No matter which city you go to, each one has a discernable pattern to it and seems to grow in a particular way. If you've ever wondered why, wonder no more. It seems the answer is actually in our brains.


How, exactly, does that work ... and what does it mean? Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute figured out that cities are mapped out much the same way our brains are, and how they evolve follows the same path that both human and animal brains go through as they evolve.

The basic concept is that as brains mature and grow, they need a stronger network to support its thoughts and abilities. The same ideal applies to cities, too. As they grow and support more and more people, the infrastructure needs to expand to be able to accommodate the growth.

But that doesn't mean each city is cookie cutter, just as each brain isn't the same. For example, this article points out that you couldn't take Seattle and multiply it by three so that it equates the size and sprawl of Chicago. Well, you could, but it would no longer function with the same efficiency and flow because Seattle functions in a different way than Chicago, with fewer freeways and narrower roads.

The findings – and similarities – are actually quite interesting, and fully fleshed out in the report "Common Scaling Laws for City Highway Systems and the Mammalian Neocortex," published this week in the journal Complexity, written by scientist Mark Changizi. Check it out for more mind-bending city discussions, then visit his site for more fascinating findings.