Abstract

In this chapter, I consider the decades of research carried out on Einstein’s brain and why they have proved to be, and indeed were destined to be, sterile. Intelligence, creativity, and genius are social phenomena. Einstein did stand alone and did not create ab novo. Genius is not as commonly supposed an individual attribute. It clusters, and genius clusters are associated with the rise and decline of civilizations and cultural areas. The myth of individualism supports the idea that Einstein made discoveries “merely by thinking” and that he embodied pure intellect.The myth of Einstein as “pure intellect” is sociologically untenable and is based on the grammatical illusion of the “I” and the myth of the brain as an isolated biological organ independent of external causal factors. I introduce some of the initial elements related to the social brain paradigm such as the connectome, neuroplasticity, and regional concepts of the social brain (as opposed to wholistic concepts).