolis of Clearfield. Chief Allen Hadley and Captain Kevin Lloyd checked on the crying, screaming girl whereas medics evaluated her mother. No person changed into seriously injured. They requested her about the nail polish she changed into conserving and supplied to devour their nails painted. Both men devour younger daughters. Becraft acknowledged the girl changed into straight away soothed. Hadley and Lloyd left the scene with red manicures.

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Wallingford: A community of birth air lovers is working to carry the profile of the White Rocks National Recreation Residence within the Green Mountain National Woodland, and they’re procuring for some lend a hand. The Rutland Herald reports Nate Rand, of Wallingford, says he and a buddy devour talked about forming the White Rocks Beginning air Collaborative, and they’ve been using a social media community to net likely participants and coordinate their efforts. Rand says about 100 of us devour joined a Fb page, nonetheless the thought is aloof within the formative segment. Rand says many people are familiar with the White Rocks ice climbing trails, nonetheless comparatively few are aware that the White Rocks National Recreation Residence gives opportunities to hike, snowshoe and execrable-nation ski.

News top stories daily news hot topics Virginia

Richmond: A federal appeals court docket has set aside a fetch on two permits wished for construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday issued a quit of permits from the U.S. Fish & Natural world Carrier whereas it opinions a lawsuit filed by environmental groups in August. The Sierra Membership acknowledged in a assertion that the suspension effectively manner construction have to quit on the 300-mile natural gasoline challenge. The lawsuit alleges that the Fish and Natural world Carrier’s approval of the challenge failed to adequately protect endangered species along the pipeline’s direction. Also on Friday, the firm building the pipeline agreed to pay extra than $2 million and undergo enhanced monitoring to resolve a lawsuit brought by Virginia officials.

News top stories daily news hot topics Washington

Spanaway: A meals monetary institution that serves roughly 1,100 of us in Pierce County has been broken in a fireplace. Spanaway Meals Bank director Harold Smith says households quick of meals showed up all the contrivance in which during the day Friday and were directed to diversified meals banks for lend a hand. Smith says the meals monetary institution’s freezers and refrigerators were lost, and the meals couldn't be salvageable. The fireplace changed into reported about 6 a.m., and Central Pierce Fire & Rescue spokesman Darrin Shaw says the structure changed into closely alive to when crews arrived. The trigger of the fireplace wasn’t straight away known. Smith says the power, which has operated for four decades, hands out about 15,000 kilos of meals every month.

News top stories daily news hot topics West Virginia

Charleston: The articulate Division of Education data says extra than half of of the articulate’s teachers missed extra than 10 days of faculty final year. WSAZ-TV reports 52.75% of teachers missed extra than 10 days, in step with its be taught of data from the educational division. The prior year’s number changed into 52.46%. The year prior to that it changed into 51.44%, and in 2016 it changed into 50.83%. Divulge Superintendent Steve Paine says teachers devour a tense, anxious job, nonetheless some are lacking too grand college. The percentage of teachers who missed extra than 20 days changed into honest about 11%. The omnibus training bill that handed a pair of months within the past included a $500 attendance bonus for teachers who omit fewer than four days. Paine acknowledged the articulate needs to resolve if that has an form.

News top stories daily news hot topics Wisconsin

Milwaukee: The metropolis’s natural history museum is hoping its fresh live spiders novel can educate guests as an replacement of scaring them away. The Milwaukee Public Museum is net web articulate hosting the Spiders Alive! novel through January. It facets 17 species of live arachnids from spherical that world, including tarantulas, gloomy widows, brown recluses and wolf spiders. It also entails some family of spiders, including scorpions. The novel’s on-space curator, Jon Bertolas, says he ensures that guests will leave with an even bigger appreciation of spiders. Visitor Sandra Romanshek says she decided to are attempting the novel because spiders are predominant for the atmosphere, despite the indisputable truth that she thinks they're creepy crawlers.

