Chapter 6- interaction between cognitive processes of the Brain and its Structure Flashcards
Midbrain
Connects the hindbrain with the forebrain and controls arousal levels, attention and consciousness; essentially comprises the reticular activating system (RAS)
Forebrain
Part of the brain responsible for higher order thinking processes, includes cerebral hemispheres
- problem-solving
- planning
- memory
- language
- emotions
- body movement
- upper level structures
Spinal cord
The bundle of nerve fibres connecting the brain with the peripheral nervous system.
- relays info between brain and body
- some simple reflexes
Hypothalamus
Structure in the forebrain that plays a major role in controlling emotion and motivated behaviours.
- Regulates emotions and ‘instinctive’ drives
- eating, sexual activities
Brain stem
- connects brain to the spinal cord
- Regulates reflex survival responses
Pons
- Responsible for sleep and arousal
- controls movement, breathing, sleeping, dreams and waking
Cerebellum
- perception and cognition, balance and fine muscle control
Medula
- Heartbeat, breathing and other vital bodily functions
Cerebral cortex
- outer layer of brain
- higher mental processes and complex behaviours
Corpus callosum
- thick band of 200 million nerve fibres
- connects left and right hemispheres of cerebral cortex
- enables communication, so information to pass through hemispheres
Limbic system
- hippocampus
- amygdala
Hippocampus
- in medial temporal lobe
- finger sized curved structure
- long-term memory and spatial orientation
- transfer memories to other parts of the brain for storage
Amygdala
- in medial temporal lobe
- almond shaped structure
- responsible for aggression and fear
- emotional memory
- implicit learning
- initiating and processing emotional responses and forming emotional memories
Hindbrain
The primitive parts of the brain, comprising the cerebellum, pons and medulla, adjoining to the spinal cord.
- important for movement and balance
Central Nervous System
- brain and spinal cord
- brain is able to communicate to rest of the body with the spinal cord
- conveys messages between brain and peripheral NS
Peripheral NS
- communication from body’s organs, glands and muscles to the CNS
- including info from outside world (sensory neurons) and from inside world (pains)
- communication from CNS to body’s organs, glands and muscles via motor neurons
- two sub divisions Somatic NS and Aotonomic NS
Motor neurons (nerves)
- neurons that communicate messages from CNS to particular muscles that organism intents to move
- also known as efferent neurons
- in Somatic NS
Sensory Neurons (nerves)
- a neuron that carries info from body and outside world into CNS
- in Somatic NS
Somatic NS
- responsible for voluntary movement of Skeletal muscles.
- motor neurons communicate from CNS to muscles intended to move
- interaction with environment
Autonomic NS
- responsible for communication of info between CNS and body’s non skeletal muscles
- and interaction with internal organs and glands
- operates without voluntary control or conscious awareness
Fight, flight or freeze response
- sympathetic NS emergency system
- active when organism perceives danger or in time of stress
- readies body for action eg running away, fighting the threat or remaining
Homeostasis
- Normal bodily functions
- relatively calm
- parasympathetic NS maintains body’s metabolic balance durning times of low arousal and no threat
Parasympathetic NS
- branch of Autonomic NS
- responsible for maintaining day to day functioning
- responsible for most automatic functions of the body
- digestion, heart rate, breathing etc
- homeostasis
Sympathetic NS
- branch of autonomic NS
- activates flight, fight or freeze response
Sympathetic NS actions
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Temporal lobe
- mainly responsible for processing auditory info (sensations received from ears)
- Primary auditory cortex in upper part of temporal lobe
- performs complex auditory analysis for understanding sound
- if electronically stimulated will report hearing sounds even if not there
- directly connected to the hippocampus - vital for encoding info into long term memory
Frontal lobe
- largest
- initiating movement
- language
- planning
- judgement
- problem solving
- aspects of personality and emotions
- left frontal lobe (Broca’s area) responsible for production of speech
- much of frontal lobe is association area
- this part is responsible for cognitive processes eg. Attention, planning, problem solving, aspects of personality
- includes the primary motor cortex in both hemispheres
Parietal lobe
- enables a person to perceive their own body and where things are located in their environment
- location of the primary somatosensory cortex
- right hemisphere enables person to perceive three-dimensional shapes and designs
- left hemisphere has a role in reading, writing and performing mental arithmetic
Occipital lobe
- entirely concerned with vision
- ## info from the left of each retina is processed in the left occipital lobe, also true for right
Longitudinal fissure
Deep grove running from front to rear of cortex
Primary visual cortex
- in occipital lobes
- processes info from the eye
Primary auditory contex
- in upper part of temporal lobes
- receives sound from ears
Primary somatosensory cortex
- in front of each parietal lobe
- processes sensations
- touch, pressure, pain from body , temp
Primary motor cortex
- rear of each frontal lobe
- next to the central fissure
- apart of the frontal lobe responsible for movement of skeletal muscles of the body
- left primary motor correct responsible for the right hand side movement.
Wernicke’s area
- in left temporal lobe
- responsible for language reception
- and interpretation and creation of grammatically correct speech
Broca’s area
- speech production center of the brain
- in left front lobe
Hemispheric specialisation
- Functions are contralateralised, some lateralised
- hemisphere able to communicate and work together
Association areas
Involved in the integration of the information between motor and sensory areas and higher-order mental processes
Gyri
The bulges on the brain containing enormous no. of neurons and blood vessels
