Life Lessons from a Brain Surgeon summary

In the nineteenth century, the French physician Pierre Paul Broca and the German neurologist Carl Wernicke discovered the parts of the brain that control language production and language comprehension. Broca’s area and Wernicke’s area, as they are now known, are still understood as the general seats of language in the brain. But scientists have since discovered that the exact location of language is unique to every individual. In fact, we now know that different languages occupy different areas of the brain.

The author once had a patient named Marina with a rare type of brain cancer located in the left frontotemporal region of her brain. Marina was a native Spanish speaker as well as an English teacher, which made it extremely important to identify which areas of her brain could be cut during surgery without damaging her language skills. 

Chances are you’ve heard the theory that “left-brained” people are more logical while “right-brained” people are more creative. Put forth by Nobel Prize winner and researcher Roger W. Sperry in the New York Times Magazine in 1973, the theory soon became common knowledge. But Sperry’s theory hasn’t been borne out. While the left hemisphere of the brain does account for language and math skills, no evidence has been found that certain types of people use one side of the brain more than the other.

So if that’s the case, where does creativity come from? Though the executive functions controlled by the frontal lobes do contribute, this part of the brain isn’t solely responsible for our innate creative abilities. Recent studies have found that the cerebellum, which fine tunes muscle movements, is also in charge of coordinating creative problem-solving. But by using functional MRIs, which take moving images of the brain at work, scientists have come to understand that creativity requires neurons in various parts of the brain to light up simultaneously. In other words, creativity comes from harmonious activity across the entire brain.

Sleep is one of the greatest mysteries of life. Like most animals, we humans spend a great part of our lives sleeping. But scientists still aren’t entirely sure why we sleep – after all, we could be eating, drinking, mating or protecting ourselves from danger.

What scientists do know is that sleep is a time when short-term memories in your hippocampus are transformed into long-term memories stored elsewhere in your cortex. In fact, studies have found that students preparing for a test recall more information if they get some sleep the night before rather than studying all night. A night’s rest can also make us better equipped to solve problems.

Ever heard someone say that your gut is your second brain? As it turns out, that myth isn’t scientifically valid. What is true is that the enteric nervous system, or ENS, covers your stomach and your intestines. This nerve net is why you feel butterflies in your stomach when you’re feeling anxious and perceive the sensation of hunger or being full. But since the colon and parts of the gut can be removed without disrupting effects like these, your gut isn’t quite a second brain.

That being said, what you put into your body ultimately has a major effect on your cognitive abilities as well as your long-term health. The author and his family have adopted the MIND diet, which was created to slow the loss of brain function. In one study, people who followed this diet decreased their risk of developing Alzheimer’s by fifty percent. The MIND diet is relatively simple. Vegetables, fresh fruits, nuts, chicken, and fish are recommended. Saturated fats, red meat and sugars are not. 

When it comes to the nature versus nurture debate, it’s clear that environment plays an important role in the development of cognitive health. And it’s parents’ job to make sure children get what they need to develop healthy brains. Though the human brain continues maturing well into a person’s late twenties, the early years, when brains are most malleable, are particularly important when it comes to parenting. 

In addition to making sure your children get the right amount of sleep and good nutrition, you’ll want to promote a healthy balance of safety and adventure. Since the author recognizes that the majority of child deaths are caused by preventable accidents, he took extra precautions when it came to the safety of his own children when they were small. They weren’t allowed to go into the street on their own until around the age of ten, when they could be trusted to look before they crossed the road. On the other hand, he let his sons play in a ravine in their neighborhood, keeping watch from afar as they explored, played games and scoured for animals. This kind of adventure was important to help stimulate their minds and promote the kind of healthy brain development that starts early in life.