Gates Auditorium was packed last Wednesday night for a lecture on our society’s view about human embryous.

This event was titled “Whose View of Life: Values, Embryos & Society” and was based on a book of the same name, written by Jane Maienschein, director of the Center for Biology at Arizona State University.

She specializes in the history and philosophy of biology and how it makes an impact on society.

The discussion was a Bridges to the Future event. At the beginning of her lecture, she stated that she was not arguing science vs. morality nor was she attempting to define when life begins.

Maienschein articulated the history of societal views towards the embryo and the three main present societal views of the embryo. Currently, many identify the human embryo as one of three things: a mass of cells, implanted blastocysts or the most popular one-a fetus. Maienschein focused on the earliest history, dating back to the Renaissance, when there were two main views: preformation, the belief that humans were already formed, and epigenesis, the belief that human embryos developed over time.

Later, a number of theories developed about the embryo and its qualities. By the 1950s and 1960s, medical methods showed the way embryos developed in the womb.

Since 1997, embryo manipulation became possible through cloning, genetic engineering and stem cells.

Maienschein presented both sides of the arguments for and against stem cell research and cloning.

At the conclusion of her presentation, there was time for the audience to ask questions and voice concerns.

Bridges to the Future is a DU-based program that was created four years ago in order to stimulate community dialogue. The themes change yearly; this year the theme is “Science, Technology and Values.”

For more information on upcoming Bridges to the Future events, visit www.bridgestothefuture.us.