Localisation of Function Flashcards
Includes hemispheric lateralisation
What is localisation of function?
The belief that specific areas of the brain are associated with specific cognitive processes
E.g if an area is damaged via illness or injury, the function associated with that area will also be affected
What is the cerebral cortex?
- Outer layer of the two hemispheres
- Approx 3mm thick
- Appears grey due to cell bodies (grey matter)
What is grey matter?
40% of brain
Processes and sends information to parts of the body
What is white matter?
60% of brain
Connects areas and neurons
What is the motor cortex?
The region of the brain responsible for the generation of voluntary motor movements
What is the somatosensory cortex?
The region of your brain that processes input from sensory receptors in the body that are sensitive to touch
What is the visual cortex?
The region of the brain that receives and processes visual information relayed from the retinas
What is the auditory cortex?
The region of the brain that receives and process sound input
What is Broca’s area?
The area in the left frontal lobe associated with speech production
What is Wernicke’s area?
The area in the left temporal love important in the comprehension of language
How do the visual centers in the occipital lobes work?
- Retina at the back of each eye, light enters and strikes photoreceptors
- Nerves impulses transmitted to the brain via the optical nerve
- Impulses terminate in the thalamus (relay station) which then passes info onto the visual cortex
- Visual cortex spans both hemispheres, and has areas for different information (e.g colour, shape, movement)
- Left hemisphere relieves info from right visual field and vice versa
How do auditory centers in the temporal lobe work?
- Pathway begins in the cochlea, sound waves converted to nerve impulses
- Impulses travel to brain stem where basic decoding takes place
- Moves then to the thalamus, where further decoding takes place
- Impulses then arrive in the auditory cortex where sound is recognised
- Info from left ear is processed by right auditory cortex and vice versa
How do motor cortex and somatosensory cortex work?
- Motor cortex on left side controls muscles on right side of the body and vice versa
- Different parts of motor cortex exert control over different parts of the body
- Regions are arranged logically next to one another
- Somatosensory cortex detects sensory events arising from different regions in the body
- Uses sensory info from the skin
- Area of the brain produces sensations of pressure, heat and touch, which is then localised to different body regions
- Cortex of left side of brain receives info from right side of the body and vice versa
Where is Broca’s area located?
Back of the left frontal lobe
Near the motor cortex responsible for movement of the lips, jaw and tongue
What is the function of Broca’s area?
Speech production
Precise control of mouth to produce sound in the form of recognisable language