Grandma chimps offer clues for evolution of menopause in humans
Humans and some whales are the only known species in which females live long after they stop being able to reproduce.
Humans and some whales are the only known species in which females live long after they stop being able to reproduce.
Plants & Animals
Oct 29, 2023
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Language is foundational to Indigenous communities, including my own, and a vital connection to our cultures.
Social Sciences
Oct 4, 2023
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1
Scientists say they have proven what many people fortunate enough to grow up with theirs have known all along: Grandmothers have strong nurturing instincts and are hard-wired to care deeply about their grandchildren.
Other
Nov 17, 2021
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Grandparents often play an important role in childcare, but some are more involved than others, University of Canterbury Social Work Associate Professor Gretchen Perry has found.
Social Sciences
Apr 22, 2021
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Post-menopausal killer whale grandmothers improve the chances of survival for their grand-calves, new research has found.
Ecology
Dec 9, 2019
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409
A group of snorkelling grandmothers is helping scientists better understand marine ecology by photographing venomous sea snakes in waters off the city of Noumea, New Caledonia.
Ecology
Oct 23, 2019
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The human species is one of the very few, along with orcas and pilot whales, where females cease to be fertile after approximately 45 years of age. Since the ultimate goal of any living organism is to spread their genes, ...
Evolution
May 10, 2019
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194
The importance of grandmothers in the lives of their grandchildren has changed. The shared lifetime between grandmothers and their grandchildren has a fundamental effect on how grandparents and grandchildren influence each ...
Social Sciences
Sep 7, 2018
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5
Historically, the help provided by grandmothers has increased grandchild survival during times of high child mortality. However, there have been signs that in many populations, the impact of maternal grandmothers and paternal ...
Social Sciences
Jan 16, 2018
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8
The oldest known gorilla living in a zoo is doing well after a surgical biopsy ahead of her 60th birthday on Dec. 22.
Plants & Animals
Dec 3, 2016
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15
Grandparents are the parents of a person's own parent, whether that be a father or a mother. Every sexually-reproducing creature who is not a genetic chimera has a maximum of four genetic grandparents, eight genetic great-grandparents, sixteen genetic great-great-grandparents, etc. Rarely, such as in the case of sibling or half-sibling incest, these numbers are lower. In the history of modern humanity, around 30,000 years ago, the number of modern humans who lived to be grandparents began to skyrocket. It is not known for certain what spurred this increase in longevity. But it is believed that a key consequence of three generations being alive together was the facilitation of the passing along of information that prior to that point would have been lost; an example of this important information might have been where to find water in times of drought.
In cases where parents are unwilling or unable to provide adequate care for their children (e.g., death of the parents), grandparents often take on the role of primary caregivers. Even when this is not the case, and particularly in traditional cultures, grandparents often have a direct and clear role in relation to the raising, care and nurture of children.
One can also be a step-grandparent. A step-grandparent can be one's parent's step-parent or one's step-parent's parent. The various words for grandparents at times may also be used to refer to any elderly person, especially the terms gramps, granny, grandfather, grandmother and even more types that most families make up themselves.
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