Page 58 - Allah's Art of Detail

56 ALLAH'S ART OF DETAIL

The Human Brain’s Magnificent Neural Network

The global telecommunications network that enables hun-

dreds of millions of telephone calls to be made simultaneously is
something amazing. Yet in comparison to the network found in a
person’s brain, it seems quite ordinary. A human brain contains, on
the average, 100 billion neurons. We cite the following example to
understand this perfect network better: if the brain’s neurons were
laid end to end, they would stretch for several hundred thousand
kilometers. This extraordinary network is a main reason why sci-
entists describe the brain as one of the universe’s greatest mysteries.
There are around 100 trillion places in the brain, known as
synapses, where chemical processes occur. Any bodily cell can es-
tablish a connection with 1,000 separate brain cells by utilizing
these synapses. The speed of the resulting information processing
is truly amazing—one single data byte can reach 100,000 neurons
at the same time. As a result, the brain functions hundreds of thou-

sands of times faster than the most advanced computer. Dr Kerry
Bernstein, IBM’s director of technology, has said that it does not
seem possible to make a similar device with the same speed and
characteristics. 1
Of course, it is impossible to build such a comprehensive net-
work, squeeze it into a minute space, construct quadrillions of con-
nections, and then ensure that they all work in milliseconds.
Creating this perfect system, which has existed in each human be-
ing who has ever lived, is beyond human capability. The brain, this
comprehensive and detailed miracle, was created so that people
could realize this truth. This great gift belongs to Almighty Allah,
Who provides all kinds of blessings without demanding any rec-
ompense. The existence of this sublime marvel of creation once