Debate over sending Americans monthly checks “tended to focus on its effect on parents. Detractors worried that the measure would deter parents from working, while supporters argued any blowback on labor would be minimal. But an equally if not more important question came up less often: What does the expanded child tax credit mean for children? A new study suggests that direct cash payments like the tax credit might meaningfully alter the neurological development of newborns in families that receive the money.” Can giving parents cash help with babies’ brain development?