The Network of the Human Body. The Nervous System The Network of the Human Body.

Our Brains: Computers of the body. Our bodies are controlled by the brain similarly to the way that a robot is controlled by its computer processing systems. Computers tell the robot what to do, and how to do it in the same way that our brains tell us what to feel, how to act, and what to think. Computers work off of rules that are basically this: - If a certain event happens, there is a determined output. And our brains are not all that different!

Not as far off as it seems! You would be surprised how many similarities there are between the brain and a computer chip! Not as far off as it seems!

Structures of the Brain!

Structures of the Brain!

The four lobes of the brain. Frontal Lobe: The decision making center of the brain, analyses information and compares it with other centers of the brain to come to conclusions. It is involved with determining the future, like determining the consequences of actions. It also is the site of control of voluntary movements.

The four lobes of the brain. Frontal Lobe: This is the area of the brain that makes us human, and far more intelligent than the rest of the animal kingdom, the size and level of advancement that we have in this lobe.

The four lobes of the brain. Parietal Lobe: The lobe of the brain that takes in sensory information and processes it, allowing you to feel things like touch from your skin. There is a map of your body along it and signals from different areas of the senses go to the related area of the parietal cortex.

The four lobes of the brain. Parietal Lobe: This lobe processes the information from your tongue about tastes. The parietal lobe is also responsible for relaying information about the location of objects in our visual field, where something is, and how it got there.

The four lobes of the brain. Occipital Lobe: The lobe that processes visual information and allows you to have vision. It is where we get our color vision, shape perception, and recognition of objects. Damage to this area can cause hallucinations or problems with determining motion, colours, or descriptions of objects.

The four lobes of the brain. Temporal Lobe: The lobe responsible for the processing of sound, giving us our hearing. It gives us the ability to understand languages that we use to communicate. This lobe is the center for a sense of smell The temporal lobe is home to the hippocampus, and is therefore important in the formation of memories.

Forebrain Thalamus Cortex Hypothalamus Corpus Callosum Midbrain Cerebellum Brain Stem Pons Medulla Spinal Cord

Structures of the Brain! 1) Thalamus: The relay station of the brain, taking in and sending out signals to the motor and sense areas of the brain. 2) The Cortex: The higher processing areas of the Brain, where the four lobes are found. 3) Hypothalamus: Releases hormones that control things like hunger, sleep, and timing.

Structures of the Brain! 4) The Forebrain: The most advanced section of the brain, the newest area in our evolutionary history. 5) Corpus Callosum: An information super-highway that connects the two sides of the brain. It lets the two sides talk to one another! 7) Cerebellum: Involved in co-ordination of movements, like dancing, balancing, picking things up, taking notes…

Structures of the Brain! 8) Pons: Relays messages from forebrain to the cerebellum to work with, as well as dealing with information from the senses and moving it on. 9) Medulla: The most basic area of the brain that controls your heart rate, blood pressure, and breathing! Pretty important stuff. It also senses when you need to vomit!

So if our brain is a computer, what are the wires? Just like a robot would have wires sending the information from the computer back and forth, we have a system that does the same for our brains. They are called: NEURONS!

Cell Body Nucleus Dendrites Node of Ranvier Axon Axonal Terminals Schwann Cell Nucleus Schwann Cell Myelin Sheath Terminal Endings

Parts of the Neuron: Cell Body: Home base of the cell, location of the nucleus. Nucleus: Control center of the cell, DNA located here just like all cells. Dendrites: The “ears” of the cell body, they listen for incoming signals from other neurons.

Parts of the Neuron: Axon: The long wires reaching out to where it needs to send information. Terminal Endings: The “mouth” of the nerve, that communicates its message to either another neuron, or a muscle.

Cool Word Art The Nerve Impulse Also known as an “action potential”. Relies on a conditions known as a: GRADIENTS Gradients are things that vary in concentration from high to low in areas. Cool Word Art

Nerves work because of unbalances in Ion concentrations. Concentration of Sodium ions (Na+) is significantly higher outside of the nerve cell. While concentration of Potassium ions (K+) is much higher on the inside of the cell.

Nerves work because of unbalances in Ion concentrations. These differences cause a force that wants to push the two types of ions across the membrane of the cell to the other sides. We use this force to power our signals.

Can you think of work that is done by gradients in our world today?

HYDRO POWER!!!! We harness the power of gradients to power everything we use today, especially here in Manitoba. This presentation is powered by gradients. It was created using the power of hydroelectricity, a type of power that harnesses the imbalance between levels of water.

A very complex system of events in a chain reaction! Action Potential Animation!