Unit 3 - Human health and Development Flashcards
upper left - Brain
Frontal Lobe
Phineas Cage
September 13th, 1848
25 yo
Rutland & Burlington Railroad, Cavendish VT
“Tamping Iron”
Accident - no longer gage
Died 12 years later
Brainstem
Responsible for automatic survival functions
responsible for automatic survival functions
Brainstem
Medulla
Controls heartbeat and breathing
Controls heartbeat and breathing
Medulla
Thalamus
Relays Messages
Relays Messages
Thalamus
Cerebellum
Coordination and balance
Coordination and balance
Cerebellum
Brainstem
Heart rate and breathing
Heart rate and breathing
Brainstem
Reticular Formation
Widespread connections
-Arousal of the brain as a whole
Reticular activating system RAS
-Maintains consciousness and alertness
-Functions in sleep and arousal from sleep
The Cerebellum
Helps coordinate voluntary movement and balance
Helps coordinate voluntary movement and balance
The Cerebellum
The Limbic System
The hypothalamus, pituitary amygdala, and hippocampus all deals with basic drives, emotions, and memory
Hippocampus - memory processing
Amygdala - aggression (fight) and fear (flight)
Hypothalamus - Hunger, thirst, body temperature, pleasure; regulates pituitary gland (hormones)
Hypothalamus - Limbic System
neural structure lying below (hypo) the thalamus; directs several maintenance activities
-eating
-drinking
-body temperature
helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland
linked to emotion
Amygdala - Limbic system
two almond shaped neural clusters that are components of the limbic system and are linked to emotion and fear
Thalamus
The brain’s sensory switchboard, located on top of the brainstem
Directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla
Cerebral Cortex
The body’s ultimate control and information processing center
Lobes of the cerebral hemispheres
frontal lobe - planning, decision making, speech
central sulcus - in between
parietal lobe - sensory
parieto occipital sulcus - in between
occipital lobe - vision
pre-occipital notch - in between
temporal lobe - auditory
Cerebral Cortex - Frontal Lobes
- involved in speaking and muscle movements and in making plans and judgements
- the executive
Cerebral Cortex - Parietal Lobes
- include the sensory cortex
Cerebral Cortex - Occipital Lobes
-Include the visual areas, which receive visual information from the opposite visual field
Cerebral Cortex - Temporal Lobes
- includes the auditory areas, each of which receives auditory information primarily from the opposite ear
The Cerebral Cortex
Frontal Lobe (forehead to top) - Motor Cortex
Parietal (top to rear) - Sensory Cortex
Occipital (back) - Visual Cortex
Temporal (above ears) - Auditory Cortex
Motor/Sensory Cortex
Contralateral (opposite side)
Homunculus (ilttle human)
Unequal representation - the brain focus on the motor movements are not equally distributed among the body. Most = hands and mouth
The Cerebral Cortex - Aphasia
Impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damaging either to Broca’s area (impairing speaking) or to Wernicke’s area (impairing understanding)
The Cerebral Cortex - Broca’s area
An area of the left frontal lobe that directs the muscle movements involved in speech
The Cerebral Cortex - Wernicke’s Area
An area of the left temporal lobe involved in language comprehension and expression
Language Areas
Broca - Expression
Wernicke - Comprehension and reception
Aphasias
Paul Broca [1800s]
Suggested Localization
Techniques to examine functions of the brain
- Remove part
of the brain &
see what effect it
has on behaviour - Examine
humans who
have suffered
brain damage - Stimulate the brain
- Record brain activity
Brain Lateralization - Divided brains
Corpus Collosum - a large bundle of neural fibres (myelinated axons, or white matter) connecting the two hemispheres.
Hemispheric Specialization - LEFT
Symbolic thinking (language)
Detail
Literal meaning
Hemispheric Specialization - RIGHT
Spatial perception
Overall picture
Context
Metaphor
Contra-lateral division of labour
Right hemisphere controls left side of body and visual field
Left hemisphere controls right side of body and visual field
Split brain patients
Epileptic patients had corpus callosum cut to reduce seizures in the brain
lives largely unaffected, seizures reduced
Affected abilities related to naming objects in the left visual field
Brain plasticity
The ability of the brain to reorganize neural pathways based on new experiences
Persistent functional changes in the brain represent new knowledge
Age-dependent component
Brain injuries
Sensation
The process by which the central
nervous system receives input from
the environment via sensory neurons
Bottom up processing
Perception
The process by which the brain interprets and organizes sensory information
Top-Down Processing
The psychophysics of sensation
Absolute threshold
- the minimum stimulation needed to detect a stimulus with 50% accuracy
Subliminal stimulation
- below the absolute threshold for conscious awareness
– may affect behaviour without conscious awareness
Sensory adaptation/habituation
- diminished sensitivity to an unchanging stimulus
The five major senses
Vision
Hearing
Touch
Taste
Smell
Vision - senses
Electromagnetic - occipital lobe
Hearing - senses
Mechanical - Temporal lobe
Touch - senses
Mechanical - Sensory cortex
Taste - senses
Chemical - Gustatory insular cortex
Smell - senses
chemical - olfactory bulb
6-9th sense (hehe)
Vestibular
Proprioceptive
Temperature
Nociception
Vestibular sense
Balance and motion - inner ear
Proprioceptive - sense
Relative position of body parts - Parietal lobe
Temperature - sense
Heat - thermoreceptors throughout the body, sensory cortex
Nociception - sense
pain - Nociceptors throughout the body, sensory cortex
Thresholds of the 5 major senses
Minimum:
Vision - candle flame, 30 miles, dark clear night
Hearing - clock at 20 feet under quiet conditions
Taste - one teaspoon of sugar in 2 gallons
Smell - one drop of perfume diffused into the entire volume of six rooms
Touch - The wing of a fly falling on your cheek from a distance of 1 cm
Retina
Retina at the back of the eye is part of the brain.
