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Compare Brains

Compare Brain and Body Sizes

Compare Brain Structures- Slices and Slides

The Neuron- Up Close and Personal

The Question of Intelligence

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Structures of the Brain

Just Looking...
Human Brain

So far we have looked at brains, compared their sizes and their outer appearances. We have thought a little about intelligence and the relation between brain and body size. We have seen many different kinds of brains . . . but only from the outside.

By looking at brains from the outside, we certainly got a sense that different animals that behave differently have different brains. What happens if we look at these brains from the inside?? What will we see? What can we learn by slicing into a brain and exploring the structures inside?

Will we find more differences, more similarities, or both??

As the pictures we've already seen reveal, the brains of animals come in a large variety of sizes, shapes, and degrees of complexity. Why are they so varied? In what ways are the various brains the same or different from one another? You may even have some questions about, say:

  • Why do humans and frogs communicate in different ways?Froggie at Computer
  • Do animals with impressive motor skills have different structures that allow those skills?Frog Dancing
  • What structure is associated with intelligence?


  • How can we differentiate between structures anyhow?

First, let's talk about the basics. What does it mean to "slice" a brain? Click on the button below . . .

Slicing terminology

Can we skip this and just start slicing?

Huh? Where am I?