Question 1

Is it a fact or a myth that Viewing a rotating visual illusion can temporarily increase inattentional blindness to unrelated objects?

Accepted Answer

FACT: The illusion engages predictive visual circuits, diverting limited attentional resources and causing a measurable drop in detection of peripheral stimuli. A 2018 i‑Perception study showed a 27% reduction in hit rate for a concurrent target when participants watched a rotating spiral illusion. Key Takeaway: Illusions hijack attention, making us miss obvious things. (Source: i-Perception (2018))

Question 2

Is it a fact or a myth that Intranasal oxytocin administration can temporarily reduce the urge to eat high‑sugar foods?

Accepted Answer

FACT: A double‑blind crossover study gave participants intranasal oxytocin and measured snack intake. Oxytocin lowered activation in reward‑related brain regions and cut sugar‑rich snack consumption by ~15% within 45 minutes. The effect waned after two hours. Key Takeaway: The “cuddle hormone” can blunt sugar cravings for a short window. (Source: Diabetes (2013))

Question 3

Is it a fact or a myth that Extended periods of daydreaming cause irreversible loss of neuronal cells in the hippocampus?

Accepted Answer

MYTH: No longitudinal human or animal studies have shown neurodegeneration linked to mind‑wandering. Imaging research instead shows transient functional deactivation, not cell death, and hippocampal volume remains stable across varying daydream frequencies. Key Takeaway: Daydreaming does not damage brain tissue. (Source: PNAS (2021))

Question 4

Is it a fact or a myth that A single dose of psilocybin can trigger the formation of new dendritic spines in mouse prefrontal cortex within 24 hours?

Accepted Answer

FACT: In a mouse model of chronic stress, acute psilocybin exposure activated the TrkB‑mTOR pathway, leading to a >30 % increase in spine density on pyramidal neurons after 24 hours. The new synapses were functional and correlated with restored behavioral performance. Key Takeaway: Psilocybin rapidly rewires stress‑damaged circuits. (Source: Nature Neuroscience (2023))

Question 5

Is it a fact or a myth that Acute psilocybin dosing synchronizes brain activity across the default mode network, and the degree of this connectivity predicts the intensity of the reported 'oneness' experience?

Accepted Answer

FACT: Functional MRI of 63 first‑time users showed increased coherence within the DMN after a moderate psilocybin dose, correlating with self‑reported unity scores. The study demonstrates a neurobiological substrate for the profound subjective effects of psychedelics. Key Takeaway: Psychedelics reshape large‑scale brain networks in a measurable way. (Source: Nature Neuroscience (2022))

Question 6

Is it a fact or a myth that The frequency of hippocampal sharp‑wave ripple events during quiet wakefulness predicts a person’s ability to plan future routes?

Accepted Answer

FACT: In a 2015 study, participants with more ripples showed superior performance on a virtual maze‑planning task, linking ripples to prospective memory processes. Key Takeaway: Ripple bursts forecast planning skill. (Source: Hippocampus (2015))

Question 7

Is it a fact or a myth that The left hemisphere handles all logical reasoning while the right hemisphere is the sole seat of creativity?

Accepted Answer

MYTH: Functional MRI meta‑analyses reveal overlapping networks for reasoning and creative thinking across both hemispheres, disproving strict lateralization. Key Takeaway: Both hemispheres share logic and creativity. (Source: Psychological Science (2017))

Question 8

Is it a fact or a myth that In congenitally blind people, the visual cortex lights up when they listen to sounds, demonstrating that the brain can rewire sensory areas?

Accepted Answer

FACT: Functional MRI studies show robust activation of occipital cortex in blind participants during auditory tasks, indicating cross‑modal neuroplasticity. This reorganization improves sound localization and language processing (Bedny et al., Nature Neuroscience 2018). Key Takeaway: The brain’s map is flexible enough to repurpose unused regions. (Source: Nature Neuroscience (2018))

Brain, Memory & Neuroscience Myths vs. Peer-Reviewed Facts

All 🧠 Brain & Mind Claims (34)

“Viewing a rotating visual illusion can temporarily increase inattentional blindness to unrelated objects.”

