On Humans Prologue: The (Very Simple) Story of the Human Brain ~ Suzana Herculano-Houzel
Aug 28, 2025
In a captivating discussion, Suzana Herculano-Houzel, a Brazilian neuroscientist and professor at Vanderbilt University, delves into the intriguing world of brain evolution. She challenges the long-held belief that larger brains mean higher intelligence, emphasizing neuron counts instead. Herculano-Houzel highlights the evolutionary advantages of cooking and technology, and how they shaped our cognitive abilities. With fresh insights on the cerebral cortex's role in decision-making, she explores human uniqueness while comparing our brains to those of other species, painting a new picture of intelligence and longevity.
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Bigness Doesn’t Equal Superiority
- Human brains are not uniquely huge or oddly shaped; we simply aren't the largest-brained animals.
- Susana Herculano-Houzel shows being biggest isn't necessary for behavioral complexity.
Neurons Over Volume
- Neuron number, not gross brain volume, better predicts processing capacity.
- Herculano-Houzel developed a soup method to count neurons across species.
The Primate Packing Advantage
- Primate brains pack many neurons into relatively small cortexes compared to other mammals.
- As primate brains scale, neuron number and brain size increase proportionally.
