The Cerebral Cortex Flashcards
(10 cards)
What is the cerebral cortex?
The outermost layer of the cerebrum takes up largest proportion of the brain
It is the centre of conscious thought, recalls memories and alters behaviour in light of experience
What is there in the cerebral cortex?
Localisation of brain functions, meaning certain areas are responsible for certain functions distinct from eachother
There are 3 main types of areas
What are the three main types of areas in the cerebral cortex?
Sensory areas
Motor areas
Association areas
What are sensory areas?
Receive sensory information from the body’s sense organs(sensory receptors via sensory neurons)
Example- touch receptors, thermoreceptors
What are association areas?
They analyse and interpret sensory impulses, they process and make sense of these then make decisions if necessary
There are different association areas for language, personality, imagination, intelligence
What are motor areas?
They receive information from the association areas and carry out orders by sending motor impulses to muscles and glands/effectors
What is the cerebrum divided into?
It is divided into two halves, the left and right cerebral hemisphere
Information from one side of the body is processed in the opposite side of the cerebrum
What are the cerebral hemispheres connected by?
A bundle of nerve fibres known as the corpus callosum
It allows the transfer of information between the cerebral hemispheres
Who are split brain patients?
People who’ve had their corpus callosum severed
We can use them to examine role of corpus callosum
Where is the language centre?
Left cerebral hemisphere
