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The Relationship between Cognition and Brain Size or Neuron Number
Andrew B Barron1, Faelan Mourmourakis1
1School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Brain, Behavior and Evolution
|July 24, 2023
Summary
A bigger brain doesn't always mean better cognition. Computational models of neural networks offer a more nuanced understanding of how brain structure, neuron number, and cognitive function are interconnected.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Comparative Cognition
- Computational Neuroscience
Background:
- The relationship between brain size and cognitive ability is complex and often noisy.
- Previous studies assumed larger brains equate to superior cognition, but this is an oversimplification.
- Taxonomic diversity reveals weak correlations between brain size/neuron number and cognition.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose neural network models for understanding brain structure-cognition relationships.
- To investigate how computational architecture influences cognitive function.
- To leverage comparative neuroscience and connectomics for biological plausibility.
Main Methods:
- Utilizing computational modeling of neural networks.
- Analyzing existing data on brain structure and neuron number across species.
- Developing biologically plausible models of cognitive architecture.
Main Results:
- Network models demonstrate that changes in pathways, layers, or connectivity impact cognition specifically.
- Computational architecture models can hypothesize neuron number-cognition links.
- Improved connectomics methods enable more realistic brain network models.
Conclusions:
- Neural network models provide a framework to understand brain size-cognition links.
- Computational architecture is key to deciphering cognitive variation.
- Animal diversity and connectomics data are crucial for testing and refining these models.
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