When evaluating the information content of the brain, two classical polarities are clearly those of equipotence and localization. That the celebral cortex is a cohesive mass where one part in it may well substitute the other sits in stark contrast to the theory of hard-wiredness, of absolute cognitive faculties systematically located at places carefully assigned to them.
Arguably, there must be some reason behind the particularity of neural patterns and a sense of specific accuracy concomitant to it. And yet, theories of evolutionary accretion would put forth conjectures in support of natural redundencies in the 'normal' flow of natural selection. Tracing intrauterine development reveals a pattern of fetal growth where the embryo goes through stages remininscent of fishes, reptiles and nonprimate mammals before it becomes recognizably human, in which case, it is understandable to expect minor degrees of extraneousness, or at least, some lateralization of the concept of the absolute specific.
Redundancy of Memory Storage
A pioneering effort in the field of research on the mechanisms of learning and memory, Karl Lashley's experiment turned the tables on phrenology, a field of study that extremized the significance of localization. In his study of engrams - places on the cerebral cortex where learning took place, he surgically extirpated sizeable parts of up to 10% from different locations on the frontal cortex of lab rats. No significant changes were noted and the rats' recollection of previously learned behaviour on how to run mazes was largely intact, indicating that the same memory must be localized in various regions within the cortex, thus lending weight to the theory of equipotentiality.