wetcw@pyuxa.UUCP (T C Wheeler) (07/17/84)
Someone asked if the entire brain is used. Well, on NOVA, about two years ago, there was an interesting program about people who had been born with hydro... water on the brain. A doctor had discovered a method for removing the fluid before it became fatal to the infants. The result, however, left the infants with only a partial brain. In some cases, the active part of the brain was down to 10% of normal. The astounding thing was that these people were able to function normally. One of the former infants had attained a math degree and still only had less than 15% of the brain active. Activity of the brain is measurable and the activity can be graphically shown using scanning methods. The scans showed that the brain activity centered, or better was gathered in a semicircle around the perimeter of the brain cavity. The large center area was shown to be completly inactive. So, perhaps there is more to the unused brain idea than we know. Neandrethal brain size, if I recall correctly, was larger than Homo Sapien or Cro Magnon. The idea of collective memory, of course, is just an idea. But, given the unused brain and the Neandrethal brain size, it is an interesting idea. I too can't wait for the third book in the Cave Bear series. Other than the heroine making Edison, Marconi, and the Wright brothers look like pikers when it came to inventing, the story is well told, well researched, and completly engrossing. I would reccommend these books to one and all. T. C. Wheeler