Concepts of Brain Function

Question 1

What are the functions of the brain?

Answer 1

Sensory - Concepts of perception and reception
Motor - Controls movement of limbs
Higher order - Thinking, emotions, planning, language, decisions

Question 2

What is the structure function relationship of the brain?

Answer 2

Idea of various parts of the brain being localised for specific functions
eg. Temporal lobe for audition and memory

Question 3

How were brain maps created?

Answer 3

Phineaus gage - brain injury which didn’t kill him but altered his personality

Histology brodam - View neurones that had different visual morphologies in different parts of the brain

Functional studies - Surgery on epilepsy patients
- Monitor activity of brain and localisation when carrying out tasks

Question 4

What is the homunculus?

Answer 4

Map of the cortex dividing it up into sections each with a different sensory function

Question 5

What is decussation?

Answer 5

Where the left side of the body sends information to the right side of the brain and vice versa

Question 6

What are the cortices and their hierarchy?

Answer 6

Primary
Secondary
Teritary

Question 7

What do the primary cortices do?

Answer 7

Small 5 of brain function

Used for primary specific functions

Question 8

What do the secondary cortices do?

Answer 8

Processes similar modalities of the 1’ cortices and has unimodal association

Question 9

What do the tertiary cortices do?

Answer 9

Multimodal association taking up 50% of brain

such as storage of information for planning and decisions
concepts of mental images and 3D representation

Question 10

What are some higher order functions of the brain?

Answer 10

Cognition

Consciousness

Question 11

How does the brain and neurones connect and what is the importance of their connectivity relationship?

Answer 11

1 neurone may have up to 10,000 synapses

No of neurones not as important as the No of connections each one makes

No of connections is important for function (many different Nts)