Brains of very smart kids mature later
MSNBCPosted: March 30th, 2006 by Steve Trinward
“Very smart children may seem advanced in many ways, but a new study shows they actually lag behind other kids in development of the ‘thinking’ part of the brain. The brain’s outer mantle, or cortex, gets thicker and then thins during childhood and the teen years. The study found that in kids with superior intelligence, the cortex reaches its thickest stage a few years later than in other kids. Nobody knows what causes that or how it relates to superior intelligence. But researchers said the finding does not rule out a role for environment — such as intellectual stimulation — in affecting a child’s level of intelligence.” (03/29/06)
