Question Your World: Is the Brain Getting Bigger?
Which human has the biggest brain on Earth? Well, it might be you!
While we don’t know who currently has the largest living brain on Earth, a team of researchers recently released findings showing that the size of the human brain is expanding!
Results from a 75-year-long study in the United States show humans born in the 1970s have a 6.6% larger brain than individuals born in the 1930s. In this study, researchers observed that intracranial volume steadily increased decade by decade over that 40-year span.
The surface of the brain itself has gotten larger as well, with a nearly 15% increase through the timeframe of this study. White matter and hippocampal regions also experienced growth. Basically the brain got bigger!
So the question now is why? Scientists will need to do much more research to unearth the many complex variables and processes involved here, but one of the benefits to having a larger brain involves defense from neurodegenerative diseases.
This extra brain growth can be considered a kind of “brain reserve,” like having padding wrapped around an object to reduce the chances of damaging it. Meaning risk for dementia may be lower because there’s improved brain health and just more physical brain to impact. Kind of like how wearing a thicker coat can help protect a person from the cold.
Decades of data, teams of researchers and years of analysis saw the human brain size has gotten bigger. So, despite the comments section on news articles, our brains are in fact getting larger, folks!
Need more brain science? We understand. We got you.
The human brain is of obvious interest to us, after all, as it's ultimately responsible for so much of our lives. While this organ remains vital to life, we still know very little about it. Every year millions of researchers study the brain and sometimes we get some remarkable new knowledge from their hard work. Here are big questions that have been asked about the brain in recent years.
Can traffic pollution impact the brain? For many years, we’ve known traffic-related air pollution is bad for our lungs, but one study explored how exposure to high amounts of pollution can quickly impact the brain! In a first-of-its-kind study, scientists observed how exposure to diesel exhaust causes decreased functional connectivity in the brain after only a short amount of time. So what does this mean and why does this matter? Check out the full article for the answers!
Can we recreate what our brains are hearing?! A team of researchers has translated brain activity into a recognizable version of a song. Which song? Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall.” Part 1, to be specific. We don't need no ... reason to wait to learn more about this incredible breakthrough!
Can scientists identify the brain of a drummer?!?!? 1 - 2 - 1,2,3,4! Our brains are organized into two halves connected by fibers called the corpus callosum. Each brain hemisphere controls one side of your body. This connecting fibrous tract has important functions including transmitting information between the two hemispheres. What does that have to do with drummers? Drum roll, please!
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