I was just scrolling around and happened upon this thread. I hate to start this going again since the last post was a few days ago, but after reading the posts, I did a bit of research on fetuses in general. Just FYI, I am pro-life, and am against stem cell research and in vitro fertilization, but that is totally in my own opinion and do not want to try and change anyones. Also, I am quite impressed about the nature of the discussion on this thread! So civil, and everyone is bringing up great points. I hope the information I am about to post is enlightening....

After researching a few different websites, I was able to decipher that the heartbeat of "fetus" (for argument's sake) begins at about 18-21 days. At this point, the fetus is in a worm-like shape, not resembling a human in most forms.

12 or so days after conception, the cells that are forming into the fetus begin to produce hormones that can be detected in the urine. Shortly after this time, women may tend to notice that their menstural cycle is late, brining them to use a home-pregnancy test.

So, if someone noticed they were "late" on the 12th day and there were enough hormones to detect a positive pregnancy...there is a slim (but possible) chance that they would be in to have an abortion before the 18-21st day of pregnancy, when the heartbeat begins.

I don't want to impose my views on this subject to anyone, but thought that the timing in conception, development, and abortion was interesting. URL=http://www.religioustolerance.org/abo_fetu.htm]http://www.religioustolerance.org/abo_fetu.htm[/URL] is one of the websites I used, but this one was the most comprehensive.

Thank you for allowing me to post this information. Like I said, I am very impressed with the make-up of this "debate" and find everyone's opinions very interesting and worth-while! This issue is very deep and there will never be an "agreement" on the topic, but to be able to discuss all the sides in such a civil manner will really help to clear up a lot of confusion from both sides.