The brain is the most complex organ in the human body, and perhaps the most remarkable.
Being amazing and yet quite mysterious, researchers are still trying to uncover the secrets of how the brain works.
It is perhaps for this reason why so many myths about how the brain works persist, despite plenty of evidence to the contrary.
One of the most persistent and widely spread brain myths states that we only use 10% of our brains.
The misconception that human being really only fully utilize a tiny percentage of their brain’s capacity, opens up doors for other people to use this as their advertising campaign advantage, for example, a certain new-age brain jogging products promising the access to huge unused brain areas.
They even made use of this myth as the basis of the movie Lucy (2014), starred by Scarlett Johansson and Morgan Freeman, in which the movie depicted the remarkable feats when the supposedly unused 90 percent of their brains are "unlocked".
It’s no wonder why most people frequently feel that they possess some untapped potential, if only they could unlock that inaccessible portion of the mind.
In reality, however, the 10 percent claim is nothing but another brain myth.
"There is no significant evidence to suggest that we only use 10 or any other specific or limited percentage of our brains. On the contrary, all existing data shows that we use 100% of our brains."
The only instances where there are unused regions of the brain are those in which brain damage or disease has destroyed certain regions.
Where Does This Myth Come From?
Researchers suggest that this popular urban legend can be traced back as far as the early 1900s. The 10 percent myth may have been influenced by the writings of psychologist and philosopher William James. In his 1908 book, The Energies of Men, he quoted, “We are making use of only a small part of our possible mental and physical resources.”
The myth then continues to make a firm footing in society through Dale Carnegie’s best-seller “How To Stop Worrying and Start Living”. The myth has never lost its steam since.
Debunking the 10% Brain Myth
Here are some reasons why neuroscientists disagree to agree to the 10% Brain Myth:
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Electrical stimulation of parts of the brain during neurosurgery showed no dormant or inactive brain area, even during sleep.
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If the 10% myth were true, people who suffer brain damage would only have to worry about that tiny 10 percent of our brains being injured. In reality, there isn’t a single area of the brain that can be damaged without resulting in some sort of consequence.
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We would not have evolved such large brains if we were only using a tiny portion of them.
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Brain mapping research has yet to discover any region of the brain that does not serve a function.
“Detailed probing of the brain has failed to identify the ‘non-functioning’ 90 percent.” -Dr Rachel C. Vreeman and Dr. Aaron E. Carroll
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The brain uses approximately 20 percent of the body's energy. It would make little evolutionary sense to have such a large portion of our energy resources utilized by such a tiny amount of the brain.
Unfortunately, the 10 percent myth remains both popular and persistent.
But at least if you are reading this, you will be able to tell otherwise, in case the next time you hear someone claim that we use only 10 percent of our brains.
Ultimately, it's not that we use only 10 percent of our brains, merely that we only understand about 10 percent of how it functions.
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References:
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Cherry, K. (2018). Do You Really Use Only 10 Percent of Your Brain?. [online] Verywell Mind. Available at: https://www.verywellmind.com/10-percent-of-brain-myth-2794882.
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Oecd.org. (2019). Neuromyth 4 - OECD. [online] Available at: https://www.oecd.org/education/ceri/neuromyth4.htm.
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L. Chew, S. (2018). Myth: We Only Use 10% of Our Brains. [online] Association for Psychological Science. Available at: https://www.psychologicalscience.org/uncategorized/myth-we-only-use-10-of-our-brains.html.
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Boyd, R. (2008). Do People Only Use 10 Percent of Their Brains?. [online] Scientific American. Available at: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/do-people-only-use-10-percent-of-their-brains/.
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E. Cytowic, R. (2014). What percentage of your brain do you use? - Richard E. Cytowic. [online] YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NubJ2ThK_U.
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