Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

Don't forget higher child infant mortality and premature births. Humans are born several months earlier than optimal in order to be able to fit that huge head of ours through the birth canal.


That's not my understanding of the modern interpretation of head size and pelvis size. I believe current thinking is that the (healthy) mother simply cannot metabolise nutrients efficiently enough to sustain further growth of the (healthy) foetus beyond a certain size. Evolutionarily, the pelvis has adapted as far as necessary, and no further.


Although actually your statement and mine aren't incompatible.

Anyway, it's quite a fascinating area of study, including biomechanics, anthropology, metabolism, and more: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obstetrical_dilemma




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: