Tricks to Remember the Parts of the Brain
• Brainstem – Composed of parts of the hindbrain & the midbrain
o “Stem” = lowest part of a plant, hence lowest part of the brain
• Cerebellum – Initiation & control of rapid movement of the limbs; posture & balance
o Ringing a “bell” is a rapid movement
o Affects “bell”ance (balance)
• Medulla – Controls breathing, heart rate, digestion, & other vital reflexes
o The two “ll”s stand for living/life functions
• Reticular Formation – Controls sleep & arousal; attention
o Rested vs. Fatigue
• Midbrain – Processes auditory & visual sensory information
o Midi is a type of audio format (for those of you who are computer literate)
o Contains the substantia nigra, which is responsible for motor control
o The substantia nigra also produces a substantial amount of dopamine
• Thalamus – Relay station that connects various parts of the brain. Regulates awareness, attention, motivation, & emotion.
o T”hal”amus. Like Hal in the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey – who coordinated the mission
• Limbic System – influences emotions, motives, and hormones
o Separates lower brain regions from cortex
• Hypothalamus – Regulates behavior related to survival (e.g., sexual behavior, hunger, thirst, sleep, water/salt balance, body temperature, hormones)
o Means “below the thalamus”
• Hippocampus – Learning & memory formation
• Amygdala – Involved in emotional responses such as fear, anger, & disgust; learning & memory formation
o Means almond in latin (if this helps, they look like little almonds on the ends of the hippocampus)
• Limbic system mnemonic: “I knew it was lunchtime because my hypothalamus told me I was hungry, thirsty, and cold. My hippocampus helped me remember a new restaurant that opened on campus, but when I got there I had to wait in line and my amygdala reacted with anger.”
• Cerebral Cortex – The outer layer of the brain
o Cortex means bark. So cortex is like the bark of the brain; cortex is the “casing” of the brain
o This is the area where your more “human” behaviors come from
• Occipital Lobe – Processing of visual stimuli
o “Oh Look!” – for seeing
o Located in back of head (like having eyes in the back of your head)
• Temporal Lobe – Processing of auditory information (hearing)
o Located just behind the ear (by your temples)
o When you’re listening to music, you’ll notice the song’s “tempo,” which means how fast/slow it goes
• Parietal Lobe – Involved in processing bodily information
o Involved in pain & posture (“P” words)
• Frontal Lobe – Important in thinking and planning behavior, coordinating complex movements, & constructing new memories; emotional control
o Located behind the Forehead
o Used for Forethought
o Keeps you from ForeGetting (involved in many intellectual tasks)
• Broca’s Area – Speech production; located in frontal lobe (left side only)
o Involved in speech “bro”duction
o Language and Left hemisphere (“L” words)
• Wernicke’s Area – Speech comprehension; located in temporal lobe (left side only)
o Wernicke starts with a “W” – a “double U” – “U” for understanding
o Language & Left hemisphere (“L” words)
• Corpus Callosum – Connects the hemispheres of the brain (it’s a bundle of axons)
o CC = “Cortex connector”
That’s a lot to take in, yeah? This is a simpler version which is based on our syllabus.
Cerebrum (headquarters)
– Interprets information from receptors
– Controls the movement of skeletal muscles in voluntary activities
– Site of intelligence such as learning, speech, remembering, reasoning, etc. [when you think, you sometimes put your fingers on your temples]
yup, like this
Cerebellum (cerebalance)
– Coordinates the contraction of the muscles during movement
– Control body balance to produce precise movements
Medulla oblongata
– Controls involuntary actions such as breathing, blood circulation and heartbeat
– As the reflex centre such as blinking, sneezing, coughing and swallowing
Pons
– Acts as a relay station between brain and the spinal cord. It passes impulses from the brain to the spinal cord and vice versa.
Thalamus (Tell ’em)
– Receives information from all sensory receptors
– Sorts the incoming and outgoing infos in the central cortex
Hypothalamus (below the thalamus, below levels ie. hungry etc.)
– Acts as major coordinating centre for regulating hunger, thirst, sugar level, and body temperature
– Controls the connection of the nervous system with the endocrine system
Encephalon's Orbit 