New exhibit at Science Museum
The Science Museum in London has a new exhibit in its “Who am I?” gallery that includes the actual glass incubator used by Robert Edwards, Patrick Steptoe and Jean Purdy to carry out the first In Vitro Fertilisation treatment leading to my birth.
In Vitro is Latin for “in glass” so this glass incubator – which was made as a desicattor and repurposed by the scientists - gave IVF it’s name. Sorry to disappoint people who still like to call us “test tube babies” but no test tubes were involved in the process.
The exhibition includes other developments in fertility treatment over the last 46 years and next time I’m in London I want to find time to see the exhibition.
If you are in London pop in and have a look. The Museum produced this blog on my birthday to announce the exhibit: https://blog.sciencemuseum.org.uk/happy-birthday-louise-brown/