Ah, I see. I wouldn't expect to hear it at 8 weeks anyway, honestly, since an 8-week fetus is so very small -- certainly, as you mentioned, since amplified stethos simply would not be available to us out on the Plains. I do apologize for misreading the original issue, I was taking it as we lacked an appropriate stethoscope, not that someone was trying to detect a heartbeat at only 8 weeks.
Arlon