This book provides a nontechnical account of the debate concerning human embryo research, concentrating on the British parliamentary debates of 1984-1990. It traces the debates' origins back to conflicts over abortion and moral reform in the 1960s, and examines reactions in the 1990s to sex selection and the use of eggs from human fetuses for research. Michael Mulkay shows how embryo research develops within a complex social environment, writing for anyone interested in the relationship between science-based assisted reproduction and society.