News top stories daily news hot topics Wyoming

Casper: Divulge lawmakers devour developed legislation that would possibly perhaps well per chance lend a hand build bigger a community of toll road crossings for natural world. The Casper Star-Tribune reports a legislative committee unanimously authorized three bills Friday making a diversified natural world conservation myth to lend a hand fund extra crossings, signage and game fences in sensitive natural world habitats. Lawmakers bid the committee is anticipated to sponsor the bills within the 2020 session. Officials bid the fund would possibly perhaps well per chance carry federal dollars appropriated below an infrastructure bill containing $250 million for natural world crossings at key migration chokepoints. Lawmakers bid migration corridors were a manner of keeping natural world and inserting a stability between energy trend and conservation pursuits.

From USA TODAY Community and wire reports

Read or Fragment this epic: https://www.usatoday.com/epic/data/50-states/2019/10/15/assailing-columbus-vr-seniors-otter-assault-data-spherical-states/40319855/

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hikari-ni-naritai · 7 years

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@unrussledjimmys replied to your post: things ill talk about at length 1. Madoka magica...

Tell me about them catgirls supes

hoo boy we are in this now. in nekopara it's stated multiple times that catgirls are cats that were genetically modified to become catgirls, which is why they retain the typical characteristics of cats (eg playing with cat toys, sleeping a lot, polygamous, heat cycles) but it also allows for them to speak, eat vegetables, and do other human things. it also, in like a backwards way, gets around the ethical dilemma of human genetic engineering, bc like theyre engineering cats, not people. i could get into the moral implications of granting human-like intelligence to a creature designed to be a pet, but thats a question for another day the point is that, instead of just taking a human girl and giving her ears and a tail, they took a house cat and engineered it to walk on two legs, have a human body, speak, and only retain the instincts, ears, and tail of a cat. this would take an insane amount of engineering, and to have this be like, reliable in terms of them not dying at or prior to birth, the guy would have to be a genius. catgirls are popular as pets and adopted daughters and girlfriends, so its obviously reliable enough to be mass produced. oh and did i mention that catgirls grow to adult size in 6 months? to speed up the growth of a human sized body like that is a ridiculous and impossible endeavor. but it absolutely does not end there! oh no, not yet! catgirls are a fairly recent scientific advancement. id put their creation around 10-20 years prior to the events of nekopara. the fad has had time to die out and now there's a large number of stray catgirls whose owners have tossed them out because it's a huge hassle to take care of them. but the narration does mention that they havent just been around for ages. so given an estimated maximum of 20 years in existence, we have to consider the fact that there exists at least 5 distinct breeds of catgirl. Domestic shorthair, American curl, Munchkin, Scottish fold, and Maine Coone. This is just the breeds that the main character's family owns, and that the main character has slept with. there could very well be other breeds that his brocon sister has yet to get her slimy hands on. It takes a long time to breed a new breed of animal. it's feasible that you could get one or two within 20 years, especially with the short maturation phase of catgirls, but to get perfect matches of 4 currently-existent cat breeds from just one starting catgirl? Impossible. So the creator had to have engineered at least 5 originals out of 5 distinct cat breeds. He performed the same unbelievably complex, inefficient process 5 times with good results. and another thing. how does he breed them? there are no male catgirls, and catgirls cannot reproduce with humans. this one i havent even figured out how it would work in the canon of the universe. does he engineer each one separately? does he cross-breed them together using just the female eggs? he can't just be cloning them because they all look different. If there are no males, do catgirls not have sex-linked traits? are there no calico catgirls? this is something i need more information on.

anyway i hope you enjoyed this infodump on inefficiency of catgirl breeding/creation in eroge game neko paradise

#unrussledjimmys

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wellinformedmama-blog · 5 years

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In April 2017, I shared a version of the following story about getting my son diagnosed as autistic the previous summer, at just shy of 19 months old. It was this original post that started me on the path towards helping other families and connected me with so many other moms. I am frequently asked “How did you know?” and “So what did you have to do to find out?” And of course it would be a popular question - the beginning is where we so often need the most guidance.

