MIND and BRAIN

What is Brain ?
Functions of Brain
What is mind ?
Functions of mind
Brain and intelligence
Gender differences
Lateralization of brain.

M I N D and B R A I N
Brain is a physical entity with definite
functions.
Mind is a functional unitwithout specific
physical characteristics.
Mind lies somewhere in brain and without
brain mind can not exist.

BRAIN

The brain is an electrically powered and

electricity-generating organ
Composed of an estimated one hundred billion
neurons, each neuron produces and transmits
electrical impulses which travel from the cell
body down long fibers called axons until they
reach a junction, or synapse, with another
neuron.
At the junction point the electrical impulses
fire chemical messengers, called
neurotransmitters, across the synaptic gap to
receptors on the next cell

BRAIN
Having received the message, that neuron then

generates its own electrical impulse and sends it to

other neurons to which it is connected.
Each neuron can be connected to thousands of other
neurons, each simultaneously sending and receiving
impulses to and from thousands of other neurons--so
one neuron can electrically alter millions of other
neurons.
To get an idea of how complex this electrical system is,
the National Academy of Sciences estimates that "a
single human brain has a greater number of possible
connections among its nerve cells than the total
number of atomic particles in the universe."

BRAIN
The brain is the most complex organ in

the human body. It is surrounded by three

protective layers of tissue called the
meninges, and bathed in liquid called the
cerebrospinal fluid. This fluid also protects
the brain from injury and provides
nourishment to its surrounding tissues.

BRAIN
The brain is a well-defined object. It is a

material entity located inside the skull, which

may be visualized, touched and handled.
It is composed of chemical substances,
enzymes and hormones which may be
measured and analyzed
Its architecture is characterized by neuronal
cells, pathways and synapses.
Its functioning depends on neurons, which
consume oxygen, exchanging chemical
substance through their membranes, and
maintaining states of electrical polarization
interrupted by brief periods of depolarization.

Functions of Brain
Control movements of muscles of body
Perceptiongeneral & special senses
Reflex actions
Controlling functions of visceras by ANS
Regulating heart rate, breathing, swallowing
Regulating endocrine functions
Regulation of body temperature, fluid and
electrolytes
Functions of mind

Functions of Cerebrum
The cerebrum represents 85% of the total
weight of the human brain. It has a highly
convoluted surface.
thinking and learning
creativity
memory and emotion
problem-solving
Decisions
Motor movements
Recognition of senses

Functions of Thalamus
The thalamus is a key structure of

the cerebrum. It acts as a gateway

for sensory information coming from
the major systems -- vision, hearing
and balance, taste and smell -- to the
corresponding sensory area of the
cerebral cortex

Functions of Hypothalamus
The hypothalamus regulates the

autonomic nervous system,

reproduction and homeostasis.
Homeostasis is the process by which
our bodies maintain a stable internal
environment in the face of changing
conditions.

Functions of Brainstem
The brainstem regulates things like
heart rate, breathing, swallowing,
blinking, digesting, and more. It
controls the basic functions of the
brain

Functions of Cerebellum
cerebellum is a busy switching

station. It receives messages from

most of the muscles in your body. It
communicates with the other parts of
the brain, and then sends messages
about movement and balance back
to your body

MIND

It is amazing to verify that even after several

centuries of philosophy, hard dedication to brain

research and remarkable advances in the field of
neuroscience, the concept of mind still remains
obscure, controversial and impossible to define
within the limits of our language.
Mind is an attribute of the brain. From a
psychological viewpoint, mind gives rise to all our
efforts to understand anything.
Some might equate brain processes with mental
processes but we know, of course, that ideas,
feelings, beliefs, values, images, memories are
different than neural activity .

MIND
Mind of a person regulates the mental

functions which permit him or her to think and

to perceive, to love and to hate, to learn and to
remember, to solve problems, to communicate
through speech and writing, to create and to
destroy civilizations.
These expressions are closely related with
brain functioning. Therefore, without the brain,
the mind cannot exist, without the behavioral
manifestation, the mind cannot be expressed.

Functions of Mind
Voluntary actions
Thoughts
Moods
Behavior
Memory
Motivations
Emotions
Beliefs
Intelligence

Areas of brain believed to be

functioning as mind

BRAIN AND
INTELLEGENCE;EARLIER
CONCEPT
Neurologists and psychologists for decades

agreed that there were specific facts about the

brain and intelligence that were unchanging:
intelligence is genetically determined
people with high intelligence are born that way
experience can't increase or decrease innate
intelligence; experience can't change the
structure of the brain
growth in the total number of brain cells we
have is completed by age two; neurons cannot
reproduce themselves

NEW CONCEPT
increased brain stimulation in an

enriched environment produces not only

a growth in size and weight of the
cortex but completely alters and
enriches the quality of the entire
cerebral cortex.
animals show other changes in the brain
through learning the gross structure of
the cerebral cortex was altered both by
exposure to opportunities for learning
and by learning in a social context.

Difference between
genders
Major sex differences in intellectual function seem to lie in

patterns of ability rather than in overall level of

intelligence.
Men perform better than women on certain spatial tasks.
They also outperform women in mathematical reasoning
tests and in navigating their way through a route.
They are also more accurate in tests of target-directed
motor skills is in guiding or intercepting projectiles.
Women are better at rapidly identifying matching items, a
skill called perceptual speed.
They have greater verbal fluency, including the ability to
find words that begin with a specific letter or fulfill some
other constraints.
They outperform men in arithmetic calculations, recalling
landmarks from a route and performing certain precision
manual tasks such as placing pegs in designated holes on
a board.

LATERALZATION OF THE
BRAIN
The left hemisphere is described as
verbal, analytical, logical.
The right hemisphere is nonverbal
(responding to touch and music),
intuitive, and sensor

There are several ways to

investigate brain lateralization
Split-brain patients
Amytal testing
Dichotic listening and other

lateralized experimental procedures

Split brain patients offer

important insights into
lateralization

Communication between the

hemispheres can be
investigated

With amytal testing one

hemisphere is anesthetized

Dichotic listening is a normal

experimental procedure