Limitless Mind

While ironing my clothes last Saturday I watched the film “Limitless”, an American fiction film directed by Neil Burger starring Bradley Cooper and Robert De Niro (based on “The Dark Field” novel by Alan Glynn). Besides being mesmerized by Bradley Cooper good looks and enticing blue eyes J, I was drawn on the story plot. The story revolves around a guy who comes across a nootropic drug, NZT-48, that has the ability to access 100% capacity of human brain’s power as opposed to the normal usage of 20%. With all the twists and turns caused by the NZT-48 usage he managed to become a candidate for US Senate from being a desperate writer.

If ever a nootropic drug really exists that aid human to access 100% of brain’s capacity, then it might be amazing; boundless possibilities and opportunities for everyone. My curiousity to know whether it’s true (or not) that humans can only access normally 20% capacity of its brain power leads me to do some readings. Below is excerpt from Wikipedia about 10% of brain myth:

Though factors of intelligence can increase with training, the idea that large parts of the brain remain unused, and could subsequently be "activated" for conscious use, is without foundation. Although many mysteries regarding brain function remain, every part of the brain has a known function.

One possible origin is the reserve energy theories by Harvard psychologists William James and Boris Sidis in the 1890s who tested the theory in the accelerated raising of child prodigy William Sidis to affect an adulthood IQ of 250–300; thus William James told audiences that people only meet a fraction of their full mental potential, which is a plausible claim. In 1936, American writer Lowell Thomas summarized this idea (in a foreword to Dale Carnegie's How to Win Friends and Influence People) by adding a falsely precise percentage: “Professor William James of Harvard used to say that the average man develops only ten percent of his latent mental ability."

Neurologist Barry Gordon describes the myth as laughably false, adding, "we use virtually every part of the brain, and that [most of] the brain is active almost all the time".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/10%25_of_brain_myth

Hmmm… so I’m using 100% of my brain after all, which err....only needs continuous enhancement J. Human brain is really mysterious and incredible to create such fascinating myth and story plot that makes others wonder.