If everybody’s brain is the same size then why are some people cleverer than others? Child at Brighton Science Festival Gross Show, Feb 15

2/22/2015

Bradford C Gross

3/4/2015 08:50:18 pm

If we all have the same brain, why are some people smarter. Brilliant question worth looking in to. Has to do with genetics, nature, nurture, neurons and the great unknown., me thinks. The mind is a muscle. Some get more of a workout. Some have a propensity for certain skills, ie music, language, sport. I know my wife speaks Urdu although she never speaks it with me. Mostly because I don't. When she does speak Urdu, I'm like "who are you!?". The mind is an incredible thing. Neuroscientist think we only use a small bit of our brains anyway( insert American joke here...) potential is the key, more than any other factor. Potential.

Memory and skill is a complex web of mental decisions. I like drumming because I like to try do do as many things at once as possible. I've always been that way. But that might not be what the gig calls for. Keep it simple. It serves a need for me. But I'm no Buddy Rich ( he was an amazing jazz drummer incase that didn't click). The Beatle John Lennon wrote a bunch of good songs, his son Julian Lennon didn't. Nature? Nurture? Genetics? What I love about the brain is how much it does for you without asking. Breathing, dreaming, digesting, learning. It is a supercomputer in your head, your very own. It doesn't ask for much yet it gives so much in return.

Some new learning require synapses to fire and neurons to grow. For new born babies everything is new. For teens, everything is confusing. For old people with dementia, everything is new. The brain constantly modifies and processes new learning. The key is to constantly feed your brain new info while letting your brain digest learned info. Make sure you drink plenty of water. And constantly challenge yourself. The most important aspect of being smarter is wanting to be. I know people who could go on about military history, astronomy and quantum physics for hours but couldn't make a lasagna. And people that can't find their keys but remember what they had for lunch on Feb. 11th 1981. The brain likes well rounded activities. Both physical and mental. You can't spend all your time crushing numbers. But you can't just be an adrenalin junkie either. Balance. Exercise. Problem solving. Fun. Rest. Repeat.

Einstein loved having a dull job at the patent office. Gave him time to think. Worked out a lot of theories in his head, doodling on the back of a mislaid patent. E=MC2. Some people are born with potential they don't use. Other, born from very little potential go on to do great things. Who is a Steven Hawking, a Martin Luther King, a Evelyne Glennie, Oprah, George Lucas, Abraham Lincoln? How to they differ from a killer, an abuser, a loser, a drug addict, a depressive, a loner? Potential. You have the potential to be who you want, where you want, what you want no matter what anyone says or does differently. You are your own canvas to paint one beautiful lifetime on. You have the same brain as me, and I you. One person picks up a brush and paints an X. Another ... the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Potential.

MargaritaSmith link

4/13/2016 06:29:16 pm

lol, your son is cute, and dad is very funny

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VID 3: What is your favourite experiment?

Our team of Scientists...

Lydia Samuel
As Director of Blast Science and a Primary Science Teacher for more than 15 years, Lydia has answered unending questions about Science from hundreds of children for over a decade and has a wealth of Primary Science classroom experience. She has a particular passion for Wizard Science, Chocolate Science and all things Gross!

Tom Holloway
is a Primary Science Teacher and Space Enthusiast. Alongside being a full time teacher he runs Star Gazing evenings, is a Science Advisor, has established a Darwin Garden in his school in Caterham and won Primary Science Teacher of the Year in 2013/14. Watch the video here!

Steve Evans
has recently joined Blast Science as a performer after working for several years at Herstmonceux Observatory. He knows a huge amount about physics, chemistry, space and.... Star Wars! So can answer all your intergalactic questions..

Keita Lynch
has helped Sussex 'stay curious' by coordinating the Brighton Science Festival for three years. She's passionate about sharing science in simple
and engaging ways; without all the big words.
Keita's also a keen supporter of campaigns
like Let Toys Be Toys that encourage toy makers and retailers to stop limiting children's imagination by branding things for 'girls' or 'boys'. Astronaut suits and dinosaurs for all!

Dr Sarah Newnham
I am 26 and have a degree and PhD in biochemistry. I enjoy learning new things and have spent 7 years at university studying and experimenting with molecules and microorganisms. I mainly like to play with bacteria and get them to do new things and produce different chemicals. I also enjoy helping with Science projects in schools and enthusing children about my subject.

Dr Matt Edwards
Dr Matt decided to become a doctor when he ran out of his own scabs to pick. He used to work in Accident and Emergency in Brighton, pulling broken bones back into place and sewing up cuts. He now works in Brisbane, Australia as a Family doctor. This involves cutting out lots of funny lumps and sticking his fingers in every hole that people have. In his time he has been covered in every body juice you can think of, and once juggled with three hearts. Ask him anything about bodies and Gross Science.

Jonathan Brown
(Engineer at Ricardo) Had a strange fascination with all things mechanical from an early age and would often spend time 'fixing' his Dad's car without telling his Dad first. Rarely did it end happily, so of course he decided to continue this into a career than now spans almost 2 decades of designing engines for big names the world over. Having studied Mechanical Engineering at university he has been working since at a world leading technology consultancy, principally creating models and simulations of engines big and small for everyone from McLaren to Volvo. These days you're as likely to find him on a ship or looking at a tidal turbine, but it's still engines that keep him running.

Ivan Teage
Ivan is a experienced all-round scientist. He studied astrophysics after a childhood of being obsessed with going to the moon, and now works at the Natural History Museum in London using technology to explain Science to young and old audiences. Ivan is interested in the science of music and is keen to help people understand the natural world, how it works, and what it has to offer. He is looking forward to your questions about nature, space, music, sound & the meaning of life.

Alex Nicholls
With A-levels in Pure Maths, Applied Maths, Physics and Chemistry he went to Uni to read Nuclear Physics, but in the end switched to Law. He nevertheless retained a great interest in Science and has an encyclopedic general knowledge about nearly everything. Alex is also the linchpin of the Blast Science props dept but helps out answering complicated questions about Science for light relief from complicated carpentry.