The Nervous System
If you injure your brain or spinal cord, you have damaged this major division of the nervous system.
What is the Central Nervous System?
These specialized, branching cells are the fundamental units of the brain, designed to transmit electrical and chemical signals.
What are neurons?
Because of contralateral control, if you wiggle your right toes, the motor command originated from this half of your brain.
What is the left hemisphere?
A blow to the back of the head might cause you to "see stars" because it houses this vision-processing lobe.
What is the Occipital lobe?
This term refers to the brain's ability to change its neural structure and adapt in response to experience or injury.
What is neuroplasticity (or brain plasticity)?
This division of the autonomic nervous system is responsible for the "fight or flight" response, dilating your pupils and accelerating your heartbeat during a crisis.
What is the Sympathetic nervous system?
These branch-like appendages on a neuron are specifically designed to receive incoming communications from neighboring cells.
What are dendrites?
Often called the "little brain," this hindbrain structure helps you maintain balance and perform smooth, coordinated movements like riding a bicycle.
What is the cerebellum?
Damage to this lobe, located just behind the ears, could result in difficulty comprehending spoken language or creating new memories.
What is the Temporal lobe?
This type of brain injury develops gradually over time, such as from a growing tumor or prolonged alcohol abuse.
What is a tumor/mass (or insidious onset injury)?
Known as the "rest and digest" system, this takes over to calm your body down after a stressful event has passed.
What is the Parasympathetic nervous system?
A "runner's high" is often attributed to a flood of these natural, pain-killing, and pleasure-inducing neurotransmitters.
What are endorphins?
In split-brain patients, this thick band of nerve fibers is medically severed, preventing the left and right hemispheres from sharing information.
What is the Corpus Callosum?
The somatosensory cortex, which processes physical sensations like a cold breeze or a sharp pinprick, is located in this lobe at the top-rear of the head.
What is the Parietal lobe?
Parkinson's disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder caused by the loss of neurons in the midbrain that produce this neurotransmitter.
What is dopamine?
Voluntary muscle movements are controlled by the somatic system, while involuntary bodily functions are handled by this system.
What is the Autonomic nervous system?
This is the microscopic gap where neurotransmitters cross from the terminal buttons of one cell to the dendrites of another.
What is the synapse?
Recognizing faces, reading maps, and other spatial or holistic tasks are generally dominated by this half of the brain.
What is the right hemisphere?
Phineas Gage suffered massive personality changes when an iron rod blasted through this lobe, which oversees executive functions, planning, and judgment.
What is the Frontal lobe?
Often caused by right parietal lobe damage, this neurological disorder causes patients to completely ignore or fail to pay attention to the left side of their world.
What is spatial neglect (or hemispatial neglect)?
This broader system consists of all the nerves branching out from the spinal cord, connecting the central nervous system to the body's organs and muscles.
What is the Peripheral Nervous System?
While the nervous system uses fast-acting neurotransmitters, the endocrine system secretes these slow-acting chemical messengers directly into the bloodstream.
What are hormones?
Located at the base of the brainstem, severe damage to this structure is often fatal because it controls autonomic life functions like respiration and heartbeat.
What is the medulla?
Located within the left frontal lobe, damage to this specific area impairs a person's physical ability to produce fluent speech, leaving comprehension intact.
What is Broca's area?
This surgical procedure involves removing an entire cerebral hemisphere to treat severe epilepsy, demonstrating extreme neuroplasticity as young patients often retain their personality and cognitive function.
What is a hemispherectomy?