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Cerebral Cortex
Information in this presentation is taken from UCCP Content
Cerebral Cortex
The cerebrum is the largest part of the brain.
Only in humans does the cerebrum account for
such a large portion of the brain. It is
responsible for cognitive abilities such as
thinking and language. The cerebrum consists
of two hemispheres: the left and right
hemispheres. The hemispheres are connected
by the corpus callosum, a bundle of nerve
fibers. The surface or outer coating of the
cerebrum is the cerebral cortex. The cerebral
cortex is convoluted; it’s wrinkled with ridges
and valleys that allow for a lot of surface area to
be packed into a small area of the brain.
Cerebral Cortex
Each hemisphere of the cerebral cortex is divided into 4
lobes:
1) The occipital lobe contains the primary visual cortex
and is responsible for processing visual information.
2) The temporal lobe contains the primary auditory
cortex and is responsible for processing auditory
information.
3) The parietal lobe contains the sensory cortex, which
receives sensory information from the skin and other
body movements.
4) The frontal lobe contains the motor cortex and the
prefrontal cortex.
Cerebral Cortex
Each location in the sensory cortex represents touch
sensations and body location information from a different
body part. The entire body is mapped on the cortex.
The top of the cortex begins with your toes and each
body part has a location along the cortex until it reaches
the face and tongue. The sensory cortex on the right
side of the brain receives sensations from the left side of
your body whereas the mirror image on the left side of
your brain receives information from the right side of
your body. There are more neurons responsible for
receiving sensory information about the face and the
head than there are neurons for receiving sensory
information about the trunk of the body and the legs.
This is one reason why our face and head are more
sensitive to touch than other parts of our body.
Cerebral Cortex
Each location in the motor cortex regulates our movement
of a different body part. The motor cortex lies next to the
fissure that separates the frontal and parietal lobes and
each body part is assigned a position on the cortex in the
mirror image of the sensory cortex.
The prefrontal cortex is comprised of many association
areas, the areas of the cerebral cortex that are not
primarily involved in sensation and motor activity. These
association areas are involved in various aspects of
higher order thinking, including short-term memory,
planning, setting goals, creative thinking and decisionmaking.
Cerebral Cortex Behaviors
Try to determine which section of the cerebral cortex is responsible for
the behaviors being explained (answers on following slide):
1)
Throughout the day, Peter repeatedly has skin sensations of a
spider crawling on his right arm. When he went to brush it off,
nothing was there. Doctors found he had damage to his
_________________.
2)
Julie became unconscious after the back of her head was
slammed against the seat of the car in an accident. She was
blind when she awoke at the hospital. A neurological exam found
she had damage to the _________________.
3)
When Rebecca fell down some stairs, she hit the left side of her
head on the concrete. She initially had ringing out of her left ear.
It was concluded she most likely had damage to her
______________.
4)
After having being in a tragic accident, Bob was never the same.
He had difficulty making decisions or plans and he began acting in
a socially inappropriate manner. A PET scan showed he had
damage to the ___________________.
Answers
1)
2)
3)
4)
Parietal lobe or sensory cortex
Occipital lobe
Temporal lobe
Frontal lobe or prefrontal cortex