The volume of the human brain has increased as humans have evolved (see Homininae), starting from about 600 cm 3 in Homo habilis up to 1680 cm 3 in Homo neanderthalensis, which was the hominid with the biggest brain size. The mechanisms of interspecific and intraspecific variation also differ.įrom early primates to hominids and finally to Homo sapiens, the brain is progressively larger, with exception of extinct Neanderthals whose brain size exceeded modern Homo sapiens. It is also important to note that variation between individuals is not as important as variation within species, as overall the differences are much smaller. There is a range of volume and weights, and not just one number that one can definitively rely on, as with body mass. Yet another study argued that adult human brain weight is 1,300-1,400g for adult humans and 350-400g for newborn humans. The volume is around 1260 cm 3 in men and 1130 cm 3 in women, although there is substantial individual variation. In men the average weight is about 1370 g and in women about 1200 g. The adult human brain weighs on average about 1.5 kg (3.3 lb). In humans, the right cerebral hemisphere is typically larger than the left, whereas the cerebellar hemispheres are typically closer in size. The measure of brain size and cranial capacity is not just important to humans, but to all mammals. This question is controversial and will be addressed further in the section on intelligence. Regarding "intelligence testing", a question that has been frequently investigated is the relation of brain size to intelligence. Neuroimaging intelligence testing can be used to study the volumetric measurements of the brain. Brain size is sometimes measured by weight and sometimes by volume (via MRI scans or by skull volume). The size of the brain is a frequent topic of study within the fields of anatomy, biological anthropology, animal science and evolution.
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