Sixteen days.
When does a human being begin to exist? We argue that it is possible, through a combination of biological fact and philosophical analysis, to provide a definitive answer to this question. We lay down a set of conditions for being a human being, and we determine when, in the course of normal fetal development, these conditions are first satisfied. Issues dealt with along the way include: modes of substance-formation, twinning, the nature of the intra-uterine environment, and the nature of the relation between fetus and mother (connection, parthood, dependence).
Smith
Barry
B
Institute for Formal Ontology and Medical Information Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany. phismith@buffalo.edu
Brogaard
Berit
B
D033421:Beginning of Human Life; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian; D005314:Embryonic and Fetal Development; D005260:Female; D040821:Human Characteristics; D006801:Humans; D028723:Personhood; D010686:Philosophy, Medical; D011247:Pregnancy; D011261:Pregnancy Trimester, First; D014481:United States