For the first time, a structure comparable to our cerebral cortex has been found in an invertebrate — a humble marine ragworm.

THE GIST:

A marine ragworm has brain structures that researchers now believe are directly related to the human brain.

Other invertebrates likely also possess the brain structures, which correspond to our cerebral cortex.

The origins of the human brain can now be traced back at least 600 million years, when we last shared a common ancestor with marine ragworms.