On Mon, 1 Oct 2001 06:43:15 -0700, Kimberly Rogers <[log in to unmask]> wrote:


>        I've also read that women did not menstruate as long as we do
now.  Can't
>remember where I read it, though.  The truth is that no one really knows
the
>biological state of our forebears.

There are anthropological studies/accounts of hunter-gatherers over the
last 40-50 years that include data/information on the development of
females.  It seems that among various modern day hgs, girls begin
menstruation at a much later age (14-17) than westerners.  They also will
have 3-6 children spaced 3-5 years apart on average and have very easy
childbirths (compared to westerners) with little or no recovery necessary.
The men will generally have 1-3 "wives" based on the economics of the
bioregion.  Although the male:female ratio among births is 1:1, the number
of males surviving to and through adulthood is lower than the females.

Brad

PS A correction to my previous post, the Hobbesian belief is that primitve
life is "nasty, brutish, and short" not "nasty, shortish, and brute".  I
think I had a brain cramp.