Why being born helpless may be one of humanity’s greatest strengths

Babies start out life helpless and stay that way for a long time. They cannot walk, feed themselves or survive without an adult’s continued care. Our dependency timeline has no clear parallel elsewhere in the animal kingdom. Unlike most mammals, whose young reach basic self-sufficiency within weeks or months, humans remain dependent for years. That helplessness may be central to understanding humanity. And yet, in societies that prize independence and self-sufficiency, dependence is often…