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Human babies are pretty helpless. Children need their parents until about age 10, to have a good chance of surviving to adulthood. So humans need to be around
by alejohausner 6y ago
Human babies are pretty helpless. Children need their parents until about age 10, to have a good chance of surviving to adulthood. So humans need to be around for many years after they reproduce, in order to contribute to the gene pool.
- chongli 6y agoYes, and grandparents can have the ability to contribute a lot to the success of their grandchildren. In contemporary times, a wealthy grandparent can send many grandchildren to college with their wealth. In the past, it could’ve been other resources as well as the preservation of knowledge and culture.
- klyrs 6y agoTo this day, the presence of grandparents in a child's life contributes to their success. If nothing else, the "free daycare" frees up the parents to continue their careers; but also child-rearing is a skill (more like, a billion skills) that don't get passed on unless folks survive through their grandkids' adolescence
- djohnston 6y agoSure, but living 500 years vs 20 years post-child birth confers no additional advantage to raising the child, so again there is no pressure selecting for this kind of trait.