Definitely. We can see this in the IVF procedure, where a human sperm and ovum are mixed in a laboratory dish, and if fertilisation occurs, a new human being comes into existence. The IVF embryo is not part of the petri dish and when placed in the mother’s womb (or the womb of another woman) can develop as a baby and be born. This will not happen if any other kind of cells are placed in the mother’s womb.

IVF is unethical, but it shows us that a human ovum fertilised by a human sperm creates a new human being. Indeed, people who undergo IVF sometimes think of these embryos as their babies.