taken from /b/ last night, but i think it would be good for general brainstorming/world building on a /tg/ related note. What if humans laid eggs instead of giving live birth?
>At what age would humans hatch?
>would we develop finger nails in the egg to help break out? or would we just simply out grow the egg?
>what would maternity leave be like? would it be acceptable to leave the egg alone?
>would certain technologies be discovered quicker with the demand for incubators (assuming that leaving the egg alone is not taboo)?
>would an industry arise for nannies to watch them? or for sedentary activities for mothers to do while sitting on the egg?
>would women have larger hips and squishier asses to lay the egg and then keep it warm without crushing it?
>would breasts even be a thing anymore?
>would abortions still have the same stigma with it being easier to do?
>would eggs still be part of our normal diet despite the obvious connotation to how we view our infancy?
>would egg decorating be seen as weird or normal depending on what part of the world you are in?
>would early man have been more territorial and less nomadic to keep the eggs safe and fortified?
also, this is all assuming that humans laid 1 egg at a time, and not like fish or birds who lay multiple eggs at a time
>>46015958
I would guess that, at the start of humanity, we'd be stuck in areas that we can bury the egg and leave it alone to let it hatch like crocodiles. So we'd probably be confined to the same types of warm breeding grounds.
>>46015958
Well, for one, women would lay an egg every month, just not always a fertilized one. So...Assuming the egg is big enough to hold a baby inside and a yolk proportional to feed a human baby for a while....I'm guessing that women would have a huge ass vagina. Like, you could fit your bent knee in there without causing tears. A human egg would be at LEAST watermelon size. I think females would end up being much bigger than males, like near seven foot, so they could more easily lay eggs.1
>>46016217
then genetically, wouldn't men be larger too?
>>46016131
i think this would maybe restrict mating to a time when the egg would have most of its time in the warmer months to incubate. though that would of course be accomplished by doing what you said and just staying in warmer climate areas. though i don't think it would limit early man to JUST warm climate areas.
>>46016315
>then genetically, wouldn't men be larger too?
I don't see why. Pic related: the male is circled in red.
>>46016340
i mean, if a woman is 7ft tall and she give birth to a male, then the male is likely going to be tall like his mother, wouldn't he? tall parents usually result in tall children. but in this case, since women have to have larger bottom sections to have children, the human race as a whole would probably be taller people.
>>46015958
First thing I think of is Barsoom...
>At what age would humans hatch?
Negative three to six months. (There's no way an egg can last a normal human gestation period, or be big enough for that matter.) There would have to be some significant biology changes to not only ensure that all needed organs are working in time, but that the brain can still develop properly.
>would we develop finger nails in the egg to help break out? or would we just simply out grow the egg?
Fingernails aren't hard enough. We'd need a beak, or at least a temporary 'egg tooth'.
>would breasts even be a thing anymore?
I don't see why they couldn't be, there are animals with both in real life (monotremes, of which the most famous is the platypus).
>would abortions still have the same stigma with it being easier to do?
Abortions as we think of them wouldn't even be a thing, because an egg can be put up for adoption the minute it's laid. However, there's an entirely new issue to deal with...
Eggs get laid whether they're fertilized or not, and each one takes a lot of food energy to make. The simplest way to deal with unfertilized eggs is to "recycle" them... But how do you tell the difference? Do you even care?
>would eggs still be part of our normal diet despite the obvious connotation to how we view our infancy?
Lots of people eat veal and lamb knowing full well what it is with no problem, so I don't see why not. You might have some who refuse though, just like with vegetarianism.
>would egg decorating be seen as weird or normal depending on what part of the world you are in?
Eggshells actually have lots of little holes in them to allow the baby to get oxygen, so painting eggs or anything like that is a good way to kill them.
>would early man have been more territorial and less nomadic to keep the eggs safe and fortified?
Probably not, since nomads can stay in one spot for months or years, and eggs generally can only grow during set times of the year anyways.
>>46016826
>we would need a beak or egg tooth
well, do reptiles have an egg tooth? i know they don't have beaks but they seems to get out of their eggs without those things. though i think reptile eggs are softer. then again, who's to say a human egg wouldn't be softer too?
>>46017158
>then again, who's to say a human egg wouldn't be softer too?
The square-cube law.
>>46015958
It would bring the definition of cuckoldry back full circle.
