03/17/14 Parts of the Brain

• Midbrain
• Coordinates simple movements with sensory information
• Contains the reticular formation: Arousal and ability to focus attention.
• Thalamus
• In forbrain
• Receives sensory information and sends them to appropriate areas of brain.
• Like a switchboard.
• Covers everything but smell.
• Limbic System
• Emotional control center of brain.
• Made up of hypothalamus, amygdala, and hippocampus.
• Hypothalamus
• Pea sized in brain, but plays a not so pea sized role. 
• Body Temperate
• Hunger 
• Thirst
• Sexual Arousal (Libido)
• Hippocampus & Amygdala
• Hippocampus is involved in memory processing.
• Amygdala is vital for our basic emotions
• Cerebral Cortex
• Top layer of our brain.
• Contains wrinkles called fissures.
• The fissures increase surface area of out brain.
• Laid out it would be about the size of a large pizza.
• Hemispheres
• Divided into a left and right hemisphere.
• Contralateral controlled- Left controls right side of body and vice-versa. 
• Brain laterization
• Lefties are better at spatial and creative tasks. 
• Righties are better at logic. 
• Split- Brain Patients
• Corpus collosum attaches the two hemispheres of cerebral cortex. 
• When removed you have a split- brain patient.
• The cerebral cortex is made up of four lobes:
• Frontal Lobe
• Parietal Lobe
• Occipital Lobe
• Temporal Lobe
• Frontal Lobe
• Abstract thought and emotional control
• Contains Motor Cortex: Sends signals to our body controlling muscle movements.
• Contains Broca's Area: Responsible for controlling muscles- that produce speech.
• Damage to Broca's Area is called Broca's Aphasia: Unable to make movements to talk. 
• Motor and Sensory Cortexes
• Output: Motor Cortex- Left hemispheres controls opposite side of the body.
• Parietal Lobes
• Contain sensory cortex, receives incoming touch sensations from rest of the body.
• Most of the Parietal Lobes are made up of Association Areas.
• Association Areas
• Any area not associated with receiving sensory information or coordinating muscle movements.
• Occipital Lobes
• Deals with vision
• Contains Visual Cortex: Interprets messages from our eyes into images we can understand.
• Temporal Lobe
• Process sound sensed by our ears.
• Contains Wernike's Area: Interprets written and spoke speech.
• Interpreted in auditory cortex.
• Not lateralized
• Wernike's Aphasia- Unable to understand language: the syntax and grammar jumbled.

• The Endocrine System
• A system of glands that secrete hormones.
• Similar to nervous system, except hormones were a lot slower than neurotransmitters.
• Major Endocrine Glands
• Thyroid Glands- Affect metabolism, among other things.
• Pituitary Glands- Secretes many different hormones, some of which affect other glands.
• Adrenal Glands- Inner part, called the medulla, helps trigger the "fight or flight" response.
• Pancreas- Regulates the level of sugar in the blood.
• Ovary- Secretes female sex hormones.
• Testis- Secretes male sex hormones.