There is an opinion that we use only 10% of the human brain. This is probably why a person cannot figure out how to develop it 100%. The question is: why then is the brain structured this way and how can one still make it work at its best?

Myth about the brain

It is not true! The statement that the human brain works at 10% (5%, 3%) is an old, absolutely false and completely indestructible myth. Let's figure out where it came from.

In the middle of the last century, it was completely incomprehensible how a person thinks (now this is also incomprehensible, but on a different level). But some things were known - for example, that the brain is made of neurons and that neurons can generate electrical signals.

Some scientists then believed that if a neuron generates an impulse, then it is working, and if it does not generate, it means it is “lazy.” And then someone came up with the idea to check: how many neurons in the whole brain are “working”, and how many are “throwing their thumbs”?

There are several billion neurons in the brain, and it would be pure madness to measure the activity of each of them - it would take many years. So instead of studying all the neurons in a row, scientists examined only a small part, determined the percentage of them that were active, and assumed that this percentage was the same throughout the brain (this assumption is called extrapolation).

And it turned out that only an indecently small percentage of neurons “works,” that is, generates impulses, and the rest are “silent.” A somewhat straightforward conclusion was drawn from this: silent neurons are slackers, and the brain works only at a small part of its capabilities.

This conclusion was absolutely wrong, but since at that time it was customary to “correct nature”, for example, turn rivers back, irrigate deserts and drain seas, the idea that brain function could also be improved took root and began its victorious march through the newspapers. pages and magazine spreads. Even now, something similar is sometimes found in the yellow press.

How does the brain work?

Now let’s try to figure out how things really are.

The human brain is a complex, multi-level, highly organized structure. What is written below is a very simplified picture.

There are many areas in the brain. Some of them are called sensory - information about what we feel (well, say, a touch on the palm) is received there. Other areas are motor areas, they control our movements. Still others are cognitive, it is thanks to them that we can think. The fourth ones are responsible for our emotions. And so on.

Why don’t all the neurons in the brain fire at the same time? Yes, very simple. When we don't walk, the neurons that trigger the walking process are inactive. When we are silent, the neurons that control speech are silent. When we don’t hear anything, the neurons responsible for hearing are not excited. When we don’t experience fear, the “fear neurons” don’t work. In other words, if neurons are not needed at the moment, they are inactive. And that's great.

Because if this were not so... Let's imagine for a second that we can excite ALL of our neurons at the same time (our body simply cannot tolerate such abuse for more than a second).

We will immediately begin to suffer from hallucinations, because the sensory neurons will make us experience absolutely every possible sensation. At the same time, the motor neurons will launch all the movements that we are capable of. And cognitive neurons... Thinking is such a complex thing that there is hardly a single person on this planet who can say what will happen if all cognitive neurons are fired at the same time. But let's assume for simplicity that we then start thinking all possible thoughts at the same time. And we will also experience all possible emotions. And a lot more will happen that I won’t write about because there’s simply not enough space here.

Let us now look from the outside at this creature, suffering from hallucinations, twitching from convulsions, simultaneously feeling joy, horror and rage. It doesn't really look like a creature that has upgraded its brain to 100% efficiency!

Vice versa. Excessive brain activity is not beneficial, but only harmful. When we eat, we don’t need to run, when we sit at the computer, we don’t need to sing, and if, while solving a math problem, we think not only about it, but also about the birds outside the window, then this problem is unlikely to be solved. In order to think, it is not enough to THINK about something, you must also NOT THINK about everything else. It is important not only to excite the “necessary” neurons, but also to inhibit the “unnecessary” ones. A balance is required between excitation and inhibition. And breaking this balance can lead to very sad consequences.

For example, the severe disease epilepsy, in which a person suffers from convulsive seizures, occurs when excitation in the brain “outweighs” inhibition. Because of this, during a seizure, even those neurons that should be silent at that second are activated; they transmit excitation to the next neurons, and those to the next, and a continuous wave of excitation goes through the brain. When this wave reaches the motor neurons, they send signals to the muscles, they contract, and the person begins to have convulsions. It is impossible to say what the patient feels at the same time, since during the seizure the person loses memory.

How to make your brain work more efficiently

I hope you have already realized that trying to make the brain work better by stimulating all the neurons in a row is futile, and even dangerous. However, you can “train” your brain to work more efficiently. This, of course, is a topic for a huge book (and not even one), and not a small article. Therefore, I will tell you only about one method. We'll have to start from afar.

When is born Small child, the number of neurons in his brain is even greater than that of an adult. But there are still almost no connections between these neurons, and therefore a newborn baby is not yet able to use his brain correctly - for example, he practically cannot see or hear. The neurons of his retina, even if they sense light, have not yet formed connections with other neurons to transmit information further to the cerebral cortex. That is, the eye sees light, but the brain is not able to understand it. Gradually, the necessary connections are formed, and in the end the child learns to distinguish, first just light, then the silhouettes of simple objects, colors, and so on. The more different things a child sees, the more connections his visual pathways form and the better the part of his brain that is associated with vision works.

But the most surprising thing is not this, but the fact that such connections can be formed almost exclusively in childhood. And therefore, if a child for some reason cannot see anything in early age(say, he has congenital cataracts), then the necessary neural connections in his brain will never be formed, and the person will not learn to see. Even if this person undergoes cataract surgery as an adult, he will still remain blind. Quite cruel experiments were carried out on kittens whose eyes were sewn up in a newborn state. The kittens grew up without ever seeing anything; after that, their stitches were removed as adults. Their eyes were healthy, their eyes saw the light - but the animals remained blind. Having not learned to see in childhood, they were no longer able to do this as adults.

