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From: @S1-A.ARPA,@MIT-MC.ARPA:mcgeer%ucbkim@Berkeley
Newsgroups: net.space
Subject: RE: Space Whoopee
Message-ID: <2641@mordor.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 12-Jul-85 20:55:19 EDT
Article-I.D.: mordor.2641
Posted: Fri Jul 12 20:55:19 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 16-Jul-85 21:16:50 EDT
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Organization: S-1 Project, LLNL
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From: Rick McGeer (on an aaa-60-s) 

	Quite aside from the sniggering in this matter, there's a serious
question here.  Can humans conceive and reproduce in free fall? Maybe it
will never matter (the O'Neill colony will have artificial gravity) but we
still should find out.

	The effects of free fall on a fetus can't be measured until the
space station goes up, and for that matter the effects on a human fetus
shouldn't be explored at all until there has been at least one animal
(preferably primate) pregnancy and birth in space.  However, we can test the
ability to conceive right now: send a pair of rabbits up, with the female
due to go in heat while in orbit.  This test wouldn't prove the negative
result conclusively if the rabbits refused to Do It, but that (knowing
rabbits) is fairly unlikely....

					Rick.