November 13: An Evening with Robert Klitzman, MD, author of Designing Babies: How Technology is Changing the Ways We Create Children

Science Writers in New York (SWINY) invites you to spend an evening with Robert Klitzman, MD, professor of psychiatry at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and director of the Master of Science in Bioethics Program at Columbia University. Dr. Klitzman will discuss his new book, Designing Babies: How Technology is Changing the Ways We Create Children (Oxford University Press September 2019), with SWINY co-chair David Levine.

Since the first “test-tube baby” was born over 40 years ago, in vitro fertilization (IVF) and other assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) have advanced in extraordinary ways, producing millions of babies. An estimated 20 percent of American couples use infertility services to help them conceive, and that number is growing. Such technologies permit thousands of people, including gay and lesbian couples and single parents, to have offspring. The possibilities of this rapidly developing technology are astounding—especially in the United States, where the procedures are practically unregulated and a large commercial market for buying and selling human eggs is swiftly growing. 

Designing Babies examines the ethical, social, and policy concerns surrounding reproductive technology. Based on in-depth interviews with providers and patients, Dr. Klitzman explores how individuals and couples are facing quandaries of whether, when, and how to use IVF and other ARTs. As new technologies and possibilities are increasingly realized, potential parents, doctors, and policymakers face complex and critical questions about the use—or possible misuse—of ARTs. 

“In this meticulously researched and eloquent book, Robert Klitzman examines the brave new world of reproduction in the twenty-first century. He describes the relevant medical progress in accessible terms, tells the stories of individual families with warmth and compassion, and examines the ethical nuances that follow on evolving technologies. The book is written with the passion of a scientist and the subtlety of a novelist.” — Andrew Solomon, author of Far from the Tree

“A few years ago, a friend of Robert Klitzman asked, ‘Do you want to be the father of my child?’ After much thought, he declined. Now, in Designing Babies, he has written a wonderfully well-informed, sensible, and sympathetic account of the brave new world of mechanical reproduction, reviewing the innumerable questions and choices that face parents and would-be parents today. Coming from one of this country’s leading bioethicists, Designing Babies is as valuable as it is timely.” — Jonathan Weiner, author of The Beak of the Finch and His Brother’s Keeper

When:
Wednesday, November 13
6:30 to 8 p.m.
Refreshments will be provided.

Dr. Klitzman’s book will be available for purchase at a discount ($20 at the event, $29.95 on Amazon) and he will be available to sign copies. Please support our authors by buying their books.

Where:
The home of Chip and Susan Fisher
1060 5th Avenue (on the northeast corner at 87th Street)

Admission:

RSVP:
https://form.jotform.com/swiny/nov-13-evening-with-robert-klitzman

Space is limited. Please RSVP by Monday, November 4.

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