Fun Fetal Fact #1

So... my bathroom reading has changed in the past month. I used to spend my time on the throne reading wargames magazines, rulebooks, and history books. Since Allison now has every bathroom stocked with a respectable-sized pregnancy and pre-natal literary section, I've started reading bits and pieces out of many books. In the not-to-distant past, pregnancy and childbearing were considered a woman's domain, and I'm beginning to see why. I've learned things about the female body (particularly the nipples) that I would have been fine never learning for the rest of my life.

However, there is one book in particular that I really like called In the Womb, which takes the reader through each week of the pregnancy and shows what's happening on a biological level. During my bathroom reading before work this morning I learned something very interesting.

Have you ever noticed the surprisingly strong and tight grip of a newborn? Did you know that most scientists believe the tight grip to be a genetic survival instinct that human babies share with their other primate cousins? In short, most other primate species (chimps, monkeys, gorillas, etc...) are covered in fur (c'mon everyone... this is kindergarten-level biology here...) When a chimpanzee baby is born, it must immediately be able to hold on to its mother's fur to prevent itself from falling on the ground, as the mother will continue on with her foraging, leaving her baby without any physical support. I found that very interesting. In fact, if I was endowed with a thick, lustrous man-rug on my chest, I would test the theory out when Baby Tilley arrives. Sadly, although I was blessed with charm, wit, intelligence, and humility, I was out sick on the day they were handing out chest hair. Maybe my brother would be willing to take part in a little experiment...

Until next time, I remain most sincerely yours,
Big Daddy J