9 60% of your Brain is Fat.

As the fact says, 60% of your brain is fat and as such, it needs a certain amount of fatty fuel to keep it functioning optimally. Try adding natural sources of omega-3’s to your diet, such as fish, seeds and nuts.(source)

10 Scientists say that dieting could force your brain to eat itself!

As with other parts of the body, people who are in a caloric deficit will find that the body will start to consume brain cells as a final source of energy to prevent starvation.(source)

11 The amygdala is a part of the brain that controls fear, and without it you’d be fearless.

As early back as the 1930’s, scientists discovered that when the amygdala was removed from the brains of monkeys, they became fearless and would approach snakes and play with them. This has led to many experiments, with recent studies confirming the same happens in humans. There is one case which involves a lady with a rare condition called “lipoid proteinosis” with holes where her amygdala normally is. She has no fear at all which has put her in danger at least once when she walked through a park late at night and got attacked. She walked through the same park the next day as well.(source)

12 Video games are more effective at overcoming depression than counseling for teenagers.

Much to the detriment of the older generation and “naysayers”, a study back in 2012 demonstrated that video games are as effective (in this case a specially designed fantasy game), if not better, than normal counselling.(source)

13 The largest artificial neural network currently only has 11 billion connections, whereas the human neural network has close to 100 trillion connections.

An initiative announced by President Obama back in 2012 is currently attempting to map the entire human brain. It’s called BRAIN (Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies). Sadly it still has a long way to go. The human brain is composed of about 100 billion neurons in addition to a trillion glial cells. New brain connections are also created every time you form a Memory.(source)

14 A blackout while drinking isn’t because you forgot what happened, but rather your brain temporarily lost the ability to create memories.

Alcohol is known to interfere with receptors in the hippocampus that transmit glutamate (a compound that carries signals between neurons). It’s during this interference that some receptors stop working, while others are activated. This causes neurons to create steroids that prevent neurons from communicating properly – which in turn disrupts long-term potentiation which is a process believed necessary for memory.(source)

15 Studies have shown that long term use of mobile phones significantly increases the risk of brain tumors developing.

Back in 2009, a study of 12,800 people in 13 countries by the World Health Organization found that people who used mobile phones for more than a decade had a much higher risk of developing certain kinds of brain tumours.(source)

16 Half our brains can be removed during surgery with no apparent effect on memory or personality.

The operation is called a “Hemispherectomy” and involves removing half the brain with little effect to a person’s memory or personality. It’s usually a last resort for people who suffer from serious brain disorders. The main down side is that the person loses sight and function on the opposite side of the body to the hemisphere that is removed.(source)