The Incredible Brain

http://www.strokefoundation.com.au/blog/?p=2837
Unless there are life forms more evolved than us in the depths of space, the brain holds first prize as the most complex object in the universe – an amazingly intricate system that we have been unable to duplicate, despite our incredible technological advances. And we still aren’t sure exactly how it works!
Every movement, thought, sensation and emotion that makes up our experience of being humans involves several thousand kilometres of interconnected nerve cells. Our brain and spinal cord contain ten thousand distinct varieties of neurons, trillions of synaptic connections, a hundred known chemical regulating agents, and axons raging from a few microns to well over 45cm in length.
The average number of neurons in the brain is 100 billion(actually 80 billion), yet the brain typically only takes up 2% of our body weight. The actual weight comprises about 80% brain tissue, 10% blood and 10% cerebrospinal fluid.
If we lined up our nerve fibres they would stretch for 180,000km. The number of synapses is around 0.15 quadrillion, so it’s not s bad that about 85 000 neocortical neurons are lost every day.
This complexity is why brain injury can have such wide-ranging effects on our movements, thoughts, sensations, and emotions……
Even a mild injury can result in a serious disability that will interfere with a person’s daily functioning and personal activities for the rest of their life. While the outcome of the injury depends largely on the nature or the severity of the injury itself, appropriate treatment will play a vital role in determining the level of recovery.
This story was first seen in the Synapse bridge magazine www.synapse.org.au