Babies are so cute, but taking care of them is hard work.Human babies are born immature compared to other mammals.
Could I ask the reason?
In fact, compared to other apes, humans have gigantic brains, so in order to give birth safely in this state, there is no other way than to give birth while the baby's brain is small, that is, while it is immature. It was.
Babies who have to rely on their caregivers for a long time for everything related to sustaining life, such as transportation and eating.On the other hand, however, we are born with a new brain (the cerebrum) with sensory organs ready to take in various stimuli from the outside world and with excellent learning capacity.
It can be said that this unique human characteristic holds the key to human progress.
Humans are born immature, so they cannot live without constant nurture from their parents.But it is an opportunity to learn many things from their parents.
Human babies are able to write various things into their new brains and develop in a way that adapts to their environment after birth.
Being able to freely change its shape according to the environment is called "plasticity", and immature human babies are exactly the ones with great "plasticity".
A baby with endless possibilities.If you were a father or mother, what kind of environment would you like to raise them in?
Reference: Takeshi Aso, "Psychology of Infants - Communication and Ego Development," Science Publishing, 2002
