A Journal of Torah and Science DERECH A Publication of Stern College for Women Yeshiva University HATEVA Volume 19, 2014-2015 Editor-In-Chief: Devorah Farber Co-Editors: Elisheva Dorfman, Sima Grossman, Michal Schechter, Allison Tawil Cover Design: Arielle Werthaim Layout Design: Daniela Garzon Printing: Advanced Copy Center, Brooklyn, NY 11230 Acknowledgements We would like to express tremendous gratitude to Dr. Babich for his dedication to this journal. It is thanks to his unwavering efforts that students are able to delve into the exciting world of the study of Torah U’Maddah. His support and encouragement enable students to delve, create and become inspired. We would also like to thank the following donors who have helped fund the publication of volume 19 of Derech HaTeva. Thank you for making this opportunity possible. Dr. and Mrs. Harvey Babich Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Koslowsky Dr. and Dr. Fred Grunseid Mr. and Mrs. Morris Rosenthal Dr. and Mrs. Richard Schwimmer Rabbi and Mrs. Baruch Solnica Dr. and Mrs. Moshe Steier Dr. and Dr. Howard Weintraub Torah Activities Council YU Undergraduate Admissions Devorah Farber Elisheva Dorfman Sima Grossman Michal Schechter Allison Tawil Dedication The editors of Derech HaTeva as well as the Yeshiva University community would like to dedicate the 19th volume of Derech HaTeva: A Journal of Torah and Science in memory of our fellow student Julia Packer a”h. Julia was a senior at Stern College for Women when she passed away at the age of 22 on January 31st, 2015. Known for her sweet and warm demeanor, Julia’s contagious smile brought much happiness to her family and friends. She treated those around her with kindness and compassion, and her gentle soul made her a comforting and joyful person to be around. Julia was also a talented artist whose works were greatly admired by faculty and students alike. Her special vivacity will long be remembered and treasured by all who were touched by her beautiful spirit. When the biblical prophetess Hannah was blessed with a child following many years of infertility, she sang what is known as “Shirat Hannah,” a poem that marvels at the wonders of which God is capable of. In this poem of thanksgiving, Hannah praises God and sings, “ain tzur k’Elokeinu” (Samuel I 2:2), which literally means, “there is no stronghold like God.” The 11th-century biblical commentator Rashi adds that this verse can alternately be read as, “ain tzayar k’Elokeinu,” which means, “there is no artist like God.” The marvelous wonders that God is able to design are clearly evident in the myriad of scientific processes that scientists and laymen alike are affected by every day. As a person who emulated God both in the way she conducted her life as well as in the talents that she exhibited, it is only befitting that a journal devoted to understanding the complexity, beauty, and artistry of science should be dedicated to Julia. החיים בצרור צרורה נשמתה תהא Lift up your eyes on high, and behold שאו מרום עיניכם וראו מי ברא Who has created these things; Who brings out their host by number, He אלה המוציא במספר צבאם לכלם calls them all by names by the greatness בשם יקרא מרב אונים ואמיץ כח of His might, and because He is strong .in power not one is missing איש לא נעדר Yeshayahu 40:26 Table of contents Michal Auerbach, Postmortem Sperm Insemination: A Halachic Survey....................................................................................................7 Rebecca van Bemmelen, God Bless You! - Smell and Spirituality..........................................................................................................10 Emily Chase, Colors of Judaism................................................................................................................................................................12 Tehila Feinberg, Halachik Considerations of IVF..................................................................................................................................14 Talia Felman, The Epigenetics of Children of Holocaust Survivors............................................................................................................16 Rebecca Garber, The Eighth-Month Conundrum.....................................................................................................................................18 Sima Grossman, Mitochondrial Replacement Therapy and Jewish Law......................................................................................................20 Rachel Hersch, Contagious Diseases and Vaccination; A Halachic Perspective ........................................................................................23 Yael Horvath, A Suggested Mechanism to the Hardening of Pharaoh’s Heart: A Study in Mind-Controlling Parasites.............................25 Ariella Levie, Black Jews of Africa: Beliefs, Customs, and Genetics............................................................................................................27 Elana Perlow, Whose Blood is Redder? A Halakhic Analysis of Issues Related to Separation of Conjoined Twins...................................30 Chana Ratner, BRCA1:185delAG. Just an ‘Ashkenazi Mutation’?.......................................................................................................33 Jeni Rossberg, Ancient Maladies: An Exploration of Disease and Pathophysiology in Tanach and the Talmud........................................35 Jessica Roussel, Opus Number Eight.......................................................................................................................................................38 Miriam Saffern, A Torah Basis for Limits and Mathematical Infinity.......................................................................................................40 Michal Schechter, Mei Teveryah in Rabbinic Literature: Medical and Halakhic Issues............................................................................43 Nora Shokrian, Crown: To Wear or Not To Wear ...................................................................................................................................45 Rebecca Tabaroki, The Roots of Contemporary Podiatric Medicine in Biblical Times...............................................................................47 Allison J. Tawil, Compassion towards People with Disabilities: The Torah Perspective.................................................................................49 Rachel Weil, The Yom Kippur Effect..........................................................................................................................................................52 Stephanie Zerbib, Strings of Blue............................................................................................................................................................53 Dr. H. Babich, Halacha meets DNA fingerprinting..................................................................................................................................55 Postmortem Sperm Insemination: A Halachic Survey Michal Auerbach young Israeli soldier dies Al Kiddush Hashem in battle. of breathing (i.e. brain death) is not enough to constitute halachic His widow asks to procure some of his sperm so that death [3]. If a brain-dead individual is not considered halachically A she can have his child. A young man is killed in a sudden dead, the sperm procurement procedure may be considered assault accident. He and his wife have been trying to have children for a on a living person. Moreover, this decision has implications on the few months before he is killed. His widow asks if she can continue parental halachic standing of the child. Some poskim assert that a their endeavors even after his death. child conceived utilizing postmortem insemination does not have a halachic father, and therefore the vitality status of the father has These are only a sampling of the various situations for which an impact on the halachic lineage of the child [1]. The discussions postmortem sperm insemination would be the only means of within this article will assume that the father is indeed halachically having a child. What does the halacha say about such situations? dead, in accordance with the definition of death of the Chief What issues would result from the fact that the entire procedure Rabbinate of Israel under the auspices of Rabbi Avraham Kahana- takes place after death? Does the child post-facto fulfill the Shapira and Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu, who define halachic death as obligation of pru u’revu that his father was not able to fulfill? brain death, or more specifically, that all autonomous breathing has Moreover, what is the resulting halachic status of the child? permanently irreversibly stopped, which can be proved by lack of function of the brain [3]. The procedure of sperm procurement for insemination is not a complicated one, nor a recent advancement [1]. The first case of There are three major halachic concerns when it comes to the successful artificial insemination in humans was performed in 1770 physical extraction of sperm postmortem: delaying burial, the issur by a surgeon named John Hunter. The procedure did not work of nivvul ha’met (prohibition against desecrating the dead) and the well until 1949, when it was discovered that adding a small amount issur of hana’ah min ha’met (prohibition against benefitting from of glycerol to the sperm before freezing would drastically increase the dead). Rabbi Chaim David Halevi, Sefardic Chief Rabbi of chances of sperm vitality.