a 44-year-old man has been leading a normal life despite lacking nearly 90% of his brain.
Published in Brain/Neurology.
A perplexing medical case has left scientists astonished: a 44-year-old man has been leading a normal life despite lacking nearly 90% of his brain.
He was diagnosed with hydrocephalus, a condition in which cerebrospinal fluid accumulates in the skull, displacing most of the brain tissue. As a result, his cranium is primarily filled with fluid, with only a thin layer of brain matter remaining.
Remarkably, the man holds a government job, has a family, and functions with an IQ of 84 — just slightly below the average range.
This unusual case challenges long-standing beliefs about how the brain operates, especially regarding the necessity of specific brain regions for consciousness and cognitive abilities.
Cognitive psychologist Axel Cleeremans points to this case as evidence of the brain’s remarkable plasticity — its capacity to adapt and reorganize even in the face of extensive physical damage. It also sparks deeper philosophical and scientific questions about the nature of consciousness.
If conscious awareness is generated by brain activity, how can someone with such limited brain tissue maintain self-awareness and cognitive function? Cleeremans suggests that consciousness may not be tied to a single brain region but instead may emerge from the brain’s ability to learn, adapt, and reorganize itself.