The brain is one of the main organs of the human body and also the most complex of all. Made up of billions of neurons that communicate with each other, it is responsible for regulating and maintaining all vital body functions. But, in addition, it is the organ where the mind and conscience of the individual reside. It is a fascinating and interesting organ that is worth knowing in greater detail.
Although, not even scientists know everything about it. However, to date science has made important discoveries that are worth knowing. Therefore, here we bring you some curious facts that you should know:
How much does the brain weigh?
A normal human brain represents 2% of the total body weight, which is about 3 pounds. But, despite the fact that this organ is only 2% of the total weight, it is capable of consuming 20% of the oxygen and energy produced by the body. However, an incredible fact is that about 60% of the weight of the brain is fat. Something that makes it the organ with the largest amount of fat in the human body.
What is it made of?
The brain is made up of 73% water. Which is why, if you suffer from at least 2% dehydration, our memory, attention span, and cognitive abilities may be affected. Likewise, a 90-minute session of physical exercise that causes sweating is capable of temporarily shrinking it in a similar way to how a year of aging does.
Neurons and brain cells
Although there is no precision in the calculations, it is estimated that our brain has approximately 86 billion brain cells. To get an idea of the complexity of the calculation, a small sample of brain tissue the size of a grain of sand has 100,000 neurons. Of which, each neuron has the power to transmit 1,000 nerve impulses in a second and a million synapses occur to communicate with each other.
Oxygen need
It is well known that oxygen is one of the most important and necessary elements for our body. And of course the brain is no exception, as it needs a constant supply of oxygen to function properly. Otherwise a lack of oxygen for, say, five minutes could cause some brain cells to die and cause serious brain damage.
size and maturity
It seems incredible, but to accommodate the rapid growth of the brain, babies’ heads are larger. In fact, this rapid growth leads a 2-year-old to have a brain that is 80% the size of an adult brain. However, despite this, this organ does not stop growing, but it will not reach full maturity until around 25 years of age.
Electric power!
Although, it is known that nerve impulses are the way our brain communicates with the rest of the body. What very few know is that the human brain is capable of producing between 12 and 25 watts of electricity. Which is enough power to power an LED bulb in a refrigerator, whose power requirement is 25 watts.
thought generator
Surely you have noticed that in an instant you can be thinking about something, but a second later you find yourself thinking about something totally different. Well, this is because our brain is such a perfect machine that it is capable of generating approximately 50,000 thoughts per day. You can even handle several thought processes at the same time. So it is not surprising that it is also known as a «random thought generator»
Size does not matter
Scientists have found that men’s brains are 10% larger than women’s. However, that doesn’t mean they are smarter or have a better memory than women. Since the hippocampus, which is the part responsible for memory, is larger in women.
Einstein’s brain
Another fact with which we can corroborate that the size of the brain does not matter is related to the brain of Albert Einstein. It weighed 1,230 grams (2.71 pounds), which is about 10% less than the average human brain weight of 3 pounds. Although, the density of neurons in the brain of this genius was higher than average.
technology cons
Although technology forces us to perform multiple tasks at the same time. Our brain is not able to easily learn to focus on more than one task at a time. In fact, over time this type of dynamic can cause our attention span, short-term memory, learning capacity and of course mental performance to be reduced.
Dieting is not the best for the brain
Our body is able to consume the energy reserves that line the stomach, when we are starving. Similarly, to curb hunger and obtain energy, our brain cells are capable of cannibalizing each other. So if you’re thinking of forcing your body to starve a bit in the name of dieting, you’ll also be forcing your brain to eat itself.
We use more than 10% of our brain
One of the most widespread myths about the brain is that we humans supposedly use only 10% of its power. Which is completely false. Since, through brain scans it has been shown that even while we are asleep we use most of it. Even a simple action, such as clenching and unclenching our fist or saying a few words, requires more activity than more than a tenth of the brain.
Effects of alcohol
Although it is said that alcohol can kill or damage neurons, this is completely false. Alcohol only affects the neural connections in the cerebellum, which are responsible for reinforcing functions such as memory and logical reasoning and motor coordination.
Therefore, by not being able to connect correctly, our brain cannot form memories while we are drunk. Which means that it is not that we have forgotten what we did, but that the memory was never actually created. Additionally, as has been verified in the autopsies of abstainers and alcohol addicts, the brains of both have the same number of neurons.
less than stars
Another widely held claim about the brain states that there are more cells in the brain than the stars in the Milky Way. But again this is nothing more than a myth, since there is no article reviewed or published by neuroscientists that supports such a claim.
According to estimates, there are approximately 86 billion neurons in the human brain. While the most recent estimates for the number of stars in the Milky Way suggest there are between 200 and 400 billion.
Brain plasticity
For a long time it was thought that we were all born with a certain number of brain cells and that it was impossible to generate new neurons after birth. However, it has been discovered that the brain has the ability to form new brain cells, through a process called neurogenesis. Which gives it the ability to change and use these new neurons to contribute to its functions. A property known as brain plasticity.
According to research by a team of scientists from the Karolinska Medical Institute (Sweden), every day our brain produces 1,400 new neurons. But, this rate decreases as you get older. Although we continue to generate new cells until we are 90 years old.
The brain feels no pain
Although the brain processes pain from other parts of the body, but curiously it does not feel pain, because it does not have pain receptor nerves. To be precise, the nerve endings are usually found in the skin and our brain does not have skin, therefore it is incapable of feeling pain. So, it is possible to perform brain surgery on a patient who is awake and still would not feel any discomfort or pain.
Introverts vs Extroverts
According to science there is a distinction between introverts and extroverts: their brains are different. According to a study conducted by Harvard University, the brain of introverts has a greater amount of gray matter. Which explains why they spend more time on abstract thinking, pay more attention to detail, or gain better impulse control and are overwhelmed by excessive stimulation.
While in the brain of extroverts it is more active. So they generally tend to associate excitement or overstimulation as a form of reward, which lowers their anxiety levels.
brain storage
Although it sometimes seems like our brains can’t hold any more information, you may be surprised to learn that our brain’s storage capacity is limitless. Recent research from the Salk Institute in La Jolla, California, estimates the brain’s memory capacity to be one petabyte of data, which is one trillion bytes.
To get an idea of how big this is, we can say that it is the same amount that is required to store the information of the entire Internet.