Introduction to the Brain These notes should go in the “Biological “ Section of your binder. Only take notes on the slides with this symbol.

The Brain and Psychology Sweet heart? Or Sweet brain? What’s the deal with Left-handers? Do you use half your brain? Why Grandpa’s not so quick How Prozac and other medications like that work

Phrenology Franz Joseph Gall ( ) proposed that discrete regions of the cerebral cortex control specific functions. Brain does not act as a unitary organ but is divided into at least 35 organs. Each “organ” corresponds to a specific mental faculty. Center for each mental function increased in size as a result of use. As each center grew, it was thought to cause the overlying skull to protrude.

Phrenology Creating patterns of bumps and ridges on the skull. Indicated regions of the brain which were most developed. Correlating personality with bumps –develop an anatomical basis for describing character traits.

Is it our heart or brain? Thoughts Sensations - touch, smell, taste, sight, hearing, pain Feelings - love, hate, joy, calm, surprise, guilt, etc. Personality

The Real Me “Everything we are is basically wrapped up in our brain, enclosed in a hard- cover carrying case, some more attractive than others”

Two Brains We have two brains, each with their own specialty.

Our Divided Brain Left brain: – the “dominant” or “major” brain hemisphere. – Reading, writing, speaking, math reasoning, and understanding in general – Controls the right side of the body

Our Divided Brain Right Brain: – here visual perception is better than the left brain – it is better able to recognize music – our ability to express emotions comes from this hemisphere – Controls the left side of the body

Today’s Activity In 96% of the population, the side of the brain that contains the area important for language is the left side. People have dominant parts of their bodies for other jobs too. For example, about 90% of the population is right-handed. In other words, the right hand is dominant...right-handed people prefer to use their right hand for most tasks. What about the foot, eye and ear? Which foot is dominant? Which eye? Which ear? The following set of experiments will help you find out if people have a dominant hand, foot, eye and ear.

The Corpus Callosum: The large band of neural fibers connecting the left and right brains that transfers more than a billion bits of information per second. Wow, no wonder I can’t remember where my right hand put the car keys.

Important Brain Parts Occipital lobe- handles visual info Temporal lobe- handles the audio Parietal lobe- sensory information Frontal lobe- for smelling, speaking and thinking

Other Important Brain Parts

The Brain on the Cell Level A brain cell is a specialized nerve cell, or NEURON. All of the nervous system is made up of long chains of neurons, some 100 billion of them. Different parts of the neuron have special functions

Neurons: Nerve Cells Dendrites -tree root like fibers that receive information and bring to Soma Soma- or cell body, collects, combines and passes along information Axon- slender fibers that passes information to other neurons, muscles or glands Myelin- fatty layer covering the Axon that helps speed impulses down the axon (about 8 feet per second). Is not fully developed at birth and may degenerate when we get old. Thus babies and Grandpa- not too quick

Neural Communication Drawing

At the end of the Axon: Synapse – Fluid filled gaps between the axons and dendrites Neurotransmitters – Chemical messengers that relay messages across the synapse

Neurotransmitters Are known to affect the mood and personality of the individual and include Epinephrine (better known as Adrenaline) Norepinephrine Dopamine (Study – Texting while driving) Serotonin Acetylcholine Levels can be controlled by medications such as Prozac