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The Gallery of Birth Hoaxes
Reproduction and birth have always been subjects that quickly get people's attention, especially when you're talking about the extreme limits of the phenomena: multiple-births, clones, or the birth of creatures that seem to defy what some believe to be the natural order. Because of society's fascination with birth, it's been a magnet for hoaxers. Gathered here are examples of birth hoaxes throughout the ages, from the very recent claims about human cloning (which seem more and more likely to be a hoax) to the ancient. But I've also mixed in examples of memorable births that are true (and some milestones from the history of reproductive technology) to give a taste of how examples from real-life have expanded the limits of what people think might be possible when it comes to birth. Also thrown in are a few famous fictional births from TV and film. The gallery is arranged in reverse chronological order.
January 3, 2003: Second Clone Born? (Unlikely)
Clonaid announced that a second clone was born, this time to a lesbian couple in the Netherlands. Again, it offered no proof to back up this claim. In fact, it seems likely that Clonaid will never offer any proof, citing concerns about the privacy of the parents and the children. On January 6, Michael Guillen, the former ABC science reporter charged with overseeing the DNA testing to determine that a clone really has been born, suggested that the whole thing might indeed be a hoax. We here at the Museum of Hoaxes would be shocked (shocked!) if that were to be the case.
All the usual copyrights apply.
Reproduction and birth have always been subjects that quickly get people's attention, especially when you're talking about the extreme limits of the phenomena: multiple-births, clones, or the birth of creatures that seem to defy what some believe to be the natural order. Because of society's fascination with birth, it's been a magnet for hoaxers. Gathered here are examples of birth hoaxes throughout the ages, from the very recent claims about human cloning (which seem more and more likely to be a hoax) to the ancient. But I've also mixed in examples of memorable births that are true (and some milestones from the history of reproductive technology) to give a taste of how examples from real-life have expanded the limits of what people think might be possible when it comes to birth. Also thrown in are a few famous fictional births from TV and film. The gallery is arranged in reverse chronological order.
January 3, 2003: Second Clone Born? (Unlikely)
Clonaid announced that a second clone was born, this time to a lesbian couple in the Netherlands. Again, it offered no proof to back up this claim. In fact, it seems likely that Clonaid will never offer any proof, citing concerns about the privacy of the parents and the children. On January 6, Michael Guillen, the former ABC science reporter charged with overseeing the DNA testing to determine that a clone really has been born, suggested that the whole thing might indeed be a hoax. We here at the Museum of Hoaxes would be shocked (shocked!) if that were to be the case.
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All the usual copyrights apply.
