Localisation of Function

Question 1

What is holism vs localisation?

Answer 1

Brain responsible for all functions or is there specific areas for certain functions

Question 2

What is localisation of function mean?

Answer 2

Where a specific area is located and its specific function

e.g visual cortex for visual information

Question 3

What is the visual centre?

Answer 3

Visual cortex is located in occipital lobe

This processes visual information

Question 4

What is auditory centre?

Answer 4

Auditory cortex is located in the temporal lobe and processes sound

Question 5

What is the motor cortex?

Answer 5

It is in the frontal lobe

Controls the muscle movement

Question 6

What is somatosensory cortex?

Answer 6

It is located in the pariteal lobe

Processes sensory information from the skin

Question 7

What happens if visual centre is damaged?

Answer 7

Lose sight/partially blind

Question 8

What happens if auditory centre is damaged?

Answer 8

Dmage - deaf

Question 9

What happens if motor cortex is damaged?

Answer 9

Lose of movement

e.g can’t move arm - stroke

Question 10

What happens if somatosensory cortex is damaged?

Answer 10

Damage- lose of feelings

e.g not feeling hot or cold /pain

Question 11

Diagram of brain with centres labelled

Answer 11

Question 12

How does the visual centre work?

Answer 12

• Light enters the eye and stimuluates the retina
• Nerve impulses are transmitted via the optic nerve to the thalamus
• The message is then transmitted to the visual cortex in the occitpital lobe
• Visual information from right side is then transferred to left hemisphere
• left side is transferred to right hemisphere

Question 13

Where does visual centre appear?

Answer 13

Both hemispheres

Question 14

What is the thalamus control for?

Answer 14

Basic physiological health

Question 15

How does auditory centres work?

Answer 15

• Sound enters the ear and when choclea is stimulated nerve impulses then travel via the auditory nerve to the brain stem
• The message continoues to the thalamus to the auditory cortex where message is interpreted

Question 16

Where is auditory centre art?

Answer 16

Both hemispheres

Question 17

Where does auditory centre compare to temporal lobe?

Answer 17

Processes in opposite hemisphere in temporal lobe

Question 18

What does cochlea implant act?

Answer 18

• Put underneath skin
• acts as a substititue
• Sound recongised by vibrate

Question 19

Cochlea

Answer 19

Question 20

Where is the motor and somatosensory area next to?

Answer 20

The precentral and postcentral gyri

Question 21

Where do both motor and somatosensory cortex appear in?

Answer 21

Both hemispheres

Question 22

What does the somatosensory cortex process?

Answer 22

Sensory information from the skin

Question 23

How does the motor cortex sends?

Answer 23

Nerve impulses to the muscle

Different areas of the motor cortex control different muslce movements

Right side of the body is processed in the left hemisphere

Left side of the body processed in right hemisphere

Question 24

What is involved in the language centres?

Answer 24

• Broca’s area
• Wernicke’s area

Question 25

What is Broca’s area for?

Answer 25

Involved in speech production

Question 26

What is the Wernicke’s area used for?

Answer 26

• Involved speech comprehesion (understanding language)

Question 27

Explain where speech production and comprehesion are located and how the brain works for language

Answer 27

• Listening to someone about asking for lunch
• The person uses their auditory cortex (ear) for speech to go through
• This is then comprehended in Wernicke’s area
• Once this has made sense it goes to Broca’s area (transferred) using motor cortex to move muslces in mouth to answer question

Question 28

What happens if there is damage to Broca’s area?

Answer 28

Unable to produce speech

(difficulty procuding speech)

Question 29

What happens if there is damage to the Wernicke’s area?

Answer 29

May not understand SPOKEN LANGUAGE

Understand when written down (visual)

Question 30

Where is language centres situated at?

Answer 30

Left hemisphere

Question 31

Diagram of Broca’s and Wernciek’s area labelled

Answer 31

Question 32

Strength of localisation theory

Tan

Answer 32

• Supporting evidence coming from case studies such as Tan
• Tan has damage to the area in the front lobe that is responsible for speech production
• It supports that language production is exculsive to that part of the brain

Question 33

Another strength

Phinease Gage

Answer 33

• Unique cases of neurlogical damage support localisation theory such as case Phinease Gage recieved serious brain damage in an accident
• Gage survived but the damage to his brain affected his personality
• He went from someone who was calm to someone who was angry and quick-tempered
• The change in Gage’s tempermanent shows that the frontal lobe is responsible for regulating mood

Question 34

Limitation of localisation with existence of contradictory research

Answer 34

• The works of Lashely suggests higher cognitive function e.g learning processes are not localised but distrivuted in a more holistic way in the brain
• Lashley removed between 10% to 50% of the cortex in rats learning a maze
• No one area was more important than the other in terms of rat’s ability to learn thr maxe
• As learning required every part of cortex rather than particular areas
• This suggests learning is too complex to be localised

Question 35

A limitation

Neural plasticity is a cahllenge to localisation theory

Answer 35

• When the brain becomes damaged e.g through illness or accident
• A function has been comprised or lost , the rest of the brain reorganise itself to recover from function
• Lashley called this the law of eqipotentiaility - what happens in th other areas of brain ‘chip in’ so same neurological action can be achieved
• Although does not happen each time
• Several documents of stroke victims seemingly recovering abilites they have lost as part of illness