Welcome to the companion Web site to "Life's Greatest Miracle," originally broadcast on November 20, 2001. A sequel to the most popular NOVA of all time, "Miracle of Life," the program once again uses the extraordinary microimagery of Swedish photographer Lennart Nilsson to track human development from embryo to newborn. Here's what you'll find online:
Watch the Program
If you missed the television broadcast of the Emmy award-winning program "Life's Greatest Miracle," you can watch it in its entirety here. Note: This program is rated TV-14,S. Viewer discretion is advised. (Available in QuickTime or RealVideo)
Great Expectations: A Woman's Journal
In this daily journal, follow along as a mother-to-be describes the joys and hopes, the trials and tribulations, of undergoing pregnancy and giving birth.
Windows on the Womb
Doctors today have myriad techniques for tracking the growth and health of a baby throughout pregnancy. Here, explore a bevy of currently available diagnostic and screening techniques, which are changing the nature of both pregnancy and parenthood.
The Stem-Cell Debate
In this essay drawn from his new book, Dartmouth ethicist Ronald Green, a one-time member of the National Institutes of Health's Human Embryo Research Panel, brings clarity, balance, and insight to the controversial issue of using human stem cells in biomedical research.
How Cells Divide (Hot Science)
Most of the time, when a cell in our bodies divides, each new cell carries a complete set of chromosomes. The cells involved with reproduction, however, carry only half after division occurs. In this step-by-step explanation, learn about mitosis and meiosis, the two types of cell division.
How Is Sex Determined? (Hot Science)
The sex of an egg cell is set as soon as it is fertilized, but what happens to that cell and the cells it divides into to make a baby boy or girl? Find out here.