Remembrance and research on development

First off, before I get into the research I have been doing today on developmental psychology, I want to just say that I feel for the family and friends of both Sasha Abitante and Juan Zambrano, two members of our senior class who were killed last night in a highway car accident along alligator alley. RIP both of you and let this be a lesson to other teenagers and teen drivers about the safety of wearing a seat belt at ALL times.


Aside from the depressing news, I am pleased to say that this week, I get to focus on my favorite subfield of psychology, developmental psych. Today, I am researching and learning about developmental stages throughout the life cycle.
          The first stage I have looked at is called the pre-natal stage, which occurs in pregnancy. A pregnancy is approximately 9 months and can be broken down into 3, 3 month periods called trimesters. In the first trimester, in embryo develops from a single cell and the embryo begins forming an eyes, nose, ears, mouth, and small arms and legs. In the 2nd trimester, bone develops from the rubbery cartilage of the baby's skeleton and at this stage, a baby can hear and kicks and motions from the baby can be felt. In the last trimester, her skin and body develop more detail including eyelashes, finger and toe nails, and neurons in the brain become active. Until birth, he or she usually spends the last few weeks of the trimester gaining weight. Tomorrow I will begin looking at infantile stages of development through toddlerhood.