That is, there is some critical period during which the neural connections necessary for the development of vision are formed, and if the brain does not learn to see during this period, it will never learn to do so. The same applies to hearing, and, to a lesser extent, to other human abilities and skills - smell, touch and taste, the ability to speak and read, play the musical instruments, navigate in nature and so on. A striking example of this is the “Mowgli children” who were lost in early childhood and were raised by wild animals. As adults, they are never able to master human speech, because they did not train this skill in their childhood. But they are able to navigate the forest in a way that no person raised in civilized conditions can.

And further. You never know at what moment some skill acquired in childhood will take off. For example, a person who actively trained as a child fine motor skills hands, doing drawing, modeling, needlework, it will be easier to become a surgeon performing filigree, precise operations in which not a single wrong movement can be allowed.

In other words, if anything can make the brain work better, it is training, and training since childhood. The more the brain works, the better it works, and vice versa - the less it is loaded, the worse it will function. And the younger the brain, the more “flexible” and receptive it is. That is why schools teach little children, and not adult men and women. This is why children are able to adapt to new situations much faster than adults (for example, they master computer literacy or learn foreign languages). That is why you need to train your intellect from childhood. And if you do this, then nothing will stop you from making great discoveries. For example, about how the brain works.

Answered: Vera Bashmakova

If you conditionally put your brain aside and pay attention to your soul, you can discover and realize how the soul (feelings and emotions) controls the brain (computer), manifesting actions in reality, and not vice versa.

Is it possible to determine why the brain of one of the twins works correctly, while the other has disorders in... the brain? What if this disorder is not in the brain, but in consciousness, which exhibits brain activity? But in order to understand this mechanism, one must recognize that the soul is a real reality that is closed to many minds that recognize facts only through physical eyes and ears.

How can you reprogram your brain? 3 main steps

I've read a lot of similar articles on the internet about getting out of any stressful situation you just need to reprogram your brain, namely:

1. Change your thinking;
2. Think positively;
3. Rest;
4. Get distracted.
5. Force your brain to register pleasant moments in life more often, etc.

This all sounds right, but...

Many authors on their websites describe the brain as a tool, a computer that can easily be programmed to be positive. They just forget to tell you how to do it. What kind of place do you need to gather and decide to take such a step - to reprogram your brain.

Many books on psychology and psychotraining have been written that talk about the need to think “correctly,” but no one says where to get the strength to start thinking like that.

If a person is depressed, or mired in envy, or is strangled by hatred, or is tormented by jealousy... from what source will the strength and desire to reprogram the brain to be positive come from? How to shut up jealousy, which draws pictures of betrayal, or revenge, which builds thoughts about how to take more painful revenge?

After all, even the most intelligent and logical people are susceptible to negative feelings, emotions and thoughts and, despite the good structuring of their mind, logical thinking and intellect cannot cope with them. The authors provide no explanation for this.

Yes, these 5 points described above really make it possible to switch gears and take a break from the negative. Only this negativity does not disappear into nowhere, but waits for its moment. After all, childhood grievances and disappointments are remembered with pain even in old age, despite the passage of time (vacation, rest, adventures, positive moments, etc.).

When a person is tormented by “sick” thoughts, it is very difficult to think positively. You can play “I think positively” on the outside, but inside the cats are still scratching. And vice versa, if a person feels good at heart, then everything around him seems wonderful.

After all, if we could so easily reprogram our brains, as many authors claim, would we choose to suffer? Would we voluntarily suffer, tormented by thoughts of resentment and hatred, thoughts of treason and betrayal, illness and death? We would all voluntarily choose to think positively, because it is both pleasant and healthy. To change your thinking and program yourself to be positive, you need to “treat” your inner world (your soul).

3 main steps that will help you change your thinking and make your brain work positively:

1. Master basic meditation techniques. To begin with, it is enough to allocate 10 to 15 minutes for meditation. in a day.
2. Use meditation to cleanse your astral body. What is the astral body, read in this article:
3. Remove harmful mental programs from your mental body. For more details, see here:

In modern knowledge, there is nothing except fiction on the topic of positivity. Because no “modern” or “ancient” methods, as they like to be called, make it possible to stop getting sick and understand yourself (your inner world) - only empty parting words about positive thinking.

Corresponding Member of the RAS S. MEDVEDEV (St. Petersburg).

Despite all the achievements of modern science, the human brain remains the most mysterious object. With the help of the most sophisticated equipment, scientists from the Institute of the Human Brain of the Russian Academy of Sciences were able to “penetrate” the depths of the brain without disturbing its work, and find out how information is remembered, speech is processed, and how emotions are formed. These studies help not only to understand how the brain performs its most important mental functions, but also to develop methods of treatment for those people in whom they are impaired. Its director S.V. Medvedev talks about these and other works of the Institute of the Human Brain.

Such an experiment gives interesting results. The subject is told two things simultaneously different stories: in the left ear one, in the right - the other.

Research conducted in recent years at the Institute of the Human Brain of the Russian Academy of Sciences has made it possible to determine which areas of the brain are responsible for comprehending various features of speech perceived by humans.

