Matt Williams-Spooner, Ph.D.

The myth that we only use 10% of our brains is wrong but weirdly not so far from the truth

There’s a popular myth that we only use 10% of our brains, and although this is wrong, in a funny way it’s actually not so far from the truth. Although there’s overwhelming evidence that we use all of our brain regions, research also shows that we only use a small percentage of our brain cells at any given time. Not 10%, as the fraction of brain cells that’s active at any time varies depending on the region you look at and the task that the organism’s engaged in. But studies have consistently found that the active fraction of brain cells is often around 10–20%.