People with the same brain size can have neurons or certain brain regions working with different efficiency, thus leading to marked differences in the IQ levels. Does musical training reorganize the brain? The Scientist Who Studied Einstein's Brain Learned That These 5 Factors Make You Smarter In 1985, we thought Einstein's brain wasn't much different from anyone else's. That is not what one would expect of a computer in the head. Correlational studies have only established a weak to moderate linear relationship between brain size an intelligence, which is enough fuel to ensure that the brain size and intelligence hypothesis doesn’t burn out, but does little to explain the true basis of human cognitive capacity. From time to time, people have reasoned that if there is a correlation between brain size and intelligence, then larger cranial size (including a large forehead) should be correlated with greater intelligence. Earl Hunt states that brain size is found to have a correlation of about .35 with intelligence among white people and cites studies showing that genes may account for as much as 90% of individual variation in brain size. Well, it depends which scientist you ask. I've also heard that Albert Einstein's brain was 15% larger than average with the extra space accounted for by a skull deformity. There does seem to be a significant correlation between brain volume and IQ. What matters is the ratio of the size of an animals brain to their body size. RE: Does head size have anything to do with intelligence? This Site Might Help You. Several factors that reduce brain size have been demonstrated to disproportionately affect black children. Brain scientists have long known this. Bigger brains … Rushton and Ankney (2009) summarize the findings to date with regards to brain size and intelligence: based on 28 non-clinical published brain imaging samples (N= 1,389) a .40 correlation between IQ and brain size measured by MRI was found; based on 59 published samples (N= 63,405) a .20 correlation between IQ and head circumference was found. Why Brain Size Doesn’t Correlate With Intelligence We can nurture growth, but never really control it (Jacqui Oakley) ... People have long been tempted to link brain size and cognition. I'm just wondering if someone with a larger head might have more intelligence than someone with a … Plenty of brainy scientists have pondered the link between a person or animal's grey matter and their cognitive skills. However, for humans just because some one has a larger head to body ratio does … Brain size doesn’t much matter – instead, it is body size that matters. Correlational studies have only established a weak to moderate linear relationship between brain size an intelligence, which is enough fuel to ensure that the brain size and intelligence hypothesis doesn’t burn out, but does little to explain the true basis of human cognitive capacity. It's common to hear people say that the size of your brain has nothing to do with your level of intelligence. By Kayt Sukel on April 14, 2009; Share on Facebook. Head circumference has essentially nothing to do with intelligence and, as long as your child’s head is average-size and regularly growing, there’s no cause for alarm when they come in a bit behind the curve. For more than a century some of the biggest minds in science have debated whether brain size has anything to do with intelligence. It is of great interest that the brain size of Neanderthals (1600 cm 3) was much larger than A new study suggests it does. How does brain size affect intelleligence? In the last twenty years, brain imaging studies have revealed that musical training has dramatic effects on the brain. What does brain size say about a creature's mental abilities? skull size along does not determine intelligence, for instance an elephant has huge brain, but not smarter than human. For example, take a look at the plot below showing how brain mass varies with body mass. Fact or Fiction: When It Comes to Intelligence, Does Brain Size Matter? The same can be told about brain and its neuronal networks. Humans do have a brain size which can vary with their physical skull size. Still, a handful of preliminary studies have suggested links between brain size, head size, and intelligence. From time to time, people have reasoned that if there is a correlation between brain size and intelligence, then larger cranial size (including a large forehead) should be correlated with greater intelligence.