“Intranasal oxytocin administration can temporarily reduce the urge to eat high‑sugar foods.”

“Extended periods of daydreaming cause irreversible loss of neuronal cells in the hippocampus.”

“A single dose of psilocybin can trigger the formation of new dendritic spines in mouse prefrontal cortex within 24 hours.”

“Acute psilocybin dosing synchronizes brain activity across the default mode network, and the degree of this connectivity predicts the intensity of the reported 'oneness' experience.”

“The frequency of hippocampal sharp‑wave ripple events during quiet wakefulness predicts a person’s ability to plan future routes.”

“The left hemisphere handles all logical reasoning while the right hemisphere is the sole seat of creativity.”

“In congenitally blind people, the visual cortex lights up when they listen to sounds, demonstrating that the brain can rewire sensory areas.”

“The human brain tissue itself contains zero pain receptors (nociceptors), which allows neurosurgeons to operate on the cerebral cortex while a patient is wide awake.”

“Feeling intense social rejection activates the exact same dorsal anterior cingulate cortex and anterior insula neural circuits as experiencing physical bodily pain.”

“During saccadic eye movements (darting your eyes from one point to another), your brain temporarily blocks visual processing for ~50 milliseconds per second and back-fills your perception afterward.”

“Subliminal messages flashed on a movie screen for 1/3000th of a second can override free will and force consumers to buy specific brands of popcorn or soda.”

“Venting anger by punching a pillow or screaming in a 'rage room' cathartically purges aggression and lowers hostility afterward.”

“Human memory works like a biological video camera that stores exact, objective recordings of events waiting to be replayed under hypnosis.”

“Humans use only 10 % of their brain, and unlocking the remaining 90 % would grant superhuman abilities.”

“Daily mindfulness meditation can shrink the amygdala in adults over 60, leading to lower physiological stress responses.”

“Regularly playing adaptive working‑memory games can increase gray‑matter volume in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex of adults.”

“Brief daily mindfulness attention drills enhance the brain's ability to filter irrelevant visual stimuli, as indexed by a larger N2pc ERP component.”

“Left‑handed individuals have a mirror‑image brain lateralization that makes them naturally superior at spatial puzzles.”

“Eating sugary foods in the morning guarantees superior cognitive performance throughout the day, a principle known as the “sweet science” of timing.”

“Engaging in daily science trivia boosts adult cognitive flexibility comparable to a 30‑minute aerobic workout.”

“Adult human brains are completely incapable of producing new neurons (neurogenesis) once brain maturation finishes at age 25.”

“People are strictly either 'left-brained' (logical/analytical) or 'right-brained' (creative/artistic).”

“Every time you recall an existing long-term memory, the brain physically unpacks and biochemically rewrites it, altering the original memory trace.”

“Dopamine is primarily the chemical neurotransmitter of pleasure and hedonic enjoyment.”

“The placebo effect can elicit measurable biological biochemical responses in your body even when patients are explicitly told they are taking a placebo.”

“Listening to Mozart or classical music permanently increases general intelligence (IQ) in children and adults.”

“The human brain consumes roughly 20% of the body's total basal metabolic energy despite representing only 2% of total body mass.”

“Having a photographic (eidetic) memory—the ability to visually recall a page of text like a photograph indefinitely—is scientifically verified in many adults.”

“Intense physical exercise triggers the release of lactate from muscles that directly crosses the blood-brain barrier to act as an energy fuel for neurons.”

“The human brain contains more synapses than there are stars in the Milky Way galaxy.”

“Flashbulb memories (intense, vivid memories formed during shocking historical catastrophes) are uniquely immune to distortion over time.”

“Chronic multi-tasking (task switching) trains the prefrontal cortex to process information faster and with greater cognitive flexibility.”

“Your enteric nervous system in the gut produces approximately 90% of your body's total serotonin.”

Explore Other Science Hubs

1-Minute Science Myth Digest