Saed News: Human beings are strange creatures. We have neither protective armor nor thick fur, and we also walk on two relatively unstable legs. Despite these apparent vulnerabilities and the fact that we do not seem an evolutionarily “ideal” species, we have managed to dominate planet Earth.
According to SAEDNEWS, a large part of this success is related to our extraordinary mental capacity. Humans have a very large brain, and this brain has enabled us to create countless tools and solutions to our problems. This collection of achievements is what we call civilization: from agriculture and construction to weapons, electricity, plumbing, and medical methods.
But this large brain comes at a high cost. Humans require a very long time to reach adulthood. This extended developmental period allows the brain to reach its maximum size and function. The human brain continues to develop throughout childhood and even early adulthood, and it is during this time that we learn the skills that make us the most successful animal species on Earth.
Almost a quarter or more of human life is spent in growth and maturation. Depending on the criteria used, full brain development continues until the early or mid-twenties and sometimes even into the early thirties. The body also reaches full maturity only slightly earlier than the brain.
This process is highly energy-demanding. Especially in early life, humans require a great amount of food, care, and protection. Infants, young children, and even teenagers need far more care compared to many animals of the same age.
Most animals, if they receive parental care at all, become independent after a few weeks or months. Some may remain under parental supervision for one or two years. Even our closest relatives, chimpanzees, are usually fully mature by around 15 years of age.
The long human childhood and our social structure form a kind of feedback loop. Humans only become self-sufficient after many years of development. Caring for vulnerable offspring also requires a stable social system—one that is itself only possible due to the cognitive abilities of the human brain. In other words, raising a large brain requires the effort and support of adults who themselves have large, capable brains.
This cycle has continued repeatedly. Early humans did not benefit from agriculture, modern medicine, or permanent settlements, but they had strong family bonds and social structures that protected children and paved the way for later innovations.
Evidence of this slow growth pattern can also be seen in fossils. A skull belonging to a teenager, likely from Homo erectus, discovered in Georgia in 2001 and dating back about 1.8 million years, shows that our ancient relatives also had relatively slow development. Growth lines in the teeth of this teenager, who died at around 11 years old, suggest that development was similar to modern humans until about age five, after which growth accelerated.
Homo erectus never formed complex societies like modern humans, but early signs of this process were present. This species used tools and was capable of hunting large animals, which made it possible to provide the resources needed to support long childhood development.
In short, humans grow slowly because they have a very large and complex brain. This brain needs a long time to fully develop, which is why human childhood and adolescence are much longer than in most animals.