Brain versus brain - who wins?

The problem of studying the human brain, the relationship between the brain and the psyche is one of the most exciting problems that has ever arisen in science. For the first time, the goal has been set to cognize something equal in complexity to the instrument of cognition itself. After all, everything that has been studied so far - the atom, the galaxy, and the animal brain - was simpler than the human brain. From a philosophical point of view, it is unknown whether a solution to this problem is possible in principle. After all, besides instruments and methods, the main means of understanding the brain remains our human brain. Usually, a device that studies some phenomenon or object is more complex than this object, but in this case we are trying to act on equal terms - brain against brain.

The enormity of the task attracted many great minds: Hippocrates, Aristotle, Descartes and many others spoke about the principles of the brain.

In the last century, areas of the brain responsible for speech were discovered - after the discoverers they are called Broca's and Wernicke's areas. However, real scientific research of the brain began with the work of our brilliant compatriot I.M. Sechenov. Next - V. M. Bekhterev, I. P. Pavlov... Here I will stop listing the names, since there are many outstanding brain researchers in the twentieth century, and the danger of missing someone is too great (especially among those living today, God forbid ). Great discoveries were made, but the methods of that time were very limited in their ability to study human functions: psychological tests, clinical observations and since the thirties electroencephalogram. It's like trying to figure out how a TV works based on the hum of tubes and transformers or the temperature of the case, or trying to understand the role of its constituent blocks based on what will happen to the TV if that block is broken.

However, the structure of the brain and its morphology have already been studied quite well. But ideas about the functioning of individual nerve cells were very fragmentary. Thus, there was a lack of complete knowledge about the building blocks that make up the brain and necessary tools for their research.

Two breakthroughs in human brain research

In fact, the first breakthrough in understanding the human brain was associated with the use of the method of long-term and short-term implanted electrodes for the diagnosis and treatment of patients. At the same time, scientists began to understand how an individual neuron works, how information is transferred from neuron to neuron and along the nerve. In our country, Academician N.P. Bekhtereva and her colleagues were the first to work in direct contact with the human brain.

This is how data was obtained about the life of individual zones of the brain, about the relationship between its most important sections - the cortex and subcortex, and many others. However, the brain consists of tens of billions of neurons, and with the help of electrodes it is possible to observe only dozens, and even then the researchers often see not those cells that are needed for research, but those that are located next to the therapeutic electrode.

Meanwhile, a technological revolution was taking place in the world. New computing capabilities have made it possible to take the study of higher brain functions to a new level using electroencephalography and evoked potentials. New methods have also emerged that allow us to “look inside” the brain: magnetoencephalography, functional magnetic resonance imaging and positron emission tomography. All this created the foundation for a new breakthrough. It actually happened in the mid-eighties.

At this time, scientific interest and the possibility of satisfying it coincided. Apparently, this is why the US Congress declared the nineties the decade of studying the human brain. This initiative quickly became international. Nowadays, hundreds of the best laboratories are working on researching the human brain all over the world.

It must be said that at that time in our upper echelons of power there were many smart people who supported the state. Therefore, in our country they understood the need to study the human brain and suggested that, on the basis of the team created and led by Academician Bekhtereva, I should organize a scientific center for brain research - the Institute of the Human Brain of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

The main direction of the institute's activities: fundamental research into the organization of the human brain and its complex mental functions - speech, emotions, attention, memory. But not only. At the same time, scientists must search for methods of treating those patients in whom these important functions are impaired. The combination of fundamental research and practical work with patients was one of the main principles of the institute’s activities, developed by its scientific director Natalya Petrovna Bekhtereva.

It is unacceptable to experiment on humans. Therefore, most brain research is done on animals. However, there are phenomena that can only be studied in humans. For example, now a young member of my laboratory is defending a dissertation on the processing of speech, its spelling and syntax in various brain structures. Agree that this is difficult to study in a rat. The institute is specifically focused on research that cannot be studied in animals. We conduct psychophysiological studies on volunteers using so-called non-invasive techniques, without “getting inside” the brain and without causing any particular inconvenience to the person. This is how, for example, tomographic examinations or brain mapping using electroencephalography are carried out.

But it happens that a disease or accident “performs an experiment” on the human brain - for example, the patient’s speech or memory is impaired. In this situation, it is possible and necessary to examine those areas of the brain whose functioning is impaired. Or, conversely, the patient has lost or damaged a piece of the brain, and scientists are given the opportunity to study what “duties” the brain cannot perform with such a violation.

But simply observing such patients is, to put it mildly, unethical, and at our institute we not only study patients with various brain injuries, but also help them, including with the help of the latest treatment methods developed by our employees. For this purpose, the institute has a clinic with 160 beds. Two tasks - research and treatment - are inextricably linked in the work of our employees.

We have excellent, highly qualified doctors and nurses. It is impossible without this - after all, we are at the forefront of science, and the highest qualifications are needed to implement new techniques. Almost every laboratory of the institute is connected to departments of the clinic, and this is the key to the continuous emergence of new approaches. In addition to standard treatment methods, we provide surgical treatment of epilepsy and parkinsonism, psychosurgical operations, treatment of brain tissue with magnetic stimulation, treatment of aphasia with electrical stimulation, and much more. The clinic houses seriously ill patients, and sometimes it is possible to help them in cases that were considered hopeless. Of course, this is not always possible. In general, when you hear any unlimited guarantees in the treatment of people, this raises very serious doubts.

