Download Parts of the Brain - LHS-Social

Parts of the Brain
Three parts of the brain
Hindbrain (lower)
Mid brain
Forebrain (upper)
Hindbrain
Brain Stem:
the center of involuntary actions:
balance, breathing, heartbeat
Medulla:
monitors the body’s response to injury,
blood pressure, and reflexes such as
sneezing and laughing
Reticular Activating System:
Involved in sleeping and wakefulness
Begins in hindbrain, rises thru midbrain
Hindbrain
Pons:
Relay station between cerebellum and
cerebral cortex
Regulating body movement, attention,
sleep/alertness
Cerebellum
Responsible for movement, balance,
and posture
Coordination – if damaged, can cause
someone to walk unsteady or fall
Midbrain
Top inch of the brain stem
Connecting station for nerve signals
Contains part of the reticular activating
system; passes signals from hindbrain to
forebrain
Involved in vision and hearing
Forebrain
Limbic system
Controls emotional response
Hypothalamus:
The size of a pea. Controls body temp.
and regulates the pituitary gland
Helps control hunger/thirst
Forebrain
Thalamus
Relays information from the body to the
brain
Gets back information that is sent to
other parts of the brain and spinal cord
Cerebrum
2/3 of brain, 70% of weight
Divided into 2 hemispheres, each w/ 4
lobes
covered by cerebral cortex (outermost
“bark” of the brain)
Two hemispheres: right v. left
The two hemispheres are connected
by a bundle of nerve fibers called the
corpus callosum
Corpus callosum allows the two sides to
communicate with each other
Four lobes of the brain
Frontal
located in the front of the brain, behind
the forehead
Core of a person’s personality and
emotional reactions
Socially appropriate behavior:
Judgment
Problem-solving
Impulse control
Reasoning
Memory and ability to plan
Four lobes of the brain
Temporal
Located behind your ears
Responsible for hearing, music,
understanding speech, and memory for
nonverbal events
Memory
Hearing
Recognition
Perception
Hearing language: Right – non, left - verbal
Four lobes of the brain
Parietal Lobe
Located on the top of your head
Your left parietal lobe makes sense of
info coming in from the right side of your
body; right does the opposite.
Helps you understand body senses,
pressure, heat, cold pain, reading,
thinking
Four lobes of the brain
Occipital lobe
Located on the back of your head
Responsible for vision – left controls
right vision, right controls left vision
Damage can cause blindness
Endocrine System
The nervous system’s partner in
controlling and coordinating the
body’s functions
Hormones:
Chemical messengers which are sent
into the bloodstream and are responsible
for maintaining normal growth, sexual
development, and metabolism.
Endocrine System
Glands: the organs and tissues
scattered throughout the body that
produce hormones.
Glands
Pituitary Gland
Controlled by hypothalamus
Often called the master gland b/c its
hormones influence many of the other
endocrine glands.
Growth hormone
Glands
Thyroid Gland
Produces energy the body can use from
nutrients
An overactive gland will cause you to
feel nervous and jittery
An under-active gland will make you feel
slow and depressed (and likely gain
weight)
Glands
Adrenal Gland
Influences metabolism and physical
characteristics
Body shape
Hairiness
Produces adrenaline
In response to stress, fear, and anger