Why do we only use a small percentage of our brain?

Question

and what happens to the un-used part? and how can we use something we dont know how to use?. Does it simple become non-functional like if you break your leg and get no physio, your leg can no longer function because its not been used?< just example.

Surely you can come up with some better answers than this.???

The better answers, IF YOU LOOK was when i only had about 4 answers.

Answer 1

Education and culture plays an important role in Brain development. In some cultures people are more intelligent, because they have more resources and are more stimulated. Musicians, for example, have a part of the left-hemisphere 25% bigger than non-musicians. And people who meditate every day also use a part of the brain that anyone else uses. I believe that, with the right stimulation, our brain could do amazing things.

Answer 2

The brain is completely used as activity happens all over it. The "we only use a small percentage" was an example of the mind's potential. Just like when someone says they speak from the heart, it is not the physical heart obviously.

The brain is constantly used throughout but is much more capable of activity than it is now. It is designed to handle information and activity that our mind can throw at it. This potential was described as the average person utilizing only 10% and if they are a genius maybe 20%, some reaching 30%. However those were generalizations to teach people to do better. The actualality is we use an infinitesimal portion of its capability.

People have had brain damage to almost half of it and still think and operate normally. They simply learned to "rewire" their brain and recreate lost areas. The brain is actually highly redundant and designed to handle failure to a certain degree. The problem is when you get Alzheimer’s where protein plaques begin to kill of major sections, there is not much you can do.

Another analogy is the left and right brain theory. Again the right side really does not handle creativity and the left logic. It is an example to get people for people to use their mind to access functions of the brain. Your conscience mind is ignorant to how the low level operations work in the brain. However your sub conscience can interpret and utilize those brain functions properly. This is how the body can heal itself of even deadly diseases by "positive" attitudes or faith religiously. When you believe completely you will be healed your brain goes into overtime to complete that task. If it can combat the disease with all its resources, it will and you have a "miracle".

The brain and the body have amazing capabilities; however our personality and mind often are the stumbling block to achieving its capability. I have seen people do incredible things and even some average people do things under hypnosis that was incredible. It seems once you get a person's beliefs, attitude, basically their personality out of the way, it can be accomplished

Answer 3

There is really no part of your brain that just sits there and do absolutely nothing for a long period of time not unless there has been a dead tissue. Our brain is lying there, 100% waiting to do its function - this simply means brain is 100% functional in its physiological sense.

Sometimes we attend to some specific task and the "usage" of our brain is limited obviously when the cognitive load of a particular task is lessened. When the task number would increase the fraction of the brain that we use would also increase. In short we use all of our brains, but not all at the same time to the full capacity. Brain usage therefore can be assessed depending on the effeciency of its usage.Using it effeciently is what the learning process does.

Brain usage is mostly out of our control. It just responds to the perceptions or signals that requires the brain to do its specific functions.When a person have some malfunctions or just so inactive to do any task that will "mobilize" the brain functional, then some parts of the brain are use to a lesser extent. Let's say in its extreme condition that a certain part of the brain is unused when it remained idle for some time , it will just remain where it is, consuming calories. It can still function as the "call" for it to perform its activity is signalled however it will be functioning not to its maximum function potentials.

Site an example in learning, the more you will have mental activities the brain seem to function more effectively. In contrast it can be compared to a knife, that requires to be sharpened not to be dull. By experience, you can explain it by memory, the more you will do brain exercises memory gets longer and sharper.

In normal situations, we do not know and we cannot say exactly when and which part of the brain are being unused at times, but I can say that we can speculate there a certain part is underuse and starts being "unused" when you feel your brain seems to be "rusty"- perhaps having manifestations of decreased cognition and learning, not interesting in anything (apathetic behavior), being so lazy in anything and just seems uninterested to move and think. Brain functions is associated in all body processes and functions, yet it is quite complicated to get a full understanding.

Amidst everything I mentioned, I still believe all parts of the brain are in use in real sense not unless it has been diseased or infarcted. To say that we only use a small fraction of our brains is totally rubbish but ifever there is really such period that there are unused part, that is the period when a person gets STUPIDand LAZY, I would say!

You awakened all my brain to answer your question..Thanks.

Answer 4

When I read your question,all that came to mine mind,at the moment was those poor detached Romanian Orphans,I have seen in documentaries.Their empty eyes were so cold dark and desperate.Caged like animals isolated from a mother and father,since birth.You can see the lack of intelligence,by no fault of their own.Every conscience moment is a learning experience.If we had not been nurtured by our parents,we would not be as intelligent as we are.I can tell when a person was raised by a single parent,there is a distinct difference.So I said that to say this,we get out what we put in.Like a PC,our brain is the hardware and our mind is the software,makes sense?This is why some are smarter than others.We will never know our full potential until we have exhausted all there is to be taught,learned,experienced and lived.One thing I am teaching myself,is the secret.It has been around sense the beginning of time.Einstein and Thomas Edison knew how to use the secret,because they knew what it was.I really cannot explain it,but you can find out all about it at,www.thesecret.com It is unbelievable!!! This is the kind of thinking that we have been excluded from by modern man for our lifetime.Get the DVD and watch it,then learn how to use it,you will have activated a new part of your brain.This is a great question and would love to chat more about it,and you can IM me anytime.PEACE!!!

