Curiosity Topics

I wonder......how a brain functions?

At first, I looked at the different dimensions of the nervous system, this is what I found out! I found out the brain, is your body's decision and communication centre. The central nervous system is made of the brain, spinal cord, and the peripheral nervous system. Together, they control everything you do, from blinking to choosing what to eat. Nerves reach from your brain to your face, ears, eyes, nose, and spinal cord and from the spinal cord to the rest of your body. The sensory nerves in your body, gather information about the things around you, then send that information to the spinal cord. Then the spinal cord sends a speedy message to the brain. The brain then sends a response to that information. Motor neurons then send the instructions from the brain to the rest of your body.  The spinal cord is made up of a heap of nerves that run up and down the spine, the spinal cord sends messages to and from the brain every second.

The brain itself is made up of three main parts: the forebrain, midbrain, and hindbrain. The forebrain is made up of the cerebrum, thalamus, and hypothalamus (part of the limbic system). The midbrain is made up of the tectum and tegmentum. The hindbrain is made up of the cerebellum, pons, and medulla. Often the midbrain, pons, and medulla are referred to together as the brainstem. The cerebrum or cortex is the largest part of the human brain, which controls thought and action. The cerebral cortex is divided into four sections, called "lobes": the frontal lobe, parietal lobe, occipital lobe, and temporal lobe.

What does each of these lobes do?

Frontal Lobe- associated with reasoning, planning, parts of speech, movement, emotions, and problem-solving

Parietal Lobe- associated with movement, orientation, and recognition.

Occipital Lobe- associated with visual processing

Temporal Lobe- associated with perception and recognition of auditory stimuli, memory, and speech

Whenever we eat food something called dopamine is released in the brain. Dopamine is a compound in the body as a neurotransmitter and a protector of other substances including adrenaline. It is one of those chemicals that is responsible for transmitting signals between the nerve cells (neurons) of the brain. Very few neurons actually make dopamine. However after eating the same food time after time, the dopamine levels begin to even out and we no longer find the dish as satisfying as we once did, this is because the human brain is supposed to motivate us to eat different varieties of food.

From Kashaye and Michelle