My Family Tree
The extended family I've been sharing digs with... See alt-text for code
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What do they tell us about our species?
Curiously, I think the answer is that human males are generally monogamous. Before getting on to that we should ask: what is the excess adipose tissue carried by females of the human species actually for? There are two naive answers which I've heard expressed in the past: To provide milk for the human infant To attract a mate Neither of these explanations hold water. Every other mammal that I'm aware of only has swollen glands whilst the offspring are young enough to breastfeed. At all other times the females look more or less similar to the males. The second explanation leaves open an obvious question too. Why should a male be attracted to these things in the first place? What does seem to be true, is that - all other things being equal - possession of the aforesaid is an encumbrance, as any well-endowed cave-woman that has ever tried to flee a sabre-toothed tiger might attest. There are cases in nature, however, where encumbrances are car...