Imagining Reproduction in Science and History

Abstract

Reproduction is at the core of many aspects of human existence. It is intrinsic in our biology and in the broad social constructs in which we all reside. The introduction to this special issue is designed to reflect on some of the differences between the humanities/arts and the sciences on the subject of Reproduction now and in the past. The intellectual/cultural distance between humanists and reproductive biologists is vast, yet communication between the Two Cultures has much to offer in guiding future research, pedagogy, and social policy. The challenges to communication include differences in methodology, professional protocols, specialization, and the increasing speed with which reproductive technology advances. The solutions require a new kind of student who can learn and adapt the approaches from both sides of the disciplinary divide to create new ways of understanding how our current and future concepts of reproduction may be informed by the past. This co-authored introduction reviews the range of interests represented in the essays and represents first steps of a dialogue between a humanist and a reproductive biologist who chart some of the possibilities on what the future of the subject might hold.

Oxidative Stress and Acrosomal Status of Human Spermatozoa Subjected to Hydrophobic Carbon Soot Treatments

“…Reproduction is the key to the existence and continuance of the human race, being intrinsically incorporated into our physiology and the social construct we are living in [ 1 ]. Nevertheless, the contemporary social relations and aspirations toward welfare and technological development are inevitably accompanied by mental stress and exhaustion, adversely affecting the male reproductive health and natural conception rates [ 2 ].…”