With Father's Day fast upon us, the New York Times decided to expound upon the father's contribution to, um, fatherhood, with what I thought was a fascinating story about....sperm! Never having had kids, I've never really obsessed over the whole sperm + harrowing journey + giant egg (might) = crying baby. But what determined little swimmers most of them are, and what carnage they go through. Some can't really swim, some explode their own bodies so others might benefit (how un-guy like!). Here's a quote you egg bearers will appreciate: "As a rule", Dr. Fisch said, "a man is lucky if 15 percent of his sperm are serviceable." I see the smug looks on the female readers going "gee, kind of like the male population in general."Happy Father's Day guys...you should be very proud of your 15% success rate. If you were a baseball player you'd be booted out of the game. In babymaking, it's a possible home run!
illustration from the article.
