How Smart Can We Get?

Introduciton

The main reason I chose How Smart Can We Get would be it is our intelligence that sets us apart from any other being on this planet. Humans have a unique brain. It allows us to solve problems in ways that are still surprising us to this day. Every time that humanity has been faced with a problem supposed to be too great for us to conquer, a brain has concocted an answer to save us. There are several reasons the human brain is such a marvel. The ones the documentary touched on that I found particularly interesting are the brain’s ability to change itself, the differences in people with Savant Syndrome, and why we choke under pressure.

Summary

In the first part of the documentary it becomes apparent that Albert Einstein’s brain looks different. One of the more striking differences is there is a knob in his right primary motor cortex. This knob is a result of an enlarged gyrus that controls his left hand. It turns out that many musicians who have had lessons from childhood onward have this very same knot. People who play stringed instruments tend to have this knot on the left side, while people who play the piano tend to have the knot on the right side of their brains. This demonstrates the brain’s remarkable ability to change itself to fit the demands being placed upon it by the environment.

There also happens to be a man who can calculate what day of the week any given date will fall on. He has a condition called Savant Syndrome. People who have Savant syndrome have abilities that far exceed what would normally be considered average. Some are born with these abilities and some acquire them after sustaining neurological damage. One woman whose language centers began to deteriorate started to paint beautiful pictures, ...

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...ore my mom forced me to get in front of an audience and speak the easier it became for me to. I was able to breathe better and calm myself down. By the time I got in high school it wasn’t that big of a problem for me and I had always wondered why. After watching this documentary I realized I had probably learned how to turn down the crosstalk that was occurring between my pre-frontal cortex and my amygdala. I happen to find this quite interesting.

Conclusion

How Smart Can We Get? discussed how the human brain’s physical structure can change due to the demands that are placed on it, how Savants are able to do amazing things with little time or effort, and how our emotion can get the best of us when we need a clear head the most. It was undoubtedly fascinating to watch. I can only hope the information I gained from this exercise has made my brain a little smarter.