parts of the brain

frontal lobe

thought, planning, movement

not fully developed until 25

what makes humans unique: the size of this lobe

front + top

parietal lobe

touch + spatial relations

back top

occipital lobe

vision

back bottom

temporal lobe

hearing + memory

below, front, by ears

primary motor cortex

the back of the frontal lobe, right next to central fissure, cortical

controls voluntary movement to opposite side of body

right hemisphere controls body left side : left hemisphere controls body’s right side

primary somatosensory cortex

front of the parietal(back) lobe, first part or parietal lobe that touches central fissure

receives information from opposite side of body

left hemisphere receives input body right side : right hemisphere receives input body left side

limbic system

controls emotions

contains “inside” of brain

regulates emotions + motivated behavior

amygdala

almond shape

emotion

enables aggression + fear

hypothalamus

regulates body function

important in governing body: hunger, thirst, body temp, sexual behavior

helps in homeostasis

picks up info from other parts of brain and helps secreting hormones by controlling the pituitary gland

right above amygdala, below thalamus, tiny

4 Fs: fighting, feeding, fucking, fleeing

hippocampus

memory

processes conscious, explicit memories

on outside of basal ganglia, right on cusp on occipital lobe

basal ganglia

movement + reward

wraps around weirdly

thalmus

sensory gateway

above amygdala + hypothalamus + overlaps basal ganglia

atop brain stem, egg shaped

helps sensory control + relays sensory information

cerebral cortex

thin surface layer or interconnected neural cells that cover the cerebrum

ultimate control + information processing center

complex mental processing

cerebrum

largest part of your brain

handles conscious thoughts and actions

percieving, thinking, speaking

Hindbrain

brainstem structures

breathing, sleeping, arousal, coordination, and balance

brainstem

innermost part of the brain

medulla + pons

sets brain’s general alertness level + warning system

medulla

base of the brain

connects spinal cord

connect most nerves to&fro body to brain

connect nerves to opposite side of brain

pons

involved in regulation of sleep

reticular formation

controls alertness

cerebellum

regulates coordinated movement

2 identical wrinkles halves on the rear of brainstem

“little brain”

nonverbal learning, memory, and voluntary movemnet

helps w balancing + walking

prefrontal cortex

front area of temporal lobe

morality 

not fully developed until 25

primary visual cortex

in occipital lobe 

concentration in lobe dedicated to vision

fusiform face area

allows identification of faces

under periatal lobe 

larger than other animals

evolutionary beneficial to detect freind/foe

primary auditory cotex

in temporal lobe

responsible for hearing

central nervous system

brain + spine

decision making 

top down

peripheral nervous system

gathering information + transmitting CNS decisions into our body

nerves throughout body

sympathetic nervous system

in peripheral

arouses and expands energy

accelerates heartbeat, digestion, blood pressure

in survival mode

parasympathetic nervous system

in peripheral

decreases heartbeat, digestion, blood pressure

“resting” mode

Nervous System

network of neurons that extend from the brain throughout the whole body

Endocrine System

group of glands responsible for hormones

works in parallel w/ the nervous system

hormones

fundamental communication signals used by endocrine system 

chemical messengers that travel through the blood stream

feature detectors

nerve endings in occipital lobe visual cortex that respond to recognizing scenes + specific visual features

major divisions of the brain

forebrain: cerebrum mainly — think all wrinkly area

mindbrain: think limbic system

hindbrain: bottom/brain stem structures