God Demands Micro-Transactions

"The idea that humans have only used 10% of their brain has existed for decades, but where did it start? Is it based on scientific fact? Why does it make Cristina so angry? Join us for a discussion about the origins of a misconception and more tangents than your mind can handle."

Presented by Cristina
Category: Scientific Theory

That we as humans only use 10% of the brain is a popular myth with no clear origin. The myth comes in two varieties. The first is that humans only use a total 10% of their brains, full stop. The second, slightly more reasonable, is that humans only use 10% of their brain at any given time.

Once possible explanation is the in studies of William James and Boris Sidis, Harvard psychologists who, after studying Boris' son, became convinced that humans, by and large, did not reach their full mental potential. The myth may have grown through a series of lectures they gave on that point.

A second, not mutually exclusive, point of origin is Wilder Pennfield a neurosurgeon who studies on people's brains during surgery. In these studies, he would prod parts of the brain to see what the reaction was. Through this he concluded that around 10% of the brain controlled physical responses.

Despite being false, the myth has bled into pop culture (including Nicolas Cage movies), so it is unlikely that it will die like Paul McCartney any time soon.

Takeaway: Despite what it seems, people use all of their brains all of the time.

Trivia
Patreon skit: Mal as waiter.