Now, you have to keep in mind that I'm a bit of an anomaly because I'm a special educator and I honestly have “radar”. Please don’t ever fault yourself for “missing” something. It may be that you noticed -- or didn’t -- or that a provider, interventionist, teacher, or family member did -- or didn’t. It’s not just one thing that signals the value of an evaluation, but rather, an aggregate.

The “red flags” of an early autism diagnosis include all of the following which we personally noticed in our child on a CONSISTENT basis, and in a way that LIMITED HIS FUNCTIONING (these modifiers really matter!). You do need to look for SEVERAL of these in any combination. Remember not to rely on a stereotypical presentation, either, especially in little girls.

*THE “LIST”*

-did not respond to his name

-no initiating or sustaining eye contact, despite being very attached to mama

-no imitation (the biggie)

-no pointing or following a pointed finger (the second biggie)

-limited to no interest in peers and even in his twin

-no words or expressive language (he did babble but it was repetitive)

-regression with toys (all of sudden seemed to "forget" how a toy was used and no longer had interest in them)

-fixation on board books and nothing else

-responded only to singing, not talking -- I fondly remember singing him the opening lines to “Little Blue Truck” to gain his attention, and his beautiful smile

-sensory issues with chewing (had previously had trouble latching and was syringe fed infant despite being a full term twin)

-loved, loved, loved intense body pressure which meant lots of incredible snuggles but also repeatedly hitting his head, dragging his face on floors, and licking unsafe surfaces

-he had typical, if not above average, mobility, but would get distracted and fall or bump into things a lot; and as soon as he walked, he was a runner and didn't respond to "stop" at all (which by the way, hasn’t changed!)

There is a national “Act Early” campaign, with state level equivalents, that pushes diagnosis before age two because the therapies can be so helpful so early, allowing these kids to be more communicative, more successful in school, and happier than they may have been otherwise (read: not to change who they are but to help them make friends when they want to make them). We knew we wanted him to be able to access the world through appropriate therapy and schooling, and to be able to know himself and be proud of his unique brain - without question.

It took me several months to work up the guts to voice what I knew to be true deep down. I am a PROFESSIONAL in the field -- it didn’t make it any easier. I went through a short “maybe it’s SPD!” phase -- talk about denial. Eventually, I used my available information and my gut instincts.

We went to the "experts."

Roadblock #1: EI. Our developmental specialists were, sadly, out-of-practice women with little knowledge of autism. Despite the home nurse on the original evaluation team suggesting the possibility to me a month prior, I still heard the person actually working in my home tell me, "I know a lot of young moms love to ask about autism!" and "Relax, he'll be fine." and worst of all, "He's a boy!" She did NOT go to medical school...and you know me - she was asked to leave my house immediately. 👏 (We went on to have four different case managers until we were assigned an SLP who changed both of my boys’ lives and was far more professional and aware. I think our experience was fairly uncommon and often, you may find the DS is the one giving the advice you should take.)

Roadblock #2: Pedi was great in general, but didn't want to say the “A word” before two years old (this is an outdated practice, TBH). When we pushed and pushed with brutally honest "developmental questionnaires" (have you heard of the MCHAT?) and frequent phone calls, he finally got on board and actually suggested testing before we directly asked for it! But I'll never forget, "You have to try not to compare him to his twin." Because that's all I was doing? Constant little pin pricks will come your way in pursuit of diagnosis... keep going.

Roadblock #3: Insurance. Because we like to see developmental psychologists for fun? That one was a trip.

