This is my brain on a field trip

Your Brain at the Franklin Institute

In
5 minute read
An interactive model of neurons in action (Photo courtesy of the Franklin Institute)
An interactive model of neurons in action (Photo courtesy of the Franklin Institute)

Sometimes, my brain and I behave like a pair of escaped prisoners shackled together with a pack of bloodhounds closing in: one going left, the other right. Determined to function more as the team we inevitably are, we headed to the Franklin Institute to see Your Brain.

On entering, my brain whispered, “You are going to be so impressed. You may not realize it, but I am a powerhouse.”

“Remind me of that the next time you can’t think of a word,” I replied.

The center of everything

But my boastful brain was correct: Our noggins contain a three-pound command-and-control center stocked with 86 billion neurons and 100,000 miles of blood vessels. Our brains are responsible for an average of 70,000 thoughts a day — and so what if they’re not all Nobel-quality? Awash in electrical and chemical signals, the brain is the locus of feelings, memories, personality, language, and movement, as well as essential involuntary processes like breathing and circulation.

The brain can’t feel our pain, but it enables pain and all the other sensations we experience from head to toe. It transmits and interprets cues for hunger, happiness, fear, cold, sorrow, embarrassment, and everything else. The brain makes it possible for us to process information, learn, remember, act on past experience, and think ahead. Without its intervention, we could not see, smell, hear, taste, or touch.

“See?” my brain said with a satisfied sneer.

“Careful, Powerhouse,” I said, “or you’ll outgrow my cranium.”

Correcting misconceptions

Your Brain debunks common brain myths, such as size denoting intelligence. Though Albert Einstein’s brain was wider than average, bigger doesn’t guarantee smarter. Size-wise, human brains peak as teenagers, and while teens excel at many mental tasks, they have not yet developed qualities like judgment and patience that emerge in more seasoned brains as neural connections are refined.

Likewise, the oft-repeated belief that people use only a portion of their brains is demystified. Even when we are idle, our brains are 100 percent active. By one estimate, the brain processes information at 268 miles an hour. (How was that measured?) Busy, though, does not necessarily mean effective; even the brightest brains are not 100 percent effective.

“Poppycock,” said the little voice in my head. “I am totally effective at all times.”

“Of course you are,” I replied, observing a colorfully lit display tracing the neural circuitry for vision, fear, and touch.

For those who would rather be, than see, a neural stimulus, Your Brain has an 18-foot neural climb, continuing the tradition of one of the Franklin Institute’s most beloved features, the giant heart, which has opened its arteries to generations of would-be corpuscles.

Little gray cells . . . and more

The brain accounts for a fifth of the energy people expend. Fully 20 percent of the oxygen we breathe and 20 percent of the blood our hearts pump supports brain activity. If the supply of either is interrupted, unconsciousness will result and, within minutes, brain damage and death. Happily, it is now known that brain damage is sometimes reversible — the brain can repair itself, rewiring lost functions into new regions and possibly regenerating cells.

Hercule Poirot, the ace detective who credited his “little gray cells,” was right: Thought takes place in the gray matter, the brain’s outermost layer, and specifically in the two frontal lobes. There are eight lobes in all, which comprise the cerebrum and account for 85 percent of the brain’s weight.

Its center, the cerebellum, is composed of white matter through which electrochemical signals zip along nerve fibers to the spinal cord. Movement and balance are coordinated here. It is also where cerebrospinal fluid handles the housekeeping: transporting hormones, carrying waste away, and cushioning the brain. Deep in the brain, the stem manages basic functions, such as breathing, pulse, blood pressure, and reflexes.

Mapping the brain

Just as the human genome project charted genetic inheritance, scientists have begun to trace the human connectome: the trillions of brain pathways that link neurons and fire with thoughts, emotions, perceptions, and movements.

Babies lose half of their neurons at birth but dramatically increase the connections among those that remain. The average three-year-old has a quadrillion connections (a thousand-trillion), while the average adult has only half as many.

Regardless of age, our brains are always under construction. Throughout life, neural connections are being created and discarded as needed. The brain’s plasticity, or adaptability, may be enhanced by continuing to take on new and challenging activities.

Good to know, though my brain and I disagree on which activities to adopt. “Skydiving!” says my brain, which apparently is not as seasoned as I thought.

Imperfections lead the way

Brain malfunctions help researchers learn about the organ’s architecture and operation. The disease prosopagnosia, in which people can’t identify faces, helped locate the fusiform face area, the region that permits facial recognition. That area also causes us to see faces where they aren’t. “Like finding Abraham Lincoln in a grilled cheese sandwich!” interjected my smarty-pants companion.

Researchers also use illusions to examine the way in which brains reconcile conflicting information. The exhibit includes a cityscape full of fool-the-eye images and brain-teasing signs to explore. There’s even a tiny movie theater, where visitors can strap themselves in and, as they watch the screen, feel themselves turned on their heads. My brain wanted to do it again, but there was a line, so instead we slid into a model subway seat and listened to announcements that sounded just like Charlie Brown’s teacher. The idea was to consider how brains decipher muddled sound.

Inspiring for everyone

Your Brain engages all ages with information to discover, interact with, and think about. It pointedly demonstrates how powerful a possession we have on our shoulders, and made me want to take better care of my brain, sharpening it with tricky tasks, more sleep, and less stress.

As for my little gray companion, I’m not so sure. As we exited, it said, “Now I’m ready for Harvard.”

Surprised, I asked, “Assuming you could get in, isn’t it a little late?”

“I mean let’s visit Harvard. I read on a website that they have a research stockpile of 7,000 human brains.”

“They would. I am pretty sure they’re not on display and even if they are, we’re not going.”

Unperturbed, my brain said, “Sleep on it. Tomorrow I have 70,000 chances to change your mind.”

What, When, Where

Your Brain, a new permanent exhibit at the Franklin Institute, 222 North 20th Street, Philadelphia. 215-448-1200 or www.fi.edu.

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