Debunking the 10 Percent Myth

Neuroscientists point out a number of reasons why the 10% myth is false:

• Brain imaging scans clearly show that almost all regions of the brain are active during even fairly routine tasks such as talking, walking, and listening to music.
• If the 10% myth were true, people who suffer brain damage as the result of an accident or stroke would probably not notice any real effect. In reality, there isn't a single area of the brain that can be damaged without resulting in some sort of consequence.
• We would not have evolved such large brains if we were only using a tiny portion of them.
• The brain uses approximately 20% of the body's energy.
• "Numerous types of brain imaging studies show that no area of the brain is completely silent or inactive," wrote Dr. Rachel C. Vreeman and Dr. Aaron E. Carroll in a study of medical myths. "Detailed probing of the brain has failed to identify the 'non-functioning' 90 percent."

Unfortunately, the 10% myth remains both popular and persistent.