Everyday life and high points of laboratories

Each laboratory has its own achievements. For example, the laboratory, headed by Professor V.A. Ilyukhina, is conducting developments in the field of neurophysiology of functional states of the brain.

What it is? I'll try to explain with a simple example. Everyone knows that the same phrase is sometimes perceived by a person in diametrically opposite ways, depending on the state he is in: sick or healthy, excited or calm. This is similar to how the same note, played, for example, from an organ, has a different timbre depending on the register. Our brain and body are a complex multi-register system, where the role of the register is played by the human condition. We can say that the entire range of relationships between a person and the environment is determined by his functional state. It determines both the possibility of a “failure” of the operator at the control panel of a complex machine, and the patient’s reaction to the medication being taken.

In Professor Ilyukhina’s laboratory, they study functional states, as well as by what parameters they are determined, how these parameters and the states themselves depend on the body’s regulatory systems, how external and internal influences change states, sometimes causing disease, and how, in turn, the states of the brain and the body influence the course of the disease and the action medicines. Using the results obtained, you can make right choice between alternative treatment routes. The adaptive capabilities of a person are also determined: how resistant he will be to any therapeutic effect or stress.

The laboratory of neuroimmunology is engaged in a very important task. Immune regulation disorders often lead to severe brain diseases. This condition must be diagnosed and treatment selected - immunocorrection. A typical example of a neuroimmune disease is multiple sclerosis, which is studied at the institute by a laboratory led by Professor I. D. Stolyarov. He recently joined the board of the European Committee for the Research and Treatment of Multiple Sclerosis.

In the twentieth century, man began to actively change the world around him, celebrating his victory over nature, but it turned out that it was too early to celebrate: at the same time, the problems created by man himself, the so-called man-made, were aggravating. We live under the influence of magnetic fields, in the light of flashing gas lamps, we look at a computer display for hours, we talk on a mobile phone... All this is far from indifferent to the human body: for example, it is well known that flashing light can cause an epileptic seizure. You can eliminate the damage this causes to the brain with very simple measures - close one eye. To dramatically reduce the “damaging effect” of a radiotelephone (by the way, it has not yet been definitely proven), you can simply change its design so that the antenna is directed downward and the brain is not irradiated. These studies are carried out by the laboratory under the direction of Doctor of Medical Sciences E. B. Lyskov. For example, he and his collaborators showed that exposure to an alternating magnetic field has a negative effect on learning.

At the cellular level, the work of the brain is associated with chemical transformations of various substances, so the results obtained in the laboratory of molecular neurobiology, headed by Professor S. A. Dambinova, are important to us. Employees of this laboratory are developing new methods for diagnosing brain diseases, searching for chemical substances protein nature, which can normalize disorders in brain tissue with parkinsonism, epilepsy, drug and alcohol addiction. It turned out that drug and alcohol use leads to the destruction of nerve cells. Their fragments, entering the blood, induce the immune system to produce so-called “autoantibodies”. “Autoantibodies” remain in the blood for a long time, even in people who have stopped using drugs. This is a kind of memory of the body that stores information about drug use. If you measure the amount of autoantibodies to specific fragments of nerve cells in a person's blood, you can make a diagnosis of drug addiction even several years after the person has stopped using drugs.

Is it possible to “re-educate” nerve cells?

One of the most modern areas in the work of the institute is stereotaxis. This is a medical technology that provides the possibility of low-traumatic, gentle, targeted access to the deep structures of the brain and dosed effects on them. This is the neurosurgery of the future. Instead of “open” neurosurgical interventions, when a large trepanation is performed to reach the brain, low-traumatic, gentle effects on the brain are proposed.

In developed countries, primarily in the USA, clinical stereotaxis has taken its rightful place in neurosurgery. In the United States, about 300 neurosurgeons - members of the American Stereotactic Society - are currently working in this field. The basis of stereotaxis is mathematics and precision instruments that provide targeted immersion of subtle instruments into the brain. They allow you to “look” into the brain of a living person. In this case, positron emission tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and computed x-ray tomography are used. “Stereotaxis is a measure of the methodological maturity of neurosurgery” - the opinion of the late neurosurgeon L. V. Abrakov. For the stereotactic method of treatment, it is very important to know the role of individual “points” in the human brain, understand their interaction, and know where and what exactly needs to be changed in the brain to treat a particular disease.

The institute has a laboratory of stereotactic methods, headed by A. D. Anichkov, Doctor of Medical Sciences, laureate of the USSR State Prize. Essentially, this is the leading stereotactic center in Russia. Here the most modern direction was born - computer stereotaxis with software and mathematics, which is carried out on an electronic computer. Before our developments, stereotactic calculations were carried out manually by neurosurgeons during surgery, but now we have developed dozens of stereotactic devices; some have been clinically tested and are capable of solving the most complex problems. Together with colleagues from the Elektropribor Central Research Institute, a computerized stereotactic system was created and for the first time in Russia is mass-produced, which is superior to similar foreign models in a number of key indicators. As an unknown author put it, “at last, the timid rays of civilization have illuminated our dark caves.”

