Abstract
Humans differ from other primates in their significantly lengthened
growth period. The persistence of a fetal pattern of brain
growth after birth is another important feature of human
development1. Here we present the results of an analysis of the
1.8-million-year-old Mojokerto child (Perning 1, Java), the only
well preserved skull of a Homo erectus infant, by computed
tomography. Comparison with a large series of extant humans
and chimpanzees indicates that this individual was about 1 yr
(0–1.5 yr) old at death and had an endocranial capacity at 72–84%
of an average adult H. erectus. This pattern of relative brain
growth resembles that of living apes, but differs from that seen in
extant humans. It implies that major differences in the development
of cognitive capabilities existed between H. erectus and anatomically modern humans.