Does a Bigger Brain Make You Smarter?

In some cartoons, the one with a bigger brain is often described as "smart," but is it true in real life?

Hosted by: Brit Garner
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[EmeliaSings]

I really like how energic Brit Garner is, what a great host!

[LulitaInPita]

Her energy in this video is contagious and it makes me happy :)

[gardenhead]

Well, I can't create a stone tool, so we might be getting dumber...

[MrJayPuff]

“Size isnt everything, ”... wish my gf thought that

[omgitzpaige]

I’m always afraid my brain is dumb (especially having depression, anxiety, and adhd- i know it’s inefficient- but having known a lot of people in my life who don’t know anything i consider common knowledge, maybe i’m not so bad.
me: i’m so dumb
also me: everyone around me is dumb

[Austrolopithe]

Humans having shrinking brains makes some sense if you think about brains as 'new' machinery - at first, the evolutionary benefit conferred by increased intelligence justified ever-expanding brains, (assuming at growth in brain size was in some way related to intelligence in human evolution...), but after a certain point, being able to pack more functionality into less space became more important, maybe because of birthing difficulties and changing hip dimensions for example. A bit like how most new machines and gadgets tend to start off huge and unwieldy, to get the basic job done, before subsequently being refined down. At least, that's how I'm thinking of it.

[PaleGhost]

It's not the size, it's how you use it.
That being said, after a certain size it's much easier to use. If you know what I mean...

[jaschabull]

Fun fact: the average Neanderthal's brain was actually larger than the average anatomically modern human's.

[Kogworks]

So basically our processors are getting smaller but more efficient?

[cherishhodge]

Love you Brit! Thanks for being such a clear, cool yet energetic teacher! You rock!

[gracieminabox]

I love episodes hosted by Brit. She's just excellent.

(Also, I REALLY want her dress, but that's another matter.)

[juniormynos]

Where not as intelligent as we may think. Most of our intellectual achievements are a result of our social connectedness to learn from others and incorporate or add new ideas which then enables us to invent and innovate at an exponential rate. If octopuses had that same social awareness and longer life span, they would achieve much more than us

[lazyperfectionist]

"Does a Bigger Brain Make You Smarter?"
Before even watching the video, I'm going to say, "Not necessarily." After all, a bigger brain requires more sustenance, and if the body does not help it _obtain_ that sustenance, then it draws that sustenance away from _other_ things. Consider that the Neanderthal had bigger brains and this did not save them from extinction.

[HeyItsTheWykydtron]

Dude! If the creation of stone tools has halted the growth of our brains, image what the internet could do

[sebastianelytron]

Big feet = big meat
Big brain = big pain

[nicolaiveliki]

I guess the brain is like any organ: it ain't the size that matters, it's how you use it

[ass_banga-]

Oh yeah it's





BIG BRAIN TIME

[ThundererGamer]

All I typed was how to become big brain and now I'm here.

[rea]

I'm not sure if my brain got bigger or better connected during this video, but I felt it was working hard! Thank you guys for explaining us this big science!

[CerebrumMortum]

The attemp to reduce Brain "quality" inti a single measurment: IQ is not only faulty but rather surprising in modern times.
Yes, big highly connected brains aren't higher on the IQ test, but what about social functions? What if size is correlated to some other evolved aspect like grouo size or infant rearing?
What about other more subtle traits like rapid response, creativity, etc?

My semi educated guess would be that high connectedness correlates with high social functions and creativity, which fits the observation that those on the highest edge of the IQ test temd towards a more autistic, pattern-like thought and lower social capacity.

It's all conjucture really, but I think we're just not looking on enough seperate paramatters.