Teen Brain Scans Revisited
My response to a post on the NYRA Forums.
Well. On my way home, I started thinking about all the forums I was reading last night. And I was thinking about one forum in particular. Now. I am 14 and ALL for youth rights. My question is. What do you all think about the development of the human brain. Because I mean, some things I DO believe should wait till a certain age. Like I dont think 8 year olds should be able to go into a vons, buy a bottle of captain morgan and get drunk off their ass. At the same time, I think its lame as hell that we have to wait until we’re 21. I’m just wondering. Because alot of you are really smart and I want to know what you guys think about the development of the human mind?
There are two types of studies to look at. Physical brain scans, which is what everyone seems to focus on nowadays, and studies that actually examine behavior. We also have to examine the term “development”.
Brain scans, that show the brain isn’t finished developing until 25 or so (yay I finally have a developed brain!) do not necessarily relate to behavior. They are purely physical. I think they are junk science akin to phrenology where the size and shape of your skull were examined to see how intelligent you were. Phrenology was junk science used to reinforce bigoted stereotypes of the time about racial minorities. Modern day brain scans are junk science used to reinforce bigoted stereotypes about youth.
All these brain scan studies rely on the faulty assumption that middle age is the ideal state for humanity. Just like the phrenologists assumed that white skulls were the ideal, superior skull. Modern scientists measure everything against middle aged brains, and if you don’t match then you are inferior somehow. I think it is fair to say that teen brains and middle aged brains are different but I think it is highly questionable and prejudiced to automatically declare teen brains as undeveloped and inferior. There are many ways in which teens are MORE intelligent, versitle and useful than middle agers. Yet those folks promoting these brain scans never consider that possibility.
What scientists consider a “developed brain” is a brain where extra synapses have all died off, thus greatly reducing your ability to process and collect new information. Biases scientists see this as a good thing because, they claim, it allows you to focus on the information you already know. I think this is just a ridiculous argument. Learning is central to human life and activity, a brain that is less suited for learning is a deficient brain in my opinion. This is simply a case of adult scientists making conclusions that support the idea that adult brains are superior in the same way white scientists reached conclusions 100 years ago that white brains were superior. Don’t believe the hype.
Finally we have thusfar only looked at physical characteristics. The author of one such study even admitted that physical differences in the brain doesn’t necessarily translate to behavioral differences. So what we should look at is studies that actually observe behavioral differences. Those studies all for the most part point to the fact that at around 14-15 most people have adult cognitive abilities, and many people get there at like 11-12. Furthermore if you don’t get there by like 15, it is likely you never will - regardless of your age. Other studies suggest that intelligence peaks at 14-15.