At our institute, stereotaxis is used in the treatment of patients suffering from movement disorders (parkinsonism, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's chorea and others), epilepsy, indomitable pain (in particular, phantom pain syndrome), and some mental disorders. In addition, stereotaxis is used to clarify the diagnosis and treatment of certain brain tumors, to treat hematomas, abscesses, and brain cysts. Stereotactic interventions (like all other neurosurgical interventions) are offered to the patient only if all possibilities of drug treatment have been exhausted and the disease itself threatens the patient’s health or deprives him of his ability to work, making him asocial. All operations are performed only with the consent of the patient and his relatives, after a consultation of specialists of various profiles.

There are two types of stereotaxis. The first, non-functional, is used when there is some kind of organic lesion, such as a tumor, deep in the brain. If it is removed using conventional technology, healthy brain structures that perform important functions will have to be affected, and the patient may accidentally suffer harm, sometimes even incompatible with life. Let's assume that the tumor is clearly visible using magnetic resonance and positron emission tomographs. Then you can calculate its coordinates and use a low-traumatic thin probe to inject radioactive substances that will burn out the tumor and a short time will fall apart. Damage when passing through the brain tissue is minimal, and the tumor will be destroyed. We have already performed several such operations; former patients are still living, although they had no hope with traditional methods of treatment.

The essence of this method is that we eliminate the “defect” that we clearly see. The main task is to decide how to get to it, which path to choose so as not to touch important areas, which method of eliminating the “defect” to choose.

The situation is fundamentally different with “functional” stereotaxis, which is also used in the treatment of mental illnesses. The cause of the disease is often that one small group of nerve cells or several such groups are not working correctly. They either do not release the necessary substances or release too much of them. Cells can be pathologically excited, and then stimulate the “bad” activity of other, healthy cells. These “wayward” cells must be found and either destroyed, isolated, or “re-educated” using electrical stimulation. In such a situation, it is impossible to “see” the affected area. We must calculate it purely theoretically, just as astronomers calculated the orbit of Neptune.

This is where fundamental knowledge about the principles of the brain, the interaction of its parts, and the functional role of each part of the brain is especially important for us. We use the results of stereotactic neurology - a new direction developed at the institute by the late Professor V. M. Smirnov. Stereotactic neurology is “aerobatics,” but it is along this path that one must look for the possibility of treating many serious diseases, including mental ones.

The results of our research and data from other laboratories indicate that almost any, even very complex, mental activity of the brain is ensured by a system distributed in space and variable in time, consisting of links of varying degrees of rigidity. It is clear that it is very difficult to interfere with the operation of such a system. Nevertheless, now we can do this: for example, we can create a new speech center to replace one destroyed by injury.

In this case, a kind of “re-education” of nerve cells occurs. The fact is that there are nerve cells that are ready for their work from birth, but there are others that are “educated” in the process of human development. As they learn to perform some tasks, they forget others, but not forever. Even after completing “specialization,” they are, in principle, able to take on some other tasks and can work in a different way. Therefore, you can try to force them to take over the work of the lost nerve cells and replace them.

Neurons of the brain work like the crew of a ship: one is good at guiding the ship along its course, another at shooting, and a third at preparing food. But a gunner can be taught to cook borscht, and a cook can be trained to aim a gun. You just need to explain to them how it's done. In principle, this is a natural mechanism: if a brain injury occurs in a child, his nerve cells spontaneously “relearn.” In adults, special methods must be used to “retrain” cells.

This is what researchers are doing - trying to stimulate some nerve cells to do the work of others, which can no longer be restored. Good results have already been obtained in this direction: for example, some patients with a violation of Broca's area, which is responsible for speech formation, were able to be taught to speak again.

Another example is the therapeutic effect of psychosurgical operations aimed at “switching off” the structures of the region of the brain called the limbic system. With different diseases, in different areas of the brain, a flow of pathological impulses arises that circulate along the nerve pathways. These impulses appear as a result of increased activity in areas of the brain, and this mechanism leads to a number of chronic diseases of the nervous system, such as parkinsonism, epilepsy, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. The paths through which pathological impulses circulate must be found and “turned off” as gently as possible.

In recent years, many hundreds (especially in the USA) of stereotactic psychosurgical interventions have been performed to treat patients suffering from certain mental disorders (primarily obsessive states) for whom non-surgical treatment methods were ineffective. According to some narcologists, drug addiction can also be considered a type of this type of disorder, therefore, if drug treatment is ineffective, stereotactic intervention may be recommended.

Error detector

A very important area of ​​the institute’s work is the study of higher brain functions: attention, memory, thinking, speech, emotions. Several laboratories are working on these problems, including the one I head, the laboratory of Academician N.P. Bekhtereva, and the laboratory of Doctor of Biological Sciences Yu.D. Kropotov.

Brain functions unique to humans are studied using various approaches: a “regular” electroencephalogram is used, but at a new level of brain mapping, the study of evoked potentials, registration of these processes together with the impulse activity of neurons in direct contact with brain tissue - for this, implanted electrodes and technology are used positron emission tomography.

The work of Academician N.P. Bekhtereva in this area was widely covered in the scientific and popular science press. She began a systematic study of mental processes in the brain even when most scientists considered it practically unknowable, a matter of the distant future. How good it is that, at least in science, truth does not depend on the position of the majority. Many of those who denied the possibility of such research now consider it a priority.