After getting vision and audiology (hearing) tests completed and passed to rule out physical issues, we called Children's Hospital Boston and got our own referral. Our son was diagnosed within a month by the chief of developmental medicine at Children's (he DID go to medical school). The process was complex but effective: first, I called and received a huge packet of screening-in paperwork. Then, a team reviewed the paperwork and decided whether or not my son was a candidate for evaluation at the Developmental Clinic (He was! And it was a quick, pretty clear decision.). We then brought him in for a team-based evaluation for 2.5 hours. A child psychologist, a developmental pediatrician, a psych intern, and a speech language pathologist all observed and played with my son. This was crucial - I always recommend going where they use a team approach for an initial evaluation for suspected developmental differences. In about two weeks, we received a draft report, minus the diagnosis. We then came in for a parent-doctor meeting during which they reviewed everything in detail and told us that our son was definitively autistic. It was a supportive, clear meeting. We both cried. Some of it, honestly, was tears of relief.

My baby was in ABA and speech two months later and making his first big strides by that next late fall. He stopped hurting himself. He looked at me. He learned his name. In time, he would acknowledge his brother. He would come so far that we figured out he has a photographic memory and a musical talent. All things he deserved.

Moral of the story: -TRUST YOUR GUT (what's the worst that could happen?) -skip the peanut gallery and call Children's or Tufts, or the equivalent high level children’s hospital in your area -the label actually matters because insurance and school placement require it, not to mention neurodivergent pride! -If your baby is on the spectrum, consider yourself lucky! It's difficult, sure, but it's also pretty great. My son is his own man for sure.

And, finally, early is best, but it’s NEVER too late.

If you need help in this process, please reach out. It also applies to a number of other developmental delays, learning disabilities, genetic disorders, etc. That latter one will include some extensive medical and DNA testing. Some people are ahead of the game and carry a physical diagnosis from birth.

I know it’s a big ask, but do your best to consider the process in a logical, almost “scientific” way. The truly emotional piece is coming, believe me, so do your best to seek answers first, and then you can work on accepting them later. Fear is no match for information.

Stay tuned for articles on turning a diagnosis into services.

xoxo WIM

#actearly wellinformedfamilies mamaknowsbest autism neurodiversity

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art-love-blog1 · 4 years

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How to Choose the Best Cereal for Your Baby

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How to Choose the Best Cereal for Your Baby

When your infant nears six months old, he may prepare to progress from a formula-only or specifically nursed diet plan. The enhancement of grain to your child’s diet regimen is a common– if not essential– next action in the introduction to a selection of foods. The infant aisle of the supermarket provides a wide array of infant cereals, so recognizing what to select as well as why can be a challenge. With a couple of practical pointers, you will be better outfitted with the expertise needed to figure out which cereal( s) may be one of the most advantageous for your infant.

1)– Determining-Your-Baby’s- Needs-and-Readiness-.

1.1)– Talk-to-your-baby’s- medical professional-.

There are a wide range of viewpoints on what foods children must begin with and when, and a few of them are even more scientifically-grounded than others. You and your baby’s medical professional are most acquainted with your unique little person as well as needs to work in show to plot his shift to strong foods.

– The majority of pediatric companies now claim that children need to be nursed exclusively– or if needed, breastfed with formula supplementation– for the very first 6 months. This has much less to do with a child’s preparedness for solid foods as well as even more to do with his dietary demands. Seek your doctor’s advice on the best time to begin the shift with your infant.

– Numerous experts think that waiting to start solids until 6 months of age may reduce a kid’s threat of creating allergic reactions as well as even eczema.

– Despite when you start strong foods, your child’s doctor will probably recommend you to proceed feeding the child breastmilk until a minimum of twelve months old.

– In appointment with the physician, take into consideration the adhering to steps in this area when identifying your infant’s preparedness to begin solid foods such as baby cereal.

1.2)– Look-for-increased-head-control-in-your-baby-.

Prior to he can securely bear down to cereal, he requires to be able to hold his head upright during feedings. This is a vital safety measure and also is essential in preventing choking.

