Chapter 8 – Movement and Motor Control

Primary Motor Cortex

Controls voluntary muscle movements.

Primary somatosensory cortex

Processes touch and body position information.

Anterior

Toward the front of the body or brain.

Posterior

Toward the back of the body or brain.

Somatotopic

Organized mapping of the body in the brain’s cortex.

Motor homunculus

Representation of body parts in motor cortex based on control precision.

Somatosensory homunculus

Representation of body parts in sensory cortex based on sensitivity.

Mirror neurons

Neurons that fire during both performing and observing actions.

Multiple sclerosis

Disorder where myelin sheaths of neurons are damaged, slowing neural transmission.

Proprioception

Sense of body position and movement.

Nociception

Sensory perception of pain

Basal Ganglia

Group of structures involved in movement coordination and control