Within the scope of this article, we can only mention the most interesting results, for example, the error detector. Each of us has encountered his work. Imagine that you left the house and already on the street a strange feeling begins to torment you - something is wrong. You come back - that's right, you forgot to turn off the light in the bathroom. That is, you forgot to perform the usual, stereotypical action of flipping the switch, and this omission automatically turned on the control mechanism in the brain. This mechanism was discovered in the mid-sixties by N.P. Bekhtereva and her colleagues. Despite the fact that the results were published in scientific journals, including foreign ones, they have now been “rediscovered” in the West by people who know the work of our scientists, but do not hesitate to directly borrow from them. The disappearance of a great power also led to more cases of direct plagiarism in science.

Error detection can also become a disease when this mechanism works more than necessary, and a person always thinks that he has forgotten something.

In general terms, the process of triggering emotions at the brain level is clear to us today. Why does one person cope with them, while another “sinks” and cannot break out of the vicious circle of similar experiences? It turned out that in a “stable” person, changes in metabolism in the brain, associated, for example, with grief, are necessarily compensated by changes in metabolism in other structures directed in the other direction. In an “unstable” person, this compensation is disrupted.

Who is responsible for grammar?

A very important area of ​​work is the so-called micromapping of the brain. Our joint research has even discovered mechanisms such as a detector for the grammatical correctness of a meaningful phrase. For example, "blue ribbon" and "blue ribbon". The meaning is clear in both cases. But there is one “small but proud” group of neurons that “springs up” when the grammar is broken and signals the brain about it. Why is this necessary? It is likely that the understanding of speech often comes primarily through the analysis of grammar (remember the “glowing bush” of Academician Shcherba). If there is something wrong with the grammar, a signal is received - additional analysis must be carried out.

Microregions of the brain have been found that are responsible for counting and distinguishing between concrete and abstract words. Differences in the functioning of neurons are shown when perceiving a word in the native language (cup), a quasi-word in the native language (chokhna) and a foreign word (waht - time in Azerbaijani).

Neurons in the cortex and deep brain structures are involved in this activity in different ways. In deep structures, an increase in the frequency of electrical discharges is generally observed, not very “tied” to any specific zone. These neurons seem to solve any problem for the whole world. A completely different picture in the cerebral cortex. One neuron seems to say: “Come on, guys, shut up, this is my business, and I will do it myself.” And indeed, in all neurons, except for a few, the firing frequency decreases, while in the “chosen ones” it increases.

Thanks to the technique of positron emission tomography (or PET for short), it has become possible to simultaneously study in detail all areas of the brain responsible for complex “human” functions. The essence of the method is that a small amount of an isotope is introduced into a substance that participates in chemical transformations inside brain cells, and then we observe how the distribution of this substance changes in the area of ​​​​the brain that interests us. If the flow of radioactively labeled glucose to this area increases, it means that metabolism has increased, which indicates increased work of nerve cells in this area of ​​the brain.

Now imagine that a person is performing some complex task that requires him to know the rules of spelling or logical thinking. At the same time, his nerve cells work most actively in the area of ​​the brain “responsible” for these skills. Increased nerve cell function can be detected using PET scans as an increase in blood flow in the activated area. Thus, it was possible to determine which areas of the brain are “responsible” for syntax, spelling, the meaning of speech and for solving other problems. For example, there are known areas that are activated when words are presented, no matter whether they need to be read or not. There are also areas that are activated to “do nothing,” when, for example, a person listens to a story but does not hear it, following something else.

What is attention?

It is equally important to understand how attention “works” in a person. Both my laboratory and the laboratory of Yu. D. Kropotov are dealing with this problem at our institute. Research is being conducted jointly with a team of scientists led by Finnish professor R. Naatanen, who discovered the so-called mechanism of involuntary attention. To understand what we are talking about, imagine the situation: a hunter sneaks through the forest, tracking down his prey. But he himself is prey for a predatory animal, which he does not notice, because he is only determined to search for a deer or a hare. And suddenly a random crackling sound in the bushes, perhaps not very noticeable against the background of bird chirping and the noise of the stream, instantly switches his attention and gives a signal: “Danger is nearby.” The mechanism of involuntary attention was formed in humans in ancient times as a security mechanism, but it still works today: for example, a driver is driving a car, listening to the radio, hearing the screams of children playing on the street, perceiving all the sounds of the surrounding world, his attention is distracted, and suddenly a quiet knock engine instantly switches his attention to the car - he realizes that something is wrong with the engine (by the way, this phenomenon is similar to an error detector).

This attention switch works for every person. We discovered zones that are activated on PET when this mechanism operates, and Yu. D. Kropotov studied it using the method of implanted electrodes. Sometimes in the most complex scientific work there are funny episodes. This was the case when we rushed to finish this work before a very important and prestigious symposium. Yu. D. Kropotov and I went to the symposium to make reports, and only there, with surprise and “a feeling of deep satisfaction,” we unexpectedly found out that the activation of neurons occurs in the same zones. Yes, sometimes two people sitting next to each other need to travel to another country to talk.

If the mechanisms of involuntary attention are disrupted, then we can talk about illness. Kropotov's laboratory studies children with so-called attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. These are difficult children, often boys, who cannot concentrate in class, they are often scolded at home and at school, but in fact they need to be treated because some certain mechanisms of brain function are disrupted. Until recently, this phenomenon was not considered as a disease and the best method“Force” methods were considered to be used to combat it. We can now not only identify this disease, but also offer treatment methods for children with attention deficit disorder.

However, I would like to upset some young readers. Not every prank is associated with this disease, and then... “forceful” methods are justified.

