Harden Elkington
Humans, in general, stand out when it comes to the animal kingdom. Many creatures have traits of our intellect to some degree, but they do not approach it in the same way we do.
However, determining why we are more cognitively developed on a neurological level has been difficult, thus far, studies have revealed no significant differences in mammal brain anatomy.
However, recent research suggests that the way nerve cells are organized throughout our cerebral cortex may provide the answer.
Using a novel approach to find these patterns, scientists have identified an exact number of times nerve fibers multiply before converging onto single cells in parts of the brain associated with higher cognition.
Humans seem to have more of these intersections than other species, which signifies the complexity of our consciousness.
The exam of the brain
By examining the number of times nerve cells multiplied before converging, scientists have found that humans have more connections between cells than other animals.
This makes sense because our abilities are highly connected.
Scientists examined macaque brains for this specific case study since primates are considered to be one of the closest animals to human beings from a physiological and behavioral perspective.
Up until this point, scientists have been able to find patterns in how nerve cells multiply before connecting with other neurons, but they have not been able to pinpoint the specific number of times that happens.
The team used a novel approach known as stochastic tractography, which uses mathematical models to calculate the number of times nerve fibers multiply before connecting with other neurons.
The results of this study reveal that macaque monkey brains have an average of 13.8 connection points, while human beings have more than 14 connection points between single cells in the prefrontal cortex.
This means that, on average, human beings are more cognitively developed than monkeys and could explain why we are more intelligent on a neurological level.
The differences in the numbers of intersections between nerve cells could explain why human beings have superior cognitive abilities, such as creativity and social intelligence. These findings can provide important insights into how brain circuitry differs across species and why these differences underlie certain cognitive abilities.
Dr. Adam Anderson from the University of Toronto
The prefrontal cortex is associated with multiple higher cognitive functions, including decision making and social intelligence. This also includes creativity, which has been linked to the prefrontal cortex in recent years.
Our brain seems to be wired in a very different way than what scientists believed until now. Furthermore, this study could provide answers to the reasons why human beings behave in certain ways.
What is the weight of a human brain?
The human brain accounts for approximately 2% of a person’s body weight and weighs about 3 pounds (1.4 kg). The average male brain is 10% larger than the average female brain, according to Northwestern Medicine in Illinois.
The cerebrum, which comprises 85 percent of the brain’s weight, is found in the front portion of the skull. It is responsible for the majority of brain functions, such as attention, memory and cognition. Also located in the cerebrum are:
- The primary motor cortex, which controls muscle contractions involved involuntary movements such as typing.
- The somatosensory cortex, which processes sensory signals coming from your body’s skin and joints to create a sense of your body’s physical state.
- The visual cortex, which processes signals from your eyes necessary for vision.
- The amygdala, sometimes called the “emotional brain,” is responsible for emotions like fear and pleasure or reward, as well as certain types of memory including conditioning (classical and operant) and declarative memory.
- The hippocampus, sometimes called the “memory center,” is responsible for memories in your life and time, navigation and orientation.
The cerebellum, a portion of the brain located at the bottom rear of the skull, controls muscle coordination and balance. Researchers have also found evidence that it helps you remember things when your attention is otherwise occupied.
Your cerebral cortex is the thick, wrinkled outer layer of your brain that has grooves and folds in it called sulci and gyri. This area is associated with higher cognitive functions such as language, problem solving and multitasking.
The cerebral cortex makes up only about one-quarter of the brain’s weight but contains approximately 80 percent of its surface area.
How many brain cells does a human have?
According to a 2012 study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the human brain contains about 86 billion nerve cells (neurons) known as “gray matter.”
The brain also contains about the same amount of non-neuronal cells, such as oligodendrocytes that insulate neuronal axons with a myelin sheath or astrocytes that help provide nutrients to the brain’s cells.
Neurons make up about 5 percent of all cells in the body.
The average human brain is estimated to have around 100 trillion synapses, which connect neurons and allow them to communicate with one another through chemical or electrical signals.
The number of possible states for a human brain is almost incalculable.
In fact, if we were able to gain perfect knowledge of the location and status of each molecule in each one of our brain cells, we would be theoretically capable to know every thought taking place in our minds.
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How did the brain exam result?
“These results suggest that our species needs more connections between cortical neurons than other primates,” says Dr. Anderson. “We speculate that wiring differences might provide an anatomical basis for these functional differences.”
The term ‘higher cognitive abilities’ is relative because it includes concepts such as consciousness, discernment, and insight.
It could be said that one species is more conscious than another if it can make better decisions. However, those decisions would not appear as such unless there was a social group to hold the values (morals) of discernment and insight.
But what makes an individual within society behave morally? It’s likely that a different part of the brain is associated with morality, so much remains to be discovered about how our brains work.
Scientists are extremely excited about finding the different connection points between cells in different species. This could lead to finding the solution for conditions like Alzheimer’s disease since the prefrontal cortex is affected by this condition.
It’s likely that scientists will continue exploring these findings for years to come. While there are many things left to discover, we’re one step closer to understanding how human beings operate.
