PSYC 309 Lecture 2: Brain Structures 1
Document Summary
Cerebral cortex: the 2-3 layer (2-3 mm thick) of gray matter that forms the outer layer of the hemispheres of the cerebrum where thinking , cognition, and language occur. Certain sounds you make aren"t born of the cortex/aren"t cortical. Born at subcortical areas sobbing, groans, animal type sounds. Isocortex or neocortex: latin for "new bark"; contains six distinct layers. Allocortex: less than six layers; e. g. olfactory cortex, hippocampus. Cerebrum: cerebral cortex + several subcortical structures (hippocampus, basal ganglia, olfactory bulb) Cerebellum: part of the hindbrain (medulla, pons, cerebellum); control and coordination of muscular activity and maintenance of balance ("little brain") Limbic system: olfactory bulbs, hippocampus, hypothalamus, amygdala, emotions, appetites, urges, signal relaying, memory formation. Brainstem: alertness, breathing, heartbeat, blood pressure, eye movement (tracking) Brainstem and cerebellum is important for basic functioning. Eye spends about a quarter of a second for every word. Corpus callosum: "bridge" of nerve fibers that connect the two hemispheres of the brain.
