If intelligence is linked to the size of a person's brain, we all may want to listen more closely the next time we hear music. The person performing may be smarter than we are. Through the use of magnetic resonance imaging and computer software that reflects the number of cells in a person's brain, researchers at Beth Israel Medical Center in Boston counted nerve cells in musicians' and non-musicians' brains, according to a statement from the American Academy of Neurology . Gray matter is considered the part of the brain where most of the neural cells' nuclei, or central portions, reside. In contrast the brain's white matter is composed mostly of axons, or branches of the nerve cells.
Axons carry electro-chemical impulses away from cell bodies.
Making the abstract leap to say more brain cells means more intelligence is something science has yet to definitely determine. The focus of the study which was presented today at a meeting of the American Academy of Neurology was more on brain development and growth, not intelligence. The Academy says that results of the study may indicate use-dependent brain growth in response to intense environmental demands repesented by musical training in childhood . It is not the intention of this article to provide specific medical advice, but rather to provide users with information to better understand their health and their diagnosed disorders. Specific medical advice should not not be provided without a thorough physical examination.