What Percentage Of Our Brains Do We Actually Use? Popular Myth Debunked In TED-Ed Video

WATCH: How Much Of Our Brains Do We REALLY Use?

It's commonly said that we humans use only about 10 percent of our brains, with some people attributing Einstein's brilliance to his ability to stretch that paltry figure to 15 percent.

But in the video above, neurologist Dr. Richard Cytowic debunks these familiar notions, arguing that brain regions once believed to be "silent" are actually humming with activity.

What exactly do these "silent" regions do? According to Cytowic, they're intimately involved with our ability to plan, make decisions, adapt to evolving situations, and reason abstractly. And evidence suggests that at any moment up to 16 percent of our brain cells are active.

So next time your friends bring up the 10-percent nonsense, you'll be able to set them 100-percent straight.

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