SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion

Any stories in which characters use more of their brain(ideally 100%)?

On first thought, I can't think of one SciFi novel where the main character(s) use more brain than brawn or fighting skills. In Fantasy novels, however, mages and druids do use more their brains, like Gandalf in LOTR.

I would be able to quote a couple of SciFi books where one heroine uses mostly her intelligence to win, but since I wrote those books, naming them would appear to be self-promoting, something not encouraged in this discussion forums.

I mean something based on theory -- humans only use 10% of their brains. Seek stories that extrapolate on above. What if humans use 60, 80, 100% of their brains? Abilities like telepathy , telekinesis and super intelligence may already imply higher brain usage but these things are usually in background. Want more as foreground/primary. For example how would 100 percenter deal with world filled with relative idiots?

Smallo wrote: "I mean something based on theory -- humans only use 10% of their brains. Seek stories that extrapolate on above. What if humans use 60, 80, 100% of their brains? Abilities like telepathy , telekin..."

The 10% thing is a myth.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ten_perc...

Are you looking for extremely intelligent Chessmaster style characters?
Two series of that variety are Codex Alera (high fantasy) and the Vorkosigan Saga (scifi)
First books:
Furies of Calderon(Codex Alera)
The Warrior's Apprentice (Miles' first book--the highly intelligent character)

Oh, one other: Ian Banks' Culture series is based on the idea that many species (including various humanoids) continued to evolve into a somewhat utopian super-advanced society (yes, it's called The Culture). Part of their standard practice is genetic tinkering, biomechanical and biological augmentation, and the construction of AIs ("Minds") so complex that they far surpass humanoids. Since the Culture is a post-scarcity civilization, time is spent on personal interests and meddling assisting other civilizations.
Does that go in the direction you're looking for?
**edit: here's the book link Consider Phlebas

Yes. Somewhat. I just remembered "Limitless" is based on book The Dark Fields which would meet my search more.

Poul Anderson's Brain Wave has the entire Earth move out of suppressing field. Turns out it was damping electrical effects, and every brain on Earth abruptly grows much, much, much smarter.

You might take a look at Gordon Dickson who used similar themes in several of his novels.

The Last Master
Wolfling
Dorsai!

Ted Chiang's short story "Understand"; I'm not sure where it was published originally, but it's in his collection .Stories of Your Life and Others

Any of the works by Alastair Reynolds in his Revelation Space univierse that include the Conjoiners ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Factions... )would fall into that category.

His collection of short stories Galactic North (I'm thinking specifically of the short story "The Great Wall of Mars" which can probably be found elsewhere as well) would be a great place to start.

Smallo wrote: "I mean something based on theory -- humans only use 10% of their brains. Seek stories that extrapolate on above. What if humans use 60, 80, 100% of their brains? Abilities like telepathy , telekin..."

As mentioned, but it bears repeating, the "people only use 10% of their brains" thing is nonsense.

However, if you're looking for "boosted intelligence" works, the seminal story is Flowers for Algernon, made into a movie called Charly. See also the John Travolta movie Phenomenon.

Camp Concentration is a really hardcore version of this, where the book becomes more difficult to understand as the narrator becomes more and more intelligent.

Larry Niven's Known Space books feature a latter-stage version of humans known as protectors, who have super-intelligence as well as a body designed for extreme environments and brutal fighting. The best place to start is Protector and then move on to Ringworld.

On the flip side you have Cyril M. Kornbluth's The Marching Morons, turned into the movie Idiocracy.

The Child Garden examines the difference between knowledge and intelligence.

The obvious one that jumped to mind for me was Dune's Mentats. And Flowers for Algernon, but Trike already mentioned that.

Dune