The Big Brain: Size and Intelligence

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For centuries, scientists have tried to identify what is special about the human brain. How do we approach this problem from a mathematical standpoint? The first hypothesis is that bigger is better, in some sense. This introductory lecture uses scaling laws and simple ideas from statistics to study the brains of humans and animals and uncover basic principles that govern their sizes, as well as testing hypotheses that link size to intelligence.

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Professor Alain Goriely

Professor Alain Goriely FRS

Gresham Professor of Geometry

Alain Goriely is a mathematician with broad interests in mathematical methods, mechanics, sciences, and engineering. He is well known for his contributions to dynamical systems...

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