Later, a colleague at Sheffield University became aware of a young man with a larger than normal head. He was referred to Lorber even though it had not caused him any difficulty. Although the boy had an IQ of 126 and had a first class honours degree in mathematics, he had "virtually no brain". A noninvasive measurement of radio density known as CAT scan showed the boy's skull was lined with a thin layer of brain cells to a millimeter in thickness. The rest of his skull was filled with cerebrospinal fluid. The young man continues a normal life with the exception of his knowledge that he has no brain.

from http://www.flatrock.org.nz/topics/science/is_the_brain_really_necessary.htm

That information doesn't sound true. No brain? So he has no pituitary gland? No medulla? No hippocampus? He wouldn't be able to breathe.

Such things are impossible.

i agree with saven, i would like to see the evidence of this because for instance without the brain stem, hypothelmus ect your heart cant beat, you cant breath. I can see an adaptive measure meaning another way of proccessing the higher brain funtions COULD develop. For instance i have herd ALOT of stories of people without one hemisphere of there brain leading quite good lives (much better than before they had it removed infact) but there hasnt been to my knowlage ONE case of someone surviving without the hypothelmus ect

Follow the link to the rest of the story. Or Google: " "john Lorber" "sheffield" ".

"No brain" was an exaggeration. The guy with the 126 IQ had a brain that weighs between 50 grams and 150 grams while a normal brain weighs about 1500 grams.

The next Paragraph from the linked article:


Although anecdotal accounts may be found in medical literature, Lorber is the first to provide a systematic study of such cases. He has documented over 600 scans of people with hydrocephalus and has broken them into four groups:
bullet those with nearly normal brains
bullet those with 50-70% of the cranium filled with cerebrospinal fluid
bullet those with 70-90% of the cranium filled with cerebrospinal fluid
bullet and the most severe group with 95% of the cranial cavity filled with cerebrospinal fluid.

Of the last group, which comprised less than 10% of the study, half were profoundly retarded. The remaining half had IQs greater than 100. Skeptics have claimed that it was an error of interpretation of the scans themselves. Lorber himself admits that reading a CAT scan can be tricky. He also has said that he would not make such a claim without evidence. In answer to attacks that he has not precisely quantified the amount of brain tissue missing, he added, "I can't say whether the mathematics student has a brain weighing 50 grams or 150 grams, but it is clear that it is nowhere near the normal 1.5 kilograms."

You at the very least need a brain stem and a lot of fancy machines to get around any length of time. So solly, Cholly.

All you ever use is the 'thin lining'.

The cerebral cortex is a structure within the brain that plays a key role in memory, attention, perceptual awareness, thought, language, and consciousness. It constitutes the outermost layer of the cerebrum.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerebral_cortex

The rest must still be attached to the brainstem.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/Cerebral_Cortex_location.jpg

All you ever use is the 'thin lining'.

The cerebral cortex is a structure within the brain that plays a key role in memory, attention, perceptual awareness, thought, language, and consciousness. It constitutes the outermost layer of the cerebrum.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerebral_cortex

The rest must still be attached to the brainstem.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/Cerebral_Cortex_location.jpg

Wow very interesting!

Is it possible that his brain was there, but displaced?

Could his brain stem somehow be located elsewhere in his nervous system?

Is it possible that his brain was there, but displaced?

Could his brain stem somehow be located elsewhere in his nervous system?

His brainstem was still there though.

From the article:
http://www.flatrock.org.nz/topics/science/assets/tiny_brain.jpg

Wow..a hollow..brain. What are those two white stains though..

All you ever use is the 'thin lining'.

No, that's not correct. We definitely use the inner structures of our brains in addition to the outer cerebral cortex.



The cerebral cortex is a structure within the brain that plays a key role in memory, attention, perceptual awareness, thought, language, and consciousness. It constitutes the outermost layer of the cerebrum.

The important phrase there is “the plays a key role in”. The cerebral cortex plays an important role in all those functions, but not an exclusive role.

No, that's not correct. We definitely use the inner structures of our brains in addition to the outer cerebral cortex.

The important phrase there is “the plays a key role in”. The cerebral cortex plays an important role in all those functions, but not an exclusive role.

Ok, what is the role of the rest ? I was under the impression that the underlying tissue was mostly the 'wiring' leading to the cerebral cortex.

I've heard about more cases like this, so I'm going to assume it's true.
If it's true the cerebral cortex apparently doesn't need a lot of support from the underlying tissue.

I recall that the amount of surface area is very important in brain function. This is the reason for the folds. Perhaps people with these thin brains are able to compensate for decreased brain size with increased surface area/mass.

I recall that the amount of surface area is very important in brain function. This is the reason for the folds. Perhaps people with these thin brains are able to compensate for decreased brain size with increased surface area/mass.

I was thinking exactly the opposite. I was thinking that maybe they were estimating the weight wrong because the brains were all squished into a denser lower surface area brain than they were used to. I believe the article (or one of the others on the topic) talked about reduced surface area because of the pressure.

If surface area does mater, why?

I was thinking exactly the opposite. I was thinking that maybe they were estimating the weight wrong because the brains were all squished into a denser lower surface area brain than they were used to. I believe the article (or one of the others on the topic) talked about reduced surface area because of the pressure.

If surface area does mater, why?
The surface of the cortex (or grey matter) is where the actual neuronal cell bodies are. The inside of the cortex is the "white matter" which is the connections between cells. So more surface area means more neurons in your cortex. More neurons=more powerful brain.