Neanderthal brains measure up to ours—literally

A brain-size analysis suggests Neanderthals had cognitive capacity comparable to early Homo sapiens.

Researchers used primate brain volume as a rough proxy for cognition across species.

Neanderthal brain capacity falls in a range linked to similar performance in cognitive comparisons.

By contrast, much smaller-brained hominins like Australopithecus afarensis appear far below that range.