>"I am somehow less interested in the weight and convolutions of Einstein’s brain than in the near certainty that people of equal talent have lived and died in

>"I am somehow less interested in the weight and convolutions of Einstein’s brain than in the near certainty that people of equal talent have lived and died in cotton fields and sweatshops." not. There weren't people of equal talent in cotton fields and sweatshops. It is possibly that there were people who at the age of 2 had the brain with the same potential as Einstein's brain at the age of 2 (though not likely as Einstein's brain seems to have unique basic biological parameters like smaller size of neurons and greater ratio off energy generating cells to neurons). Brain development is reflected in its biological structure. The brain of a 30-40 years old is the _biological_ result of the 30-40 years of development of that organ. Different experiences, like intensive studies and intensive manual labor create different brains - different sets of neurons wired differently. Silicon waffers look the same before being lithographed and frequently look the same after, yet they may be lithographed with completely different CPU/chips/etc...