FYI: Could A Virgin Birth Ever Happen?

11-21-2013 • http://www.popsci.com, By Daniel Engber

Virgin birth, known to scientists as parthenogenesis, appears to be rather common in the animal kingdom. Many insects and other invertebrates are capable of switching between sexual and clonal reproduction. Among the vertebrates, virgin births have been documented in at least 80 taxonomic groups, including fish, amphibians, and reptiles. But humans and our fellow mammals provide a notable exception. So far as anyone can say—and there are a few gaps in the data, notably the platypus—no mammalian species is capable of giving birth without a father.

So what stands in the way? First, a mammal’s egg cell usually won’t divide until it receives a signal from the sperm. Second, most mammalian eggs have only half the number of chromosomes necessary for development. If there isn’t any sperm, the embryo will end up with only half the DNA it needs to survive.

3 Comments in Response to FYI: Could A Virgin Birth Ever Happen?

Comment by PureTrust

Entered on: 11/21/2013 8:17:26 PM

Thanks, OR. And on top of that, how many folks recognize that it was God who came to them in a dream. Joseph must have been quite a righteous person to want to divorce Mary "quietly." And then, he heard it from God that he was not to divorce her. (They were not married, yet, under the ritual of marriage. But at that time, engagement was considered marriage.) Perhaps Mary was living in Joseph's house already.

Comment by Olde Reb

Entered on: 11/21/2013 7:31:57 PM

Let us list the facts that are shared by the (canonized) Bible, the Lost Books of the Bible (writings screened during the canonization), and the translators.

"Virgin" has replaced a Greek work that refers to age (not to chastity) by the translators.

Mary was in the custody of the Sanhedrin because her parents could not pay the fee for her release (Lost Books). She had to be living with a priest of official because the Temple did not have living facilities.

Mary had to be removed from the custody because her on-coming menstrual maturity would "defile" the Temple.

How do you spell pedophilia ??

Conception--under any conditions--can be considered an act of God.

Comment by PureTrust

Entered on: 11/21/2013 3:07:47 PM

From the article:

“I just think it’s too complex and you’d need too many things to happen accidentally,” says Marisa Bartolomei, a molecular geneticist at the University of Pennsylvania.

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Who are they trying to kid? Yet they can believe that life came about spontaneously and evolved spontaneously?

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The Holy Virgin birth was an act of God. The Holy spirit caused it to happen, not only so that there would be a virgin birth, but also that the offspring would be the Son of God!