Neuromyths quiz

Brain myths

Are the following statements

True or False?

Multiple Choice

Most people use only 10% of their brain power

• True

• False

False!

We actually use 100% of our brains.

The myth comes from early research where we could only see 10% of the brain working.

Multiple Choice

Your brain can only remember 7 numbers at a time

• True

• False

True!

On average the number of items we can remember in short term memory is 7.

Multiple Choice

Birds can see more colour than humans

• True

• False

True!

Birds, unlike humans, but like fish, amphibians and reptiles, have four types of colour receptors and can see more of the colour spectrum. 

Multiple Choice

The bigger your brain, the

smarter you are

• True

• False

False!

Having a bigger brain doesn’t always mean you are smarter. 

Are you smarter than an elephant?

The answer is yes but elephants have larger brains than us (have a look at the picture).

Multiple Choice

Some people are left-brained (e.g. good at Maths and Science) and others are right-brained (e.g. good at Art and English)

• True

• False

False!

Evidence suggests that we use both sides of our brain fairly evenly.

For example, both the left and right sides of the brain are involved in speaking.

Multiple Choice

Giving someone a placebo*

(pla-see-bo) can be just a helpful as real medicine when someone is ill

*A placebo is a medicine that does not physically effect your body but which you think will. It is fake medicine that you think is real!

• True

• False

True!

Thinking we are receiving treatment can sometimes work just as well as actually having treatment because of the connection between mind and body.

Multiple Choice

Smiling can make you feel happier

• True

• False

True!

Facial expressions add to our emotions.

This is also because of the connection between the mind and body.

Multiple Choice

People are able to become more skilled (e.g. better at a new language) while asleep

• True

• False

True!

You can't learn new things in your sleep, but listening to familiar words played over and over again in your sleep can help you learn them.

Multiple Choice

Boys are more likely to be colourblind than girls.

• True

• False

True!

As many as 8% of boys and 0.5% of girls have the common form of red-green colour blindness.

Test yourself!

Can you see a number in this circle?

The number is 74.

If you can see it, it means you are not colourblind.

Multiple Choice

People with schizophrenia have multiple personalities

• True

• False

False!

Schizophrenia involves a variety of symptoms, but not one involves multiple personalities. 

This myth likely originated because the word “schizo” means split – however, in this case it refers to gaps in a person’s ability to think and express emotions. 

Multiple Choice

Our handwriting reveals our personality traits

• True

• False

False!

Psychologists have found no relationship between handwriting and personality. 

It is much more important to look at the meaning of the written sentences than the handwriting!

Multiple Choice

Raising children similarly leads to similarities in their adult personalities

• True

• False

False!

Shared environments have some influence on our childhood personality but it tends to fade away as we grow older.

Multiple Choice

There is safety in numbers:

The more people present at an emergency, the greater the chance that someone will intervene

• True

• False

False!

The presence of others tends to make people feel less individually responsible in an emergency, meaning they are less likely to help.

Multiple Choice

People tend to act strangely when the moon is full

• True

• False

False!

For a long time, people have believed that strange behaviour occurs under a full moon. But this is not the case. 

Why did they believe this for so long?

If you see strange behaviour under a full moon you are more likely to remember it than if it occurred under a half moon, or crescent moon.

This is because it confirms what you already believe which means it stands out more and is remembered.

Multiple Choice

Human memory works like a video camera

• True

• False

False!

We sometimes have flashbulb memories of emotional events. This means they seem to have a photographic quality.

 

However, psychologists have found that what we remember is a blurry mixture shaped by our beliefs and hunches.

Multiple Choice

You get new brain “wrinkles” when you learn something new

• True

• False

False!

Your brain starts developing wrinkles before you’re even born. 

The wrinkling continues as your brain grows, until you are about 18 months old.  

Not all brains are wrinkled! In fact, most animals have fairly smooth brains! Have a look at the picture.

You can now spot a brain myth!