Rods - brightness,
cones - colours
Neuroplasticity
The brain’s ability to change throughout life through forming new connections between brain cells.
Environment, actions, and genetic factors play a significant role in plasticity.
Occurs at the beginning of life, in case of brain injury, and whenever something new is learned and memorized as an adult.
Do you ever stop learning?
No. It was once believed that as we age, the connections in the brain become fixed and then simply fade, however it is found that people never stop learning.
What can happen to a given brain function due to brain damage
If a part of your brain becomes paralyzed, slowly, the brain can shift the movement from the dead section to another part of your brain and begin to move it again.
This is called a functional shift.
How does the environment affect neural plasticity
Brainstem connections -
Brain, spinal chord
Nervous system
Multiple tasks occur at the same time
The brain splits the larger task of driving int several smaller tasks
The brain manages the body through the nervous system.
Central Nervous System (CNS)
Made up of the brain, spinal cord, and neurons
Control and communication center for your entire body
Its job is to send and receive messages.
Control all your thoughts and movements
Central Nervous System - neurons
Brain Cell - allows your brain to send messages to every part of your body
The brain has billions of them and they have many specialized jobs
Neurotransmitters - neurons - central nervous system
Neurons communicate by releasing certain chemicals that are known as neurotransmitters.
Carry electrical-chemical messages
Names of Neurotransmitters
Norepinephrine
Endorphins
Dopamine
Norepinephrine - Neurotransmitters
Memory and learning, not enough is associated with depression
Endorphins - Neurotransmitters
Like an opiate, it produces a feeling of well-being. Released during exercise, excitement, and pain.
Dopamine - Neurotransmitter
Learning, emotional arousal, and movement. Too much = schizophrenia
Too little = Parkinsons
Serotonin - Neurotransmitter
Sleep, mood, emotions,
Spinal Cord-2nd part of CNS/Central Nervous System
Tubes of neurons run up the spine and attach to the brain stem
Receives and sends messages to the Peripheral Nervous System
The Brain - 3rd part of the CNS/Central Nervous System
Command and main information center
Helps body respond to the information it receives from the senses
Parts that need protection
Neurons - protected by myelin
Spinal Cord - protected by vertebrae
Bain - protected by skull
What is the Peripheral NS
The smaller branches of nerves that reach the other parts of the body
Sends information to and from the Central Nervous System CNS
Somatic SNS
Controls voluntary activities: actions that your body makes in response to impulses from the nerves
Autonomic ANS
Controls involuntary activities
ex: breathing, blinking, digestion
Sympathetic System
Prepares the body for dealing with emergencies or strenuous activity
ex: speeds up the heart to hasten the supply of oxygen and nutrients to body tissue
Decrease your digestion and immune system
Parasympathetic
Works to decrease and save your body energy after strenuous activity.
Ex: Reduces heart rate and blood pressure. Brings the body back to a resting state.
Nervous system simple summary
Brain as a central computer
+
Nervous system is like a network that relas messages
Spinal Cord carries messages
Brain development in infants
Babies lose half of their neurons at birth. This process is referred to as pruning and may eliminate neurons that are not used.
Baby talk increases vocabulary.
When a change in behaviour happens, learning occurs.
Early Brain Growth
During the first month of life, the number of connections or synapses dramatically increases.
The Child’s brain forms synapse at such a rate that it consumes twice as much energy as an adult brain. That furious pace continues for the child’s first decade of life
Wernicke’s area - damage
result in receptive aphasia, where the person can speak but cannot understand language.
Broca’s area - damage
result in expressive aphasia, where the person has difficulty speaking and forming sentences.
Auditory cortex - damage
result in hearing loss or difficulties processing auditory information.
Primary visual cortex - damage
result in visual impairments, including partial or total blindness.
Thalamus - damage
result in sensory impairments, such as a loss of sensation or difficulty processing sensory information.
Cerebellum damage
result in coordination and balance problems, as well as difficulties with fine motor skills.
Cerebral cortex - damage
result in a wide range of symptoms, depending on which part of the cortex is affected. This can include problems with movement, sensation, language, and other cognitive functions.
Medulla - damage
result in a range of symptoms, including breathing difficulties, blood pressure problems, and changes in heart rate.
Pituitary gland - damage
result in hormonal imbalances, which can affect a wide range of bodily functions.
Hypothalamus - damage
Result in a range of symptoms, including disruptions to sleep, body temperature, hunger and thirst, and emotional regulation.
