Of 100 billion nerve cells in the human brain, how many form after birth For years, the official answer was "zero". Scientists thought people were born with all the neurons they’d ever have. But from 1980s, biologists overturned that doctrine, finding a reservoir of stem cells that becam...
Recently published research appears to have identified a system, ornetwork, of very small waste-clearingchannelsin the brains of living humans. The researchers used a special kind of imaging technology to study the network. One of the researcher...
This difference in the speed of transition from neural progenitors to neurons means that the human cells have more time to multiply. This could be largely responsible for the approximately three-fold greater number of neurons in human brains compared with gorilla or chimpanzee brains. Dr. Lancaster...
Imaging tools, such as MRI, fMRI, CT and PET scans, help doctors map different parts of our brains. Monty Rakusen / Getty Images It's a statement we've all heard before: "Humans only use 10 percent of their brains." This claim has been passed down through generations, from educators...
Like other species, we are the products of millions of years of adaptation. Now we're taking matters into our own hands.
You don't have to think about breathing because your body's autonomic nervous system controls it, as it does many other functions in your body. If you try to hold your breath, your body will override your action and force you to let out that breath and start breathing again. The respira...
Therefore, their brains are organized along the major centers that control these functions. We humans perform these functions as well, and so have a "reptilian" brain built into us. That means we have the same parts of the brain found in reptiles, namely the brain stem and the cerebellum....
Scientists have discovered a mechanism that controls the mix of cells in the developing brain, which could help us to understand and treat conditions such as epilepsy. Broadly speaking, our brains contain two types of nervecellsor 'neurons': excitatory neurons, which increase activity in other neu...
The human brain makes up only about two percent of a person's body weight. On average, adult humans' brains weigh a little over three pounds. This makes our brain the largest brain, relative to body size, of any vertebrate animal.
It's a misconception that humans only use a small portion of our brains, and that we have could unlock some kind of hidden brain potential by taking a medication or supplement. We are already using most of this complex organ. But we do have the power to keep the brain healthy and stron...