HUMAN BRAIN

About Human Brain

The human brain is made up of two halves, a left and a right brain. There’s a big fold in the human brain that divides our brain into two different and unique parts. Well, almost different. These parts are connected to each other by a thick network of nerves at the base of each brain. This only link between the two parts is called the corpus collosum. It’s just like an Ethernet cable or network connection between two amazingly fast and very powerful computer processors, each running a different program from the same input. The left side of our body is connected to the right side of our brain and the right side of our body to the left side of the brain.  For whatever reason, nature did this intersection; it even applies to our eyes, which process the majority of our sensory data on opposite sides of the brain.

How is your brain positioned?

Prefrontal Lobe – Prefrontal lobe is found to play an important role in problem solving, spontaneity, impulse control, working memory and socialization. Prefrontal lobes help in controlling, coordinating, planning, performing behavior creating personality expression and moderating social behavior. People having damaged prefrontal lobe experience problems such as having behavior disorders, difficulty in learning new information), lack of goal-direction and emotional ability with “Flat effect” (unemotional).

Frontal Lobe – The frontal lobe is located behind the forehead and is the largest of the brain. The frontal lobe is very prone to injury as they are just inside the front of the skull and around rough edges. Frontal lobes are involved in decision making, selective attention, reasoning and judgement, planning, organizing, analysis, concept and idea formation, memory, handling of words and grammar and synthesis and creative thinking and visualization.

The Parietal Lobe – Parietal lobe is located behind the frontal lobes and integrates sensory information from various parts of the body. It is responsible for controlling activities and help to keep us from bumping into things when we talk. If damage happens to parietal lobe, it causes numbness and impairs sensation on the opposite side of the body. Back part of the parietal lobe if gets damaged, it causes right-left disorientation and problems with calculations and drawings.  And, if right parietal lobe gets damaged, it can cause aphasia – an inability to perform simple tasks like brushing hair or dressing.

Temporal Lobe – Temporal lobe helps in reception of hearing input. Right temporal lobe is responsible for music appreciation, while the left temporal lobe helps in understanding speech. Damage to temporal lobe results in impaired memory for verbal materials and also for non-verbal material such as music and drawings.

The Occipital Lobe – Occipital Lobe helps us in visual interpretation and visual spatial processing.  If occipital lobe gets damaged, it can lead to discrimination of movement and color discrimination. And can cause word blindness with writing impairments (alexia & agraphia)

Left and Right Brain Configuration and Characteristics

The theory of the brain structure and functions suggests that two different parts of the brain control two different “ways” of thinking. It also advised that each of us prefer one mode over the other. Right brain and left brain dominated people can be considered as divergent and convergent thinkers respectively. A person who is a convergent thinker will have a methodological approach and work by the rules. He studies everything and comes to a logical conclusion. Thus, activities like scientific and mathematical are more his forte.

 A divergent thinker comparatively is creative and tends to throw the rules out of the window. They are imaginative and expressive. When it comes to education, left brain thinkers work well at school and are more likely to respond to formal learning. They have great concentration and like to study by themselves. Right brain thinkers are likely to perform less academically and like to study with the company cannot concentrate for a long time and are more responsive in relaxed settings.