Episode Details

“Your balls are baked aren’t they, mate”.

He would not have been born

Thanks Lyndon, that describes the situation. Like almost 1 in 10 modern men, my sperm weren’t up to the task - at least not the old fashioned way. So IVF it was - the miracle that now feels almost commonplace.

We landed on the moon and Woodstock changed music forever. But in 1969 a quieter event transformed the world. The first human embryo was fertilised “In vitro”, outside the body. Yet 10 years passed before one was inserted into a womb, and then born. 48 years ago, Louise Joy Brown was the first woman born through IVF. This year about a million babies will be born through IVF.

IVF stands at the frontier of rich-privilege, a norm for the middle class in rich countries. In my home country New Zealand, the government even pays for it! Yet every week I meet women here in Northern Uganda who can’t have kids, and could never afford IVF. Even the human “right” to have a kid can depend on where you are born.

If I was born 25 years ago, or in Uganda, my boy would never have [...]

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Outline:

(00:13) He would not have been born

(01:35) Our Risky Choice

(03:47) He didn't die once - a routine miracle

(05:33) He didn't die twice - Neonatal care

(08:54) I am Grateful

The original text contained 2 footnotes which were omitted from this narration.

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First published:
July 28th, 2026

Source:
https://forum.effectivealtruism.org/posts/KMNk8zXLxHQXgN7rK/never-born-then-maybe-died-twice

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Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO.

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