Chapter 1: Brain Basics Flashcards
How is the Cerebrum divided?
Into the right hemisphere and the left hemisphere, with the Corpus Callosum in between.
What is the Corpus Callosum?
A bundle of fibres that the two hemispheres of the cerebrum communicate across.
What is the Cerebral Cortex?
A sheet of tissue that covers the outermost layer of the Cerebrum. It is grey in colour so is commonly referred to as Grey Matter. Two thirds of the Cerebral Cortex is folded into grooves, increasing the brains surface area and allowing for inclusion of many more neurons.
What is the Frontal Lobe?
It is responsible for initiating and coordinating motor movements, higher cognitive skills such as problem solving, thinking, planning and organising, and many aspects of personality and emotional make up.
What is the Parietal Lobe?
Involved with sensory process, attention and language. Damage to the Parietal Lobe can result in difficulty navigating spaces, even familiar ones. If the left side is injured, the ability to understand spoken and/or written language may be impaired.
What is the Occipital Lobe?
Helps process visual information, including recognition of shapes and colours.
What is the Temporal Lobe?
Helps process auditory information and integrate information from the other senses. Neuroscientists also believe that the Temporal Lobe has a role to play in short term memory through it’s hippocampal formation, and in learned emotional responses through its amygdala.
What is the Forebrain made up of?
The Frontal Lobe, the Parietal Lobe, the Occipital Lobe, the Temporal Lobe, Basal Ganglia, the Thalamus and the Hypothalamus.
What are the basal ganglia?
Cerebral Nuclei deep in the Cerebral Cortex. They help to coordinate muscle movements and reward useful behaviours.
What is the Thalamus?
Passes most sensory information on to the Cerebral Cortex after helping to prioritise it.
What is the Hypothalamus?
The control centre for appetites, defensive and reproductive behaviours, and sleep-wakefulness.
What does the Midbrain consist of?
Two pairs of small hills called colliculi. These collections of neurons play a critical role in visual and auditory reflexes and relaying this type of information to the Thalamus. Midbrain also has clusters of neurons that regulate activity in widespread parts of the central nervous system and are thought to be important for reward mechanisms and food.
What does the Hindbrain consist of?
The Pons and the Medulla Oblongata, which control respiration, heart rhythms and blood glucose levels. Also the Cerebellum.
What is the Cerebellum?
Has two hemispheres. Control movement and cognitive processes that require precise timing and play an important role in Pavlovian learning.
What is the Cerebrum?
The largest part of the human brain. Associated with higher order functioning including the control of voluntary behaviour. Thinking, perceiving, planning and understanding language all lie within the cerebrum’ control.
