Q&A: Beyond the obstetrical dilemma, why are humans helpless at birth?

Infants' helplessness demonstrates unique social implications for human development. In a new paper developmental psychology researchers from the University of Ottawa explored human infants' helplessness as a key to human nature, delving into questions of why humans evolved unlike other mammals with strong sensory systems and weak motor systems for an extended period. And they looked at what this means for human development and the survival of our species.