In addition to involuntary attention, there is also selective attention. This is the so-called “attention at a reception,” when everyone around you is talking at once, and you only follow your interlocutor, not paying attention to the uninteresting chatter of your neighbor on the right. During the experiment, the subject is told stories: one in one ear, another in the other. We monitor the reaction to the story, now in the right ear, now in the left, and see on the screen how the activation of brain areas radically changes. At the same time, the activation of nerve cells in the right ear is much less - because most people pick up the telephone in right hand and apply it to the right ear. It is easier for them to follow the story in the right ear, they need to strain less, the brain is less excited.

The secrets of the brain are still waiting in the wings

We often forget the obvious: a person is not only a brain, but also a body. It is impossible to understand the functioning of the brain without considering the richness of the interaction of brain systems with various body systems. Sometimes this is obvious - for example, the release of adrenaline into the blood forces the brain to switch to a new mode of operation. A healthy mind in a healthy body is all about the interaction between body and brain. However, not everything here is clear. The study of this interaction is still awaiting its researchers.

Today we can say that we have a good idea of ​​how one nerve cell works. Many white spots have disappeared and the areas responsible for mental functions have been identified on the brain map. But between the cell and the brain region there is another, very important level - a collection of nerve cells, an ensemble of neurons. There is still a lot of uncertainty here. With the help of PET, we can trace which areas of the brain are “switched on” when performing certain tasks, but what happens inside these areas, what signals nerve cells send to each other, in what sequence, how they interact with each other - we’ll talk about this for now we know little. Although there is some progress in this direction.

Previously, it was believed that the brain is divided into clearly demarcated areas, each of which is “responsible” for its own function: this is the zone of flexion of the little finger, and this is the zone of love for parents. These conclusions were based on simple observations: if a given area is damaged, then its function is impaired. Over time, it became clear that everything is more complicated: neurons within different zones interact with each other in a very complex way, and it is impossible to carry out a clear “binding” of a function to a brain area everywhere in terms of ensuring higher functions. We can only say that this area is related to speech, memory, and emotions. But it is not yet possible to say that this neural ensemble of the brain (not a piece, but a wide-spread network) and only this one is responsible for the perception of letters, and this one is responsible for the perception of words and sentences. This is the task of the future.

The work of the brain to ensure higher types of mental activity is similar to the flash of fireworks: at first we see a lot of lights, and then they begin to go out and light up again, winking at each other, some pieces remain dark, others flash. Also, an excitation signal is sent to a certain area of ​​the brain, but the activity of the nerve cells inside it is subject to its own special rhythms, its own hierarchy. Due to these features, the destruction of some nerve cells may be an irreparable loss for the brain, while others may well replace neighboring “relearned” neurons. Each neuron can only be considered within the entire cluster of nerve cells. In my opinion, now the main task is to decipher the nervous code, that is, to understand how exactly the higher functions of the brain are ensured. Most likely, this can be done through studying the interaction of brain elements, through understanding how individual neurons are combined into a structure, and the structure into a system and into the whole brain. This is the main task of the next century. Although there is still something left for the twentieth.

Dictionary

Aphasia- speech disorder as a result of damage to the speech areas of the brain or the nerve pathways leading to them.

Magnetoencephalography- registration of a magnetic field excited by electrical sources in the brain.

Magnetic resonance imaging- tomographic study of the brain based on the phenomenon of nuclear magnetic resonance.

Positron emission tomography- a highly effective way to monitor extremely low concentrations of ultra-short-lived radionuclides that label physiologically significant compounds in the brain. Used to study metabolism involved in brain functions.

In the section on the question of what percentage of the human brain has been studied, asked by the author Anton Putenikhin the best answer is Almost everything can be said to be 0% studied, and even less so the human brain. The ancient thinker Socrates said: I know that I know nothing. You can learn endlessly, the sphere of ignorance is only expanding.

Answer from Petersburg woman[guru]
Practically, not studied.

Answer from Sasha Digitayeva[newbie]
There is a common belief that people use 5-10%, 3-8% or 10-20% of their brains. There are plenty of options. Many immediately begin to object, saying that the brain works always and everywhere, and ensures heart rate and breathing, and a bunch of other unconscious things, etc., etc. All this is understandable. But I want to note that when talking about the percentages involved, we always mean intellectual potential and hidden capabilities. And scientists really talk about this, but trying to understand this issue, I could not find a link to the source anywhere. That is, it was not possible to find out who exactly carried out the experiments and how they measured the potential capabilities of the brain.

Scientists have been trying for a very long time to find out what percentage of the human brain works. These searches have more than once led to all sorts of misconceptions and false theories. Some researchers claim that a person uses the brain at only one percent of its available potential, others give 15-20 percent. Ordinary people begin to object and note that their brain works everywhere and always, providing breathing, heart rate and much more. This is certainly true. But when talking about what percentage scientists work at, they mean hidden capabilities and

A little anatomy

The central nervous system includes the brain and which, in turn, are represented by two types of cells: neurons and gliocytes. Neurons act as the main carriers of information, receiving input signals through dendrites that resemble tree branches and sending output signals along cable-like axons. Each neuron includes up to ten thousand dendrites and only one axon. But axons can be a thousand times longer than the neurons themselves: up to four and a half meters. The areas where dendrites and axons touch are called synapses. These are something like toggle switches that connect neurons to each other and turn the brain into a single network. It is these impulses that are transformed into chemical signals.