Answer 5

Lots of interesting answers!
OK, here's mine.

The idea that people only use 10% of their brain is similar to how we only use 10% of a car - to drive it. It has other parts that we use for other things. We don't drive the car by putting things in the trunk. We don't drive the car by turning on the air conditioning, nor listening to the radio. The car has many necessary parts that we don't have to worry about much, such as the battery and the air in the tires.

All of the brain is there for a useful reason. But it may not be a conscious reason. Maybe it is part of the automatic system that controls breathing or heartbeat or memory.

As for loosing something for lack of use, you are true when you consider memories that are stored in the brain. The ones you remember often will last longer than the ones you don't think about. Persistence requires energy. The brain will keep what is used, and discard memories that are never used. It is good at forgetting!

;-D Now, where did I put my reading glasses?

Answer 6

1. Mother Nature gives us "extra" brain capacity, so that if part of the brain is injured, other parts can take over.

There is the famous case of Phineas T.Gage, who was walking past a construction site, and an accidental explosion happened, propelling a crowbar through his head.

He did not die. He presented himself at a nearby hospital, and they removed the crowbar.

Naturally, quite a bit of his brain was damaged and gone. But he was still able to function. In fact, he had had a mental illness, which disappeared because of the crowbar damage. This is how lobotomies got started. Doctors began to treat certain types of mental illness by carving out parts of the brain.

2. Also, we need "room to maneuver". If cars took up every part of a roadway, there would be gridlock. No one could move. The brain needs empty areas, so that electrical activity can traverse that "empty" space.

Likewise, if every square foot of your living area had furniture in it, you'd be unable to walk and live in the place.!

3. The idea of our only using 10% of our brain is simply an experimental fluke. If they put electrodes on some part, and nothing happens, they don't know what that area does. But just because we don't know what it does, doesn't mean that it has no function.

Some mystical people have theorized that the "unused" portions of the brain might later come into play, if we evolve paranormal powers like ESP or precognition. That is only a wild theory, but it bears paying attention to.

4. You are using a computer to write your question. Are you using your entire computer? Or do you have still some 70% of your storage space, several kilobytes or megabytes of memory, still available?

If you were using ALL of your computer capacity, wouldn't it slow down and clog up on you?

Answer 7

The brain is just like any other organ. If you don't use it, through exercises, you lose it, or you have undeveloped portions. Just like we have the ability to use our arms and legs, if we didn't, they would be weaker too. You can excercise your mind with memory games, counting games, word practice, inputting more information to the mind, and the brain stays sharp and more alert. You can't have a complete break down of the brain, or you are considered a vegetable. Normal functions like sight recognition, taste, smell, and bodily functions keep portions of the brain alert, even in sleep for dreaming. An injury to the brain or spine could shut down these normal functions, and the brain would have to learn them all over again. The brain must be used to maintain it's function at full capacity .

Answer 8

Look at the world in which we live in, do U still feel the need 2 ask again?... We have become so lazy we can't wait to invent something else that takes care of a job so we don't have to like calculators, computers, robots, etc. anything 2 cut time, troubles and thinking time, we know how 2 use it just don't really want 2 nor take the time 4 it. Will we go soft in the noggin? Definitely have U read "The Time Machine"? I think that best explains it, that's pretty much where were headed 2.

Answer 9

Your comment "Surely you can come up with better answers than this" puzzled me. Several people gave you very good answers. This has been several times but I will say it again. The theory about humans only using 10% of their brains is a myth, most likely started by people that wanted us to believe in things like ESP or telekinesis. We use all of our brains. The real issue is that many people only choose to use it a small percentage of the time. This is why we have to have stupid things like a warning label on a hairdryer that tell you not to use it in a bathtub. Personally I think if you are stupid enough to try to use an electrical appliance near water than the human race is better off without you.

Answer 10

We only use a small percentage of the brain because the rest is storage.

Similar to a computer, the computer RAM for example is typically a fraction of how much storage a computer has.

Does it go away? Yes, that is evident. Unlike a computer our memory is biology based, a combination of electrical impulses and chemicals throughtout the brain. As with any biological product there is going to be degredation over time, unfortunately even if you do use it. There are things you can do to prolong life, but nothing to save it completely.

Answer 11

The brain is all functional forever but not 100% always.. it is non functional in case of accidents or so...u know its a true fact that new born babies dont hear till it is three months old...u use ur brain right from ur birth and thats not learning... it comes right from your genes...


those DNA's are responsible for each and every characteristics of your body... if there are some defects it may arise from your genes.. i am not sure about whether we use 100% brain or not but we always use atleast 10% of it.. because your brain has intelligence part and body maintaining part...

only your intelligence, memory and sensory parts do rest while u r sleeping .. but the parts of brain controlling your heart beat,nerves,bloodflow,warnings,do work continously even during sleep.

we are using our brain according to our needs... like a cat has optic part superior and a dog has smelling part superior,we use according to our needs... when u are facing a condition critical then your non used part of the brain may also become functional...