Scientists have made a surprising discovery about how quickly humans process information. Contrary to expectations, research found that our brains only manage 10 bits of information per second, despite receiving billions of bits from our senses. This means our brain is slower than even a typical Wi-Fi connection.
The researchers, who studied the brain’s processing speed during activities like reading and playing video games, were puzzled by this result. “This is an extremely low number,” said neurobiologist Markus Meister. “Every moment, we are extracting just 10 bits from the trillion that our senses are taking in.”
The team proposes that our slow brain processing may be necessary for survival, rather than a limitation. According to their findings, humans have evolved to thrive in environments where information changes slowly, allowing us to focus on one task at a time.
However, more research is needed to understand how the brain filters out the vast amount of information it receives. “The current understanding is not commensurate with the enormous processing resources available,” said the researchers. With over 85 billion neurons working together, there must be a way for our brains to process information more efficiently.
Despite this, the discovery raises an interesting question: what if our brain’s slow processing speed is actually a strength? The research highlights the need for further exploration into how our brains work, and how we can harness their full potential.
Source: https://www.ndtv.com/science/human-brains-are-not-as-fast-as-we-previously-thought-study-reveals-7323078