– In mostly all cases, feeding your child breastmilk (together with formula, if required) exclusively is perfectly great past 6 months old. This may be the best option if he can not yet appropriately regulate his head for safe feeding. Hold your horses, be safe.

1.3)– Make-sure-your-baby-is-able-to-sit-upright-.

It is okay if your youngster can not rest upright without help, and also using a supportive seat is perfectly appropriate. If the infant can keep the upright setting he is placed in, the vital aspect is.

– If child slumps over down in the seat, flops his head and also body to one side or simply can not maintain a resting position, he is at an increased threat of choking on strong foods.

– Utilize your best judgment and also setting him to make sure that he continues to be as upright as possible throughout feeding.

1.4)– Watch-for-the-disappearance-of-the-tongue-thrust-reflex-.

Before your infant is ready to go on to solid foods, you might observe that his tongue has the natural capacity to instantly push food right out of his mouth instead of swallow.

– If this happens when you present cereal, wait a few days and also try supplying grain once more.

1.5)– Take-notice-of-your-baby’s- weight-gain-.

If your baby has roughly increased his birth weight (as well as goes to least 13 pounds) by the time he is close to 6 months old, it is a great indication that he is ready to begin solid foods.

– As always, nonetheless, speak with your child’s doctor.

2)– Choosing-Cereals-.

2.1)– Start-simple-.

Adding cereals to your child’s diet regimen is a process of experimentation, not just in the feeding process (get ready for a great deal of messes!) however in identifying how your child responds to particular brand-new foods. Beginning with single-grain cereals before going on to multi-grain varieties enables you to better check your baby’s reactions and also determine prospective irritants.

– Rice cereal is the common first choice, mainly out of tradition but additionally because it is considered low-allergy, conveniently absorbed, and very easy to blend as well as eat.

– There is, nevertheless, no medical proof that rice need be the initial grain choice; lots of in fact like oats, which are additionally easily absorbable and normally low-allergy as well.

– There is some debate over whether or not the gluten material in wheat-based cereals– or barley cereal, for instance– assistance facilitate the development of wheat allergic reactions and/or gastric condition, or if this really reduces the possibility. Current researches have discovered that introducing wheat before your child is 6 months old might lower the threat of her establishing a wheat allergic reaction. Talk with your child’s physician, particularly if she is under 6 months.

2.2)– Go-one-grain-at-a-time-.

Feed with it exclusively for 2 to 3 days prior to moving on to the next grain as soon as you have figured out which grain selection to start with. Conversely, you can include the second grain to the initial, and so on.

– Maintain a close eye out for indicators of allergies as you introduce each new grain. Breakouts, hives, digestive issues like vomiting or diarrhea, and also breathing troubles can all be indicators of a food allergic reaction. Call your child’s physician right now if you suspect a food allergic reaction, or take him to the emergency clinic if symptoms appear severe (or if there is any type of proof of breathing trouble).

2.3)– Look-for-iron-fortification-if-your-baby-needs-it-.

Although there is some argument on the topic, many specialists seem to concur that children over six months old, especially those who are nursed solely, take advantage of iron supplementation. Iron shortage in small children has been indicated in developmental hold-ups, and breast milk is restricted in iron web content (although formula is fortified).

– Speak with your infant’s medical professional concerning her iron needs, specifically if you are nursing specifically at 6 months. Need to iron supplements be suggested, business baby grains are usually an exceptional choice due to the fact that they are usually fortified with iron. Examine dietary labels for iron material.

– There are other alternatives for iron supplementation, including the introduction of pureed meats to the diet.

2.4)– Determine-your-preferences-.

Much about what you choose to feed your infant has less to do with scientific evidence as well as more to do with your preferences as a moms and dad. When evidence is undetermined, contradictory, or simply not offered, you will need to trust your beliefs as well as instincts. Several of the choices you will need to make consist of:.

