Equation 1 · Part 5 · The Longest Childhood: Life-History Theory and the Grandmother Bet
Symbol w^0.75
What this part means
.75 is an input to the expression that computes the quantity on the left.
Its job in the formula
.75 is an input to the expression that computes the quantity on the left.
Full expression→Symbol w^0.75→Article meaning
The passage around this formula
Put the three numbers next to each other and the puzzle sharpens rather than resolving. A species that weans early is, on the usual mammalian logic, moving resources toward producing more offspring faster. A species that delays first reproduction by five years relative to a close comparator is, on the same logic, moving resources the other way, into growth and skill before any output. A species in which a large share of the reproductively spent population survives for decades afterward is carrying dependents — grown or not — who cannot be explained by ordinary offspring investment, because offspring investment stops paying by the time the investor can no longer reproduce. The three facts do…
Learn the underlying idea
An exponent tells how a base is used in multiplication. In x³, x is the base and 3 is the exponent: x³ = x × x × x.
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Sources cited in the surrounding passage
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