Accidents EEG Lesions and Functio nal MRI CAT PETMRI

Phineas Gage Story Personality changed after the accident. What does this tell us? Phineas’s frontal cortex (higher thinking) was severed from the part of the brain in charge of emotions.

Removal or destruction of some part of the brain. Frontal Lobotomy

EEG Detects brain waves through their electrical output. Used mainly in sleep research.

CAT Scan CAT( 3 Words) 3 D X-Ray of the brain. Good for tumor locating, but tells us nothing about function.

MRI More detailed picture of brain using a magnetic field to knock electrons off axis. Takes many still pictures and turns images into a movie like production.

PET Scan Measures how much of a chemical the brain is using (usually glucose consumption).

Combination of PET and MRI

1. Hindbrain 2. Midbrain 3. Forebrain Cerebral Cortex (part or forebrain)

Located just above the spinal cord. Involved in control of blood pressure heart rate breathing.

Controls our balance and fine movement skills

Coordinates simple movements with sensory information. Most important structure in Midbrain is the Reticular Formation: controls arousal and ability to focus our attention.

What makes us human. Largest part of the brain. Made up of the Thalamus, Limbic System and Cerebral Cortex.

Receives sensory signals from the spinal cord and sends them to other parts of the forebrain.

Brain Structures: Forebrain The Limbic System Emotions, our most basic reactions, are generated in the Limbic system along with the many appetites and urges that help us behave in such a way to survive. For instance, the Amygdala, is the place where fear is registered and generated.

Maybe most important structure in the brain. Controls and regulates Body temperature Sexual Arousal Hunger Thirst Endocrine System

Involved in the processing and storage of memories.

More involved in volatile emotions like anger.

Made up of densely packed neurons we call “gray matter” Glial Cells: support brain cells. Wrinkles are called fissures. If you lay brain out it would be as big as a large Pizza 2000 pizza.

The Cerebral Cortex is made up of four Lobes. TuyMK8ODsgKvz4kF&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=322&vpy=79&dur=2609&hovh=201&hovw=251&tx=156&ty=98&page=1&tbnh=120&tbnw=150&start=0&ndsp=9&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:0&biw=792&bi h=528

Abstract thought and emotional control.

Process sound sensed by our ears.

Wernick- Decodes speech Broca-Commands speech

Contain Sensory Cortex: receives incoming touch sensations from rest of the body.

Deals with vision. Contains Visual Cortex: interprets messages from our eyes into images we can understand.

logic sequential tasks. spatial creative tasks.

Connects the 2 hemispheres.

Patients with severe epilepsy will have a procedure done that removes their corpus callosum.

The idea that the brain, when damaged, will attempt to find news ways to reroute messages. Children’s brains are more plastic than adults.