Molly Webster

Like, think about it this way.

If there were a human woman who could keep having babies for her whole life until she dies, she would genetically at least outcompete the women who can't.

So it sort of seems like there should be some evolutionary genetic reason for the reproductive system to kind of peter out before the human person does.

Now, one of the most common things people say when they hear about this is that in humans, this is kind of like a fluke of modern life.

So the idea being that in olden times, we used to die around menopause.

And so this long post-reproductive life is just because now we live longer than we used to.

Right.

But it turns out, actually, that's not the case.

Which part?

All of that is not true.

None of that is true.

In ancient times, people also lived to be about 70.

Really?

Yeah.

I just thought it was like the only people who did were like royals who were highly attended to.

No.

So there's this interesting thing where, like, we get these average life expectancy numbers.

And the average is taken to account the fact that people die before, like, the age of five because they die in childbirth.

They die of infant diseases.

Oh, it's like a skewed average.