Getting into the Brain

The information presented is as follows:

The first section is titled, Getting into the brain. A black and white portrait of Phineas Gage standing and holding an iron rod is shown. Accompanying text reads, Finding Personality in the Brain (heading) in 1848 an accidental blast drove a 3-foot iron bar through the head of the railroad worker Phineas Gage. He survived, but his personality was markedly changed. Previously described as having a “well-balanced” mind, post-injury Gage was prone to angry outbursts and profanity (Harlow, 1868, 1869, as cited in Macmillan, 2000).

An illustration below shows an iron rod passing through a human skull; from the top of the head the rod pierces out through the left jaw. Accompanying text reads, Using measurements from his fractured skull, scientists have been able to estimate where the damage occurred (Ratiu, Talos, Haker, Lieberman, & Everett, 2004; Van Horn et al., 2012). Cases like this have helped psychologists understand the role of different structures in the brain.

The second section shows an illustration that depicts the head of a person with the brain exposed under the skull (labeled) under the title, Getting to the brain. The scalp, meninges, and the cortex are also labeled. Accompanying text reads, In order to study the brain, we must get to it first. Peel away the scalp and cut away the bony skull, and you will find still more layers of protection. Three thin membranes- the meninges- provide a barrier to both physical injury and infection. Bypass them, and the outermost layer of the brain, the cortex, is revealed.

The third section shows a schematic of the brain with the different lobes highlighted and labeled. They are the Parietal lobe: integration of sensory information like touch and temperature. Occipital lobe: processing of visual formation. Temporal lobe: hearing and language comprehension. Frontal lobe: higher-level cognitive functions like thinking, planning, and personality characteristics. Accompanying text reads, This drawing shows the left hemisphere of the brain. Each hemisphere is divided into lobes, which are associated with certain functions.

The fourth section shows the specialized areas of the brain highlighted and labeled along with their functions follow. Somatosensory cortex: receives sensory information from the body. Wernicke’s area: language comprehension. Broca’s area: language production. Motor cortex: commands the body's movements. Accompanying text reads, Unlike the lobes, which are associated with many functions, some areas of the brain have one specialized function.