It seems doubtful that anyone would seriously believe in the much quoted "we only use 10% of our brains" theory, but according to Andrew Koob, some people apparently do. In The Root of Thought, Koob offers a mix of history, scientific review and personal opinion on the cells responsible for most of the mass (much more than 10%!) of the human brain--the glia. Koob is a neuroscientist currently studying brain disease in Munich, and this is his first book.
It's Not About Neurons
Koob is convinced that neurons are overrated, and it is the glial cells that are responsible for our reasoning and thoughts. He does a nice job of presenting a history of brain research that explains why neurons have been the focus of so much brain research while the glial cells have, until recently, been largely ignored. He argues that we would be a lot further along than we are in understanding the brain it were not for such a long, drawn out focus on neurons.
Glia, specifically astrocytes, certainly are interesting. A number of lines of evidence support the importance of glia in processing information, storing memories and making decisions. Koob feels pretty strongly that the major role of neurons is to carry out the will of the astrocytes that surround and greatly outnumber them. This seems reasonable given that:
- The glia-to-neuron ratio goes up with perceived intelligence of a species, with the human brain being about 90% glia and 10% neurons (which, according to Koob, is where the "we only use 10% of our brains" notion came from).
- Astrocytes, unlike neurons, can multiply continuously throughout a person's life.
- Neurons in cell culture cannot survive unless glial cells are present.
Readers well versed in brain structure and science will be left wanting more. Koob goes pretty light on the science in the text, which contributes to the accessibility, while offering a good selection of quality references at the end of each chapter for those who may be interested.
This Is Not a Masterwork
Koob may be a qualified neuroscientist, but when it comes to science writing, he still needs practice. He repeats himself often and makes more than a few leaps of faith in his belief in the all-mighty glia.
The text is peppered with cute analogies and metaphors, many of which seem to be rather strained and pulled out of the blue just for effect; the effect being to make one pause and think, "Huh, that was a weird place to put a Sponge Bob reference" and the like. A number of typographical errors and odd sentence structures make one wonder how hard the editor worked on the manuscript or if English is even the editor's native language.
The Root of Thought is enough to whet an interested reader's appetite for more, and with luck, the references can provide ample resources for delving deeper into a topic that surely deserves a more in-depth treatment.
Sources
- The Root of Thought; Andrew Koob; FT Press; Upper Saddle River, NJ: 2009
Philip McIntosh - The author holds a B.Sc. in Botany and Chemistry and an M.A in Biology and he has thirty + years of experience in science and industry.
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