On Wed, 1 Sep 2004, warbi wrote: > Actually, the age of menarche has been decreasing over time, so >the comparison of age of menarche to length of gestation doesn't >really hold. I think that menarche's median age is now 9. >Biologists believe that the earlier onset of menarche is due to >better nutrition and health although it is unknown for sure. Hmm. I have heard of such early occurences, but my understanding was that they were unusual, certainly not the median. [Wikipedia] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Menarche The average age of menarche in the United States is about 12 years, 8 months, which is a few months earlier than fifty years ago. [eMedicine Google, first hit] http://www.emedicine.com/ped/byname/menstruation-disorders.htm For a regular menstrual cycle, the median age of menarche is 12.77 years. [Medline Google] http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002003.htm Menarche (the beginning of menstrual periods) typically occurs about 2 years after initial pubescent changes are noted. It may occur as early as 10 years, or as late as 15 years, with the average in the United States being about 12.5 years. Although the article does point out that "puberty" is a process, taking years to complete, and can begin as early as 8 years. But menarche signals the actual start of fertility, which is more significant biologically than the other signs of pubescence, at least for my point. > Also, the Jenoine have genetically/magically(?) mixed >Dragaerians with native occuring animals (Jhereg, et al) so I >would imagine that this would impact the biology of Dragaerians as >well. I've suggested before that the animal genes don't actually affect the Dragaeran development; they are merely there as markers. Aliera merely mentions the presence of the genes; she doesn't go into how, or even if, they affect Dragaerans. Of course, I could be wrong. I find myself wondering if Dragaerans know what genes are without knowing what DNA is. That is, they know that there is *something* in each cell of the body that is distinct, and which tells the body how to develop, and is passed on from parent to child, but not the actual chemical makeup of what it *is*. I could be wrong about that, too.