– Whether to stay clear of genetically-modified plants. There is no reputable evidence that GM crops have any type of unfavorable health and wellness effects, but some parents want to prevent them for different reasons. The majority of baby cereals, as long as they don’t have corn items, will not have GM components no matter. To be specific, you can pick 100% organic items, which by USDA regulations can not have any GM components.

– Whether to restrict or avoid rice grain as a result of its arsenic content. Due to exactly how rice is grown, all forms of it often tend to have greater focus of arsenic, which in excess can create skin and vascular problems in children. It is possible that only one or two portions of rice grain each day can get to the FDA recommended limitation for babies, although there is no official referral that parents must restrict or prevent serving it.

– Whether to pick entire or refined grains. While whole grains typically offer much better nutritional content, improved grain cereals have a tendency to assist in the absorption of the fortified iron in the product. Both refined or whole grain cereals serve options for babies, but you might want to take into consideration the last unless your infant has an iron shortage. Speak with your pediatrician.

– Whether to skip grain as the first strong food. There is no proof that grain needs to be the first food group to be presented, and many parents choose to relocate precisely to ground, mashed, or pureed meats, fruits, as well as vegetables. Infant cereals are easy to prepare and supply ample nutrients, yet babies can flourish without them being the first option, if that is your option.

3)– Preparing-and-Feeding-Cereals-.

3.1)– Make-your-own-cereal-, -if-you-desire-.

Industrial infant grains generally have just a few simple ingredients, along with included nutrients, however if you want more control over the web content of your child’s food, it is simple to make your very own baby grain.

– Making rice, oat,, or barley cereal is no more challenging than grinding the uncooked grain (most conveniently in a spice or coffee mill), food preparation it in water for 10 mins (15-20 for barley), and also blending it with milk or formula.

– Please note that homemade cereals are not strengthened, so if your baby requires extra iron, as an example, you will certainly need to provide other sources– such as pureed meats.

3.2)– Prepare-the-cereal-according-to-the-package-instructions-.

Particularly when your child is brand-new to solid foods, make sure that the cereal is prepared extra free side as opposed to thick, more detailed to soup than porridge.

– Usage breast milk or ready formula to thin the cereal, whether store-bought or homemade.

– Readjust the milk-to-cereal proportion to thicken the food as your baby gets used to eating it.

3.3) -Choose-a-time-when-your-baby-is-not-fussy-or-tired-when-you-first-attempt to-spoon-feed-cereal-.

Get to know your baby’s needs and execute a feeding schedule that functions ideal for him.

– Start with simply 1-2 teaspoons of cereal mixed with breast milk or formula.

– Early in the day functions best for some children, when they are typically one of the most starving. Other infants have a challenging time breaking from their regular first thing in the early morning, as well as will certainly do better when grain is supplied at night or before bed.

When initially starting out, – Limit feedings of cereal to as soon as or two times per day. As your infant comes to be extra familiar with eating solids, the amount of feedings will increase.

– Maintain supplying 24 ounces or more of breast milk or formula per day.

3.4)– Be-patient-with-your-baby-.

Remember, consuming in this way is a brand-new experience. He might need lots of practice prior to he can consume cereal. Do not be inhibited if he does not take to the cereal immediately. Wait a day or more and attempt once again.

– Never force your child to eat grain. If he is willing or not all set, wait as well as try once again.

The addition of cereal to your baby’s diet plan is an usual– if not important– following action in the intro to a range of foods. With a couple of useful ideas, you will be much better equipped with the understanding needed to establish which grain( s) might be the most useful for your child.

Starting with single-grain cereals before moving on to multi-grain ranges permits you to far better check your child’s responses as well as identify possible allergens.

Both refined or whole grain cereals are appropriate alternatives for children, but you might desire to think about the latter unless your baby has an iron shortage. Infant grains are very easy to prepare as well as offer adequate nutrients, yet infants can thrive without them being the initial alternative, if that is your option.

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equitiesstocks · 4 years