Gliocytes are human brain cells that serve as a framework structure; they play the role of cleaners and eliminate dead neurons. In total, there are fifty times more gliocytes than neurons. The peculiarities of the human brain are such that it simultaneously contains up to two hundred billion neurons, five million kilometers of axons, and one quadrillion synapses. The number of options for exchanging information exceeds the content of atoms in the Universe. Truly, the potential is limitless. Why then do we only use our brains to such a small extent? Let's try to figure it out.

Load level

Let's give an example. Let's say a mathematics graduate and a thirty-year-old alcoholic were given the same task: multiply 63 by 58. The action is not at all difficult, but which of them will have to use a larger percentage of the brain to carry it out? It is not surprising to guess that the second one. And why? Because a mathematician is smarter? Not at all. He is simply more trained in this matter, and to solve the example he needs much less workload. However, initially both one and the other are approximately equal. And the number of neurons is also approximately the same. The difference is only in the number of relationships between them, but, as you know, broken connections can be restored and even acquired new ones. Therefore, an alcoholic certainly has opportunities for intellectual growth.

Experiments on monkeys

Michael Mesernich, a university professor from San Francisco interested in how much of the human brain works, conducted several experiments on monkeys. He put the animals in cages and placed containers of bananas outside them. While the primates tried to reach the fruit, Mezernich took computer pictures of their brains. He found that as the monkeys' skills developed, the area of ​​the part of the brain that ensured the completion of the task also increased. Once the animals were able to fully master the technique and easily extract bananas, the area of ​​the brain in question returned to its previous size. Thus, the connections between neurons were strengthened, and reactions began to occur without any effort, automatically. And this immediately opened up the potential for even greater growth.

Extreme situations

What percentage of the brain does a person use while in extreme situation? No one will say the exact figure, but it is known that in this case the speed of perception grows at a fantastic pace. Some disaster survivors noted that they felt at the moment of danger that time seemed to stand still, and this gave them the opportunity to maneuver. It would be nice if such an ability were inherent in us in Everyday life, and not just during periods of great shock. But is this possible? If possible, it is extremely dangerous. Just imagine how much energy the brain requires in this state!

Mystical abilities

There are people who move objects with the power of thought, rotate hands on watches, scatter laser beams, and the like. Surely many have heard about such magicians and sorcerers. Who are they - superhumans or hoaxers? Or maybe each of us has such abilities, they just lie dormant? Perhaps nature deliberately limits us, keeping reserves for some unforeseen event. What matters is not what percentage of a person’s brain works, but how we spend our intelligence. The smarter people are, the more they strive to satisfy their selfish needs. So, Hitler was a very gifted man, but what came of it? A sea of ​​tears, oceans of blood. Let's take other geniuses as examples: Nikola Tesla, Albert Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci. They achieved a lot in their lives, but they were known to be greedy, selfish and power-hungry. If one of them had been given power, perhaps the consequences would have been the same.

What percentage of the brain does a person use?

If people do not change internally, do not grow spiritually, then they cannot use their hidden abilities. So, what percentage of the brain does a person use? To satisfy animal instincts, three percent is enough for us. To be able to provide yourself with food - two more. Five percent is enough for formation, the same amount is required for the learning process. That's basically it! The dark storehouses of the brain can only open up to us if we strive for more, engage in development, solve logical problems and puzzles, explore the world and improve ourselves as individuals.

How the brain works

The number of neurons in the brain of a newborn child is greater than that of an adult. However, there are still almost no connections between the cells, so the baby cannot use his brain correctly. Initially, the newborn hardly hears or sees. Even if retinal neurons sense light, they cannot transmit information to the cerebral cortex because they have not yet formed connections with other neurons. That is, the eyes see light, but the brain does not perceive it. Gradually, the necessary connections are formed, the part of the brain that interacts with vision activates its work, as a result, the child begins to see light, then silhouettes of objects, colors, shades, and so on. But what is most surprising is that such connections can only form in childhood.

Development of skills and abilities

For example, when a child could not see anything at an early age due to congenital cataracts, then even if he undergoes surgery as an adult, he will still be blind. This is confirmed by cruel experiments conducted on kittens. Their eyes were sewn up when they were just born, and the stitches were removed when they were adults. Despite the fact that the animals' eyes were healthy and saw light, they remained blind. The same applies to hearing and, to a certain extent, to other abilities: touch, taste, smell, speech, reading, orientation in space, and so on. Great example- Mowgli children raised by animals in the forest. Because they did not practice speaking as children, they will not be able to master human speech as adults. But they can navigate in space in a way that none of the people who grew up in civilization can.

How to increase brain efficiency

From all of the above, we can conclude that the percentage at which a person’s brain works depends on the degree of his training. The busier the brain is, the more efficiently it functions. Moreover, in children it is more receptive and flexible, so it is easier for them to adapt to a new situation, for example, to master computer program, learn foreign language. By the way, you never know exactly how what you have acquired will manifest itself. childhood skill. For example, a person who, as a child, was engaged in modeling, drawing, knitting, or any type of needlework and thereby trained fine motor skills of the hands, has every chance of becoming an excellent surgeon and easily carrying out precise, filigree operations, in which any incorrect movement may lead to failure. This is why you should train your brain from childhood. And then any great discoveries will be possible!