Psych brain regions vocab

Brainstem

responsible for automatic basic survival functions,memory, emotions, and basic drives such as hunger, thirst, sex, etc.

Cerebellum

Processing sensory input, Coordinates movement output, fine voluntary muscle movement, posture, & BALANCE. enables nonverbal and skill (procedural) learning and memory.

Reticular Formation

nerve network that travels through brain stem into the thalamus. Controls arousal, filters sensory information, focuses our attention on useful sensory input while filtering out unnecessary stimuli

Cerebral Cortex

the intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells covering the forebrain cerebral hemispheres: the body's ultimate control and information processing center perceiving, conscious & self awareness, thinking, decision making, speaking, and adaptation to environment

Thalamus

Receives sensory signals from the spinal cord and sends them to other parts of the forebrain that will process them. Seeing, hearing, tasting and touching

Hypothalamus

Link between brain and endocrine system. Helps in maintaining a steady internal state (homeostatic) & rewards. food, fluid, fornication, freeze. Brain reward center.

Hippocampus

Most involved in the processing and storage of explicit (conscious) memories

Amygdala

Vital for our basic volatile EMOTIONS like anger & fear, activates from potential threats. Triggers fight or flight.

Broca's area

responsible for controlling muscles that produce speech. Damage = Broca's Aphasia (difficulty speaking or talking)

Wernicke's area

interprets written and spoken speech (Left hemisphere only)

Prefrontal Cortex

enables judgement, planning, social interactions, and processing of new memories

Motor Cortex

sends signals to our body controlling muscle movements.

Somatosensory Cortex

it receives sensory input for touch, temperature and body position

Corpus Callosum

the large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres and caring messages between them (cut = split brain)

Frontal Lobe

Executive functioning, planning, emotional control, linguistic processing and abstract thought. Higher order thinking

Parietal Lobe

it receives sensory input for touch, temperature and body position

Occipital Lobe

Lobes in the back of our head that deals with vision.

Temporal Lobe

Processes sound sensed by ears. Interpreted in AUDITORY CORTEX. enables language processing