The Brain

• External structure - the cerebral cortex is the largest part of the brain and contains 4 lobes:

  • frontal lobe
  • parietal lobe
  • temporal lobe
  • occipital lobe
• Frontal lobe - thought, planning, motivation (Motor area, Broca's area)
• Parietal lobe - sensory (touch and movement) processing, somatosensory area
• Temporal lobe - language comprehension, hearing and memory (Auditory cortex, Wernicke's area)
• Occipital lobe - visual processing, (Visual cortex)
• Brainstem - helps control heart rate, blood pressure, swallowing and breathing
• Cerebellum - helps coordinate balance and fine muscle movements
• Thalamus - a 'relay station' for nerve impulses from the senses
• Hypothalamus - links endocrine and nervous systems, controls release of hormones from pituitary gland and autonomic functions
• Hippocampus - holds STM and aids emotional response and anxiety
• Corpus Callosum - responsible for transferring info from one hemisphere to the other
• Broca's area - speech production
• Wernicke's area - language comprehension