Humans are the most intelligent creatures on Earth precisely because they have highly developed brains compared to other animals. What are the differences between the human brain and animal brains? Let's discuss the main ones below.
From an evolutionary perspective, the human brain is more developed than animal brains, as evidenced by the highest EQ index (encephalization quotient, an indicator of brain development during evolution) in humans. The human EQ index ranges from 7 to 8, while that of other primates is 2 to 3, and that of rats is only 0.4. The energy consumption of the human brain accounts for 20% to 25% of the total energy consumption during rest (basal metabolism), while that of other mammals only accounts for 2% to 8%, indicating that the human brain is the most active. The human cerebral cortex has many complex folds, forming sulci and gyri, which expand the surface area of the cerebral cortex to 2,500 square centimeters. However, the rat's brain surface lacks sulci and gyri and is much smaller, with a cerebral cortex surface area of only 6 square centimeters, about one-fourth of that of the human brain.
The human cerebral cortex, especially the prefrontal cortex, is highly developed. The prefrontal cortex is responsible for abstract thinking, learning and memory, attention and decision-making, planning and motivation, as well as controlling fine and dexterous movements. The left hemisphere of the human brain has motor language centers, auditory language centers (with language comprehension functions), and visual language centers (with text reading functions), which are unique to the human brain and completely lacking in other animals' brain regions for understanding language and text. Production labor has shaped human hands, and social communication has given rise to human language. Therefore, the functional areas of the human cerebral cortex that control hand and language movements are particularly well-developed. Among them, abstract thinking and language comprehension are the foundation of the human brain's innovative ability. Although animals can also learn, remember, and make simple judgments and choices, they are absolutely incapable of creating the Internet and spacecraft.