10 Cool facts to know about the Brain

hey

Last week i stumbeld on this list and i thought to share it with y'all !!

(ill bet ya u can impress some family members with the basic knowledge presented here , should be fun )

1. Nerve impulses to and from the brain travel as fast as 170 miles per hour. Ever
wonder how you can react so fast to things around you or why that stubbed toe hurts right
away? It’s due to the superspeedy
movement of nerve impulses from your brain to the
rest of your body and vice versa, bringing reactions at the speed of a high powered luxury
sports car.


2. The brain operates on the same amount of power as 10watt
light bulb. The cartoon
image of a light bulb over your head when a great thought occurs isn’t too far off the
mark. Your brain generates as much energy as a small light bulb even when you’re
sleeping.


3. The human brain cell can hold 5 times as much information as the Encyclopedia
Britannica. Or any other encyclopedia for that matter. Scientists have yet to settle on a
definitive amount, but the storage capacity of the brain in electronic terms is thought to
be between 3 or even 1,000 terabytes. The National Archives of Britain, containing over
900 years of history, only takes up 70 terabytes, making your brain’s memory power
pretty darn impressive.


4. Your brain uses 20% of the oxygen that enters your bloodstream. The brain only
makes up about 2% of our body mass, yet consumes more oxygen than any other organ in
the body, making it extremely susceptible to damage related to oxygen deprivation. So
breathe deep to keep your brain happy and swimming in oxygenated cells.


5. The brain is much more active at night than during the day. Logically, you would
think that all the moving around, complicated calculations and tasks and general
interaction we do on a daily basis during our working hours would take a lot more brain
power than, say, lying in bed. Turns out, the opposite is true. When you turn off your
brain turns on. Scientists don’t yet know why this is but you can thank the hard work of
your brain while you sleep for all those pleasant dreams.


6. Scientists say the higher your I.Q. the more you dream. While this may be true, don’t
take it as a sign you’re mentally lacking if you can’t recall your dreams. Most of us don’t

remember many of our dreams and the average length of most dreams is only 2/3
seconds–barely long enough to register.


7. Neurons continue to grow throughout human life. For years scientists and doctors
thought that brain and neural tissue couldn’t grow or regenerate. While it doesn’t act in
the same manner as tissues in many other parts of the body, neurons can and do grow
throughout your life, adding a whole new dimension to the study of the brain and the
illnesses that affect it.


8. Information travels at different speeds within different types of neurons. Not all
neurons are the same. There are a few different types within the body and transmission
along these different kinds can be as slow as 0.5 meters/sec or as fast as 120 meters/sec.


9. The brain itself cannot feel pain. While the brain might be the pain center when you cut
your finger or burn yourself, the brain itself does not have pain receptors and cannot feel
pain. That doesn’t mean your head can’t hurt. The brain is surrounded by loads of tissues,
nerves and blood vessels that are plenty receptive to pain and can give you a pounding
headache.


10. 80% of the brain is water. Your brain isn’t the firm, gray mass you’ve seen on TV.
Living brain tissue is a squishy, pink and jellylike
organ thanks to the loads of blood and
high water content of the tissue. So the next time you’re feeling dehydrated get a drink to
keep your brain hydrated.

Credit to Christina Laun (For research into this)

[edit on 1-11-2008 by Spartannic]

[edit on 1-11-2008 by Spartannic]

[edit on 1-11-2008 by Spartannic]

Star and flag for an intresting read. But I disagree with 10. From my own experience I know in some humans the brain is made up of 100% water...

reply to post by Benarius

lol , u know when i put that 1 in there i waz wondering how long it would take for some1 to say it

and looky here it took about 1 min

I read years ago that (6) that dreaming lastet only 3 seconds and just the interpretation when you try to rememebr that dream is stretching it to make it seem like it lastet much longer.

Omg ur right thats 1 hell of a typo



Thx for mentioning it i edited the thing already

Spartannic Cool thread,
the anatomy is a wicked design, the brain is a gemstone in a pot of gold. Fascinating thread, like hints and tips for the orchastrated norm..... im sure you could forward us a link as to where you may have found such kooky knowledge as i would like to see more .

Well done . thank you

Oh...I thought 23 seconds was a newly aquired figure...good to know it still is a few seconds only... I was already reprogramming my cells to accept the new figures. My halo is running on 15 Watts today...

You need to re-word the title, I believe.

re- word the title ????????

And sorry but i have no available link on this subject , most of the stuff i present up here is "personal research" i share with this wonderful community ( atleast it once waz wonderful )

but ill bet ya if u google around somewhat ull find pretty cool stuff around these topics


ohh and i'm compilling some other list at the moment , So stay tuned ....

reply to post by Spartannic


I think what Good wolf means is the title probably should read:
10 cool things to know about the brain

reply to post by Chadwickus


That's the one. I should've clarified.

Originally posted by Chadwickus
reply to post by Spartannic

 

I think what Good wolf means is the title probably should read:
10 cool things to know about the brain

thx m8

and looky there it has changed into something else

reply to post by Spartannic


Heh nice work.

I like these little factoids, the human body is truly amazing.

Originally posted by Chadwickus
reply to post by Spartannic

 

Heh nice work.

I like these little factoids, the human body is truly amazing.

well i intend to give some more later on about the human body

i love them 2 ( those little things u can use to impress ur kids :-) )

Great thread!

Fact number 3 I find the most interesting. When can I connect my brain to some external source of information and just download everything? I would start with three encyclopedias...just for the hell of it.

Starred!

Very, very cool read, star and flag for you!

What i found really interesting is how the brain is more active while you sleep, that almost seems illogical by nature, well, you learn something everyday.

ROFL , ill bet some guys up here don't find that a bit funny !

Cool facts OP,

The brain is very amazing, and I always have thought the electrical power used as you point out quite remarkable.

If anyone who finds this information interesting You will without a doubt also be blown away by some of the pics, links and facts I put in this post, about people with their brains missing and still functioning normally, quite remarkable:

If You Were Missing Your Brain Would Anyone Know?

Honestly.

Kind Regards,

Elf

Interesting facts about our brains, thank you for the information and the research - the neurons in the hippocampus of my brain have just forged stronger connections, as I've learned something new . But there's one thing bugging me... Why only 10 facts, though.. I know this site is not an encyclopedia and I suppose if I need more info I should search for it elsewhere, but when stumbling upon an exact number of reasons/facts/advices/books/receipts/etc. in an article often makes me feel like reading some magazine as Cosmopolitan where you can get informed about 20 ways to cook a strawberry cake; 50 advices on having a new date each Friday; 10 advices for better bed performance during the winter; 15 vitamins you must intake every day...