How We Do It: The Evolution and Future of Human Reproduction by Robert Martin, 304 pages.
We hear from and sort through the work of a wide variety of geneticists, anthropologists, zoologists, crazy, crazy child-rearing experts, eugenicists, chronobiologists, and reproductive biologists. Among many others. Martin explores what we know, what we think we know, and what we don't know about sperm and egg cells, conception and pregnancy, and the evolution of a large brain. He circles back to human beings in every chapter, but he compares and contrasts behavior, anatomy, and physiology among mammals, especially primates. There's more about tree-shrews here than in most books. You learn that among mammals, shorter pregnancies or gestation periods are usually indicative of hairless, altricial offspring, offspring who will require more care. Longer gestation usually means a more well-developed infant, one capable of more independent movement and able to provide some amount of care for itself.
Human offspring, despite the relatively long gestation period are often considered altricial. The offspring of many other primates are much further along the road toward independence than human babies.
Martin does a very good job sifting through conflicting results, and conclusions poorly derived, from decades of studies.
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