Brain complexity: more important than size (Introduction)

by dhw, Friday, November 24, 2017, 13:57 (2338 days ago) @ David Turell

QUOTES: "The massive analysis of human, chimpanzee, and monkey tissue published Nov. 23 in the journal Science shows that the human brain is not only a larger version of the ancestral primate brain but also one filled with distinct and surprising differences.”

"'Our brains are three times larger, have many more cells and therefore more processing power than chimpanzee or monkey…"

DAVID’s comment: Obviously size is a minor issue in analyzing the functionality of a brain of a given organism. The quality of the neurons, of the networks and the levels of various chemicals play the much larger role.

DAVID’s comment (under “travelling ants”): The ant brain may be tiny but it obviously has very complex neurologic networks to allow this kind of discerning ability. The point is size is only one discerning characteristic in judging the ability of a brain to function in a complex way. Highly sophisticated neural networks undoubtedly play a larger role. This is relevant in discussing brain size and function in any organisms.

Thank you for these two very revealing articles. Crucially, the human brain has many more cells than that of the chimp and is three times larger. Regardless of whether you are a materialist (= the brain is responsible for thought) or a dualist, there can be little doubt that increased size (the number of cells) accompanies the number of abilities. ALL brains are complex, but nobody will pretend that the ant is capable of as many activities as we are! Bearing in mind the fact that modern science shows the brain changes when it is required to perform new tasks, the obvious conclusion in the context of evolution is that these changes take place according to the needs of individual species – these needs being related to the drive for survival and/or improvement. I suspect that the brains of our fellow animals do not go beyond improving their chances of survival, and in each case complexification can cope when the brain has reached its optimum size. But pre-sapiens devised ever more complex ways of surviving (e.g. increasingly sophisticated tools and weapons, clothing, use of fire, social cohesion) which involved new tasks that required new skills which in turn required new cells to fulfil those tasks. Hence expansion, until brains could expand no more. From then on, complexification took over from the mix of complexification and expansion, as concepts gave rise to new concepts, culminating in all the improvements that go beyond the need to survive. All a natural progression that depends purely on the mechanism of brains reorganizing themselves in accordance with new requirements. No need for a God to preprogramme every single change or to dabble with every single brain even before changes are required. But it is perfectly reasonable to argue that such a mechanism requires design, and THAT is your strongest case for the existence of a designer (coupled, in my view, with unexplained psychic experiences).