Tracking Light @ 30 Weeks

By 30 weeks, the baby can open his eyes--he could do that several weeks ago--but now his eyes have developed enough that he is able to respond to light sources. Apparently, if we hold a flashlight or headlamp to Monica's belly, Peanut will now be able to track the light, though whether he will or not is more about his will than his ability. The baby's vision at birth will be, at best, about 20/400 or so, and for some time he'll keep his eyes closed much of the day while they continue to develop; when he does open them, he'll only be able to see things clearly within a few inches of his face.

We've recently been reading a book written by an obstetrician that our friend Meg recommended to us. The doctor's convincing theory is that humans give birth at nine months because we aren't physiologically big enough to have a gestational period of 12 months, when many more of the body's systems are more well-developed and functional. She argues that many animals--foals, calves, various ungulates--are able to run and, to a certain extent, take care of themselves at birth. Humans, on the other hand, are born pretty much defenseless, relying on their parents to care for and protect them until their brains and bodies are developed sufficiently that they can take care of themselves. In the first three months after birth, another dizzying round of development takes place in the baby's organs, tissues, and brain, much of which could not occur in the womb, this doctor argues, because of the physiological limits of the human body. Ultimately, she's trying to provide a cogent sense of the baby's needs in the first three months of its life, what she calls the "fourth trimester." It's pretty convincing to me, but then, I don't have any experience yet. I'll let you know what I find out about the flashlight...