how come we can only use 10% of our brain?

Answer 1

Saying that we use only 10% of our brain is inaccurate. At any given time we are only utilizing about 10% of our brain's abilities. The difference between the brain and a muscle though is that while most muscles have a few specific tasks, the brain is involved in virtually everything we do.

You actually wouldn't want to have all of your brain working at once. Consider that one part of your brain controls your ability to chew food, another different part, controls your ability (and impulse) to sing. Would you really want to be chewing food and singing at the same time?

By and large, we do end up using most of our brain's capacity at different points and this allows us to do what we need, when we need to. When the entire brain activates at once different portions of the brain actually conflict with one another, the result is a severe seizure.

Answer 2

This is an average but the brain is like any other muscle, if you don't use it, it becomes flabby. (Atrophy is the medical term.) We can use way more than 10% of our brain. Try meditation.

Answer 3

We're not smart enough to turn the rest of it on...

actually not true, we use 10% of our brain for concious thought, the other 90% if reserved for keeping everything functioning, like breathing, circulation, cell reproduction, blinking, nerve communication, lotsa things.

Answer 4

We use the whole brain.

Answer 5

After reading questions here I'm surprised the percentage is that high.

Answer 6

This is just a stupid myth. We use our hole brain

Answer 7

Because we're lazy ;-)