Like a Virgin
How Science is Redesigning the Rules of Sex
Published on 1. May 2013
Book
Paperback/Softback
288 pages
978-1-85168-986-6 (ISBN)
Description
Is virgin birth just a myth or could it be the way we make babies in the future? Biologist Aarathi Prasad looks at inconceivable ideas about conception, from the "Jesus Christ" lizard's cloning ability (it walks on water too) to the 1950s hunt for a real-life virgin mother (one candidate couldn't be disproved). Prasad then transports us to the labs that are inventing sexless reproduction, from manufactured eggs and sperm to artificial wombs (for sharks as well as men).
More details
Person
Arathi Prasad is a biologist and writer whose work has appeared in the Guardian, Wired, and many others. Previously a cancer genetics researcher at Imperial College London, she has appeared on TV and radio, including as presenter of Channel 4's controversial "Is it Better to Be Mixed Race?" and "Brave New World with Stephen Hawking", as well as Radio 4's "The Quest for Virgin Birth". She lives in London.