Central Nervous System

The central nervous system is divided into two parts: the brain and the spinal cord. The averageadult human brain weighs 1.3 to 1.4 kg (approximately 3 pounds). The brain contains about 100 billion nerve cells (neurons) and trillons of "support cells" called glia. The spinal cord is about 43 cm long in adult women and 45 cm long in adult men and weighs about 35-40 grams. The vertebral column, the collection of bones (back bone) that houses the spinal cord, is about 70 cm long. Therefore, the spinal cord is much shorter than the vertebral column.

Peripheral Nervous System The peripheral nervous system is divided into two major parts: the somatic nervous system and the autonomic nervous system. Somatic Nervous System The somatic nervous system consists of peripheral nerve fibers that send sensory information to the central nervous system AND motor nerve fibers that project to skeletal muscle. The picture on the left shows the somatic motor system. The cell body is located in either the brain or spinal cord and projects directly to a skeletal muscle. Autonomic Nervous System The autonomic nervous system is divided into three parts: the sympathetic nervous system, the parasympathetic nervous system and the enteric nervous system. The autonomic nervous system controls smooth muscle of the viscera (internal organs) and glands.

Ductless Gland There are certain organs which are very similar to secreting glands, but differ from them in one essential particular, viz., they do not possess any ducts by which their secretion is discharged. These organs are known as ductless glands. They are capable of internal secretionthat is to say, of forming, from materials brought to them in the blood, substances which have a certain influence upon the nutritive and other changes going on in the body. This secretion is carried into the blood stream, either directly by the veins or indirectly through the medium of the lymphatics. These glands include the thyroid, the parathyroids and the thymus;the pituitary body and the pineal body; the chromaphil and cortical systems to which belong the suprarenals, the paraganglia and aortic glands, the glomus caroticum and perhaps the glomus coccygeum.The spleen is usually included in this list and sometimes the lymph andhemolymph nodes described with the lymphatic system. Other glands

as the liver, pancreas and sexual glands give off internal secretions, as do the gastric and intestinal mucous membranes

Parts of the Brain The human brain is hugely interconnected but three major components can be identified: the cerebrum, the cerebellum and the brain stem. The brainstem which includes the medulla, the pons and the midbrain, controls breathing, digestion, heart rate and other autonomic processes, as well as connecting the brain with the spinal cord and the rest of the body. The cerebellum plays an important role in balance, motor control, but is also involved in some cognitive functions such as attention, language, emotional functions (such as regulating fear and pleasure responses) and in the processing of procedural memories. The cerebrum (or forebrain), which makes up 75% of the brain by volume and 85% by weight, is divided by a large groove, known as the longitudinal fissure, into two distinct hemispheres. The left and right hemispheres ("left" and "right" refer to the owner's point of view, not an outside viewer's) are linked by a large bundle of nerve fibres called the corpus callosum, and also by other smaller connections called commissures. Most of the important elements of the cerebrum, are split into symmetrical pairs in the left and right hemispheres. Thus, we often speak of the temporal lobes, hippocampi, etc (in the plural), although this website generally follows the convention of speaking of the temporal lobe, hippocampus, etc (in the singular), which should therefore be taken to mean both sides, within both hemispheres. The two hemispheres look similar, but are slightly different in structure and perform different functions. The right hemisphere generally controls the left side of the body, and vice versa, although popular notions that logic, creativity, etc, are restricted to the left or right hemispheres are largely simplistic and unfounded. The cerebrum is covered by a sheet of neural tissue known as the cerebral cortex (or neocortex), which envelops other brain organs such as thethalamus (which evolved to help relay information from the brain stem and spinal cord to the cerebral cortex) and the hypothalamus and pituitary gland(which control visceral functions, body temperature and behavioural responses such as feeding, drinking, sexual response, aggression and pleasure). The cerebral cortex itself is only 2 - 4 mm thick, and contains six distinct but interconnected layers. It is intricately grooved and folded into the familiar convoluted pattern of folds, or gyri, allowing a large surface area (typically almost 2m2) to fit within the confines of the skull. Consequently, more than two-thirds of the cerebral cortex is buried in the grooves, or sulci. About 90% of all the brains neurons are located in the cerebral cortex, mainly in the "grey matter", which makes up the surface regions of the cerebral cortex, while the inner "white matter" consists mainly of myelinated axons, over 170,000 km of them. As many as five times that number of glial cells exist to support the active nerve cells. he cerebral cortex plays a key role in memory, attention, perceptual awareness, thought, language and consciousness. It is divided into four main regions or lobes, which cover both hemispheres: the frontal lobe (involved in conscious thought and higher mental functions such as decision-making, particularly in that part of the frontal lobe known as the prefrontal cortex, and plays an important part in

processing short-term memories and retaining longer term memories which are not task-based); the parietal lobe(involved in integrating sensory information from the various senses, and in the manipulation of objects in determining spatial sense and navigation); the temporal lobe (involved with the senses of smell and sound, the processing of semantics in both speech and vision, including the processing of complex stimuli like faces and scenes, and plays a key role in the formation of long-term memory); and the occipital lobe (mainly involved with the sense of sight). The medial temporal lobe (the inner part of the temporal lobe, near the divide between the left and right hemispheres) in particular is thought to be involved indeclarative and episodic memory. Deep inside the medial temporal lobe is the region of the brain known as the limbic system, which includes thehippocampus, the amygdala, the cingulate gyrus, the thalamus, thehypothalamus, the epithalamus, the mammillary body and other organs, many of which are of particular relevance to the processing of memory. The hippocampus, for example, is essential for memory function, particularly the transference from short- to long-term memory and control of spatial memory and behaviour. The amygdala also performs a primary role in the processing and memory of emotional reactions and social and sexual behaviour, as well as regulating the sense of smell. Another sub-cortical systems (inside the cerebral cortex) which is essential to memory function is the basal ganglia system, particularly the striatum (or neostriatum) which is important in the formation and retrieval of procedural memory.

Division of the Brain The forebrain is responsible for a variety of functions including receiving and processing sensory information, thinking, perceiving, producing and understanding language, and controlling motor function. There are two major divisions of forebrain: the diencephalon and the telencephalon. The diencephalon contains structures such as the thalamus and hypothalamus which are responsible for such functions as motor control, relaying sensory information, and controlling autonomic functions. The telencephalon contains the largest part of the brain, the cerebrum. Most of the actual information processing in the brain takes place in the cerebral cortex. The midbrain and the hindbrain together make up the brainstem. The midbrain is the portion of the brainstem that connects the hindbrain and the forebrain. This region of the brain is involved in auditory and visual responses as well as motor function. The hindbrain extends controlling such autonomic functions as breathing, heart rate, and digestion. from the spinal cord and is composed of the metencephalon and myelencephalon. The metencephalon contains structures such as the pons and cerebellum. These regions assists in maintaining balance and equilibrium, movement coordination, and the conduction of sensory information. The myelencephalon is composed of the medulla oblongata which is responsible for

Core of the brain

The Central Core is found in all vertebrates. Its five main regions help regulate basic life processes, including breathing, pulse, arousal, movement, balance, sleep, and the early stage of processing sensory information. The Medulla is the center for breathing, waking, sleeping, and beating of the heart. The Pons triggers dreaming and waking from sleep. The Reticular Formation signals the cerebral cortex to attend to new stimulation and to remain alert even during sleep. The Thalamus begins the process of interpreting sensory information. It determines fundamental properties, such as whether something is good or bad, and then forwards the information to the appropriate area of the cerebral cortex, where information processing continues. The Cerebellum coordinates body movements, controls posture, and maintains equilibrium.