Free Learning and Memory Essay Sample

The human mind cannot operate independently without the involvement of the nervous system which creates a stream of network that is distributed to all parts of the body for transmission and reception of information from one part of the body to another through the brain for interpretation and recording. The neurons consist of several parts that are different from each other and specialized to perform particular functions. Dendrites which are short fibers are located near the body cells and helps in receiving information from the other neurons and transmitting to the body cells. The axon which is a long fiber transmits incoming information from other neurons to the muscle or the glands in the body.

The axon is surrounded by a white fatty amino acid layer known as myelin sheath which insulates the signals from the nearby neurons against interference of impulses and speed s up transmission of impulses. It contains glial cells that surround the axon and provides the axon cells with nourishment, eliminating waste products from the cells and protecting the entry of harmful substances. The neurons send information from various parts of the body through transmission of signals from the sensory organs in the body to the brain for interpretation.

Differences between the inner and outer membranes of the neuron create a low potential region thereby allowing positive sodium ions. The flow of positive sodium ions in and out of the membrane initiates a chain of impulse reaction that makes the neuron to be in a state of fire. For effective transmission of signals to take place it requires the neuron to be in fire where the incoming signal should exceed the threshold excitation of graded potential energy to propel this action. After firing stage the neuron undergoes another phase known as refractory period. At this period any incoming signal should have more excitation energy than the previous action to initiate another fire. At the end of the neuron there is terminal buttons that convey the information to the next neuron via the synaptic space.

Acetylcholine (ACH) which is released when the neuron meets with the skeleton muscle of the body plays a major role in arousal, memory, motivation and attention. Low production of acetylcholine causes a disease known as Alzheimer. Dopamine has an influence on voluntary muscle movement, learning and emotion. The lack of dopamine production in the brain cause parson's diseases that is associated with rigidity of the muscle. Serotonin is a kind of transmitter that opens to most of the receptors and controls our mood .It regulates our sleeping patterns, emotion, pain, mode of eating and involvement in aggressive behavior. Endorphins' is a kind of transmitter that inhibits neurons from transmitting pain in the brain. Low amounts of GABA (Gama amino butyric acid) are associated anxiety. It is explicated in sleeping and eating patterns and inhibits body reactions. Glycine has been credited to inhibition in the spinal cord and most parts of the lower brain.

The Brain performs a lot of functions to maintain our daily operations. It influences how people reason, think, retain the memory and how people dispose various emotion reaction in different situations. The brain is divided into 3 major regions: the central core, the limbic system and the cerebral cortex.

The central core is located in the region where the spinal cord meets with the brain skull forming the hindbrain. The portion of the hindbrain that is nearest to the spinal cord is called Medulla which influences the breathing pace, heart biting pattern and blood pleasure in the body. It also connects the crossing over of the incoming nerves from the body to higher parts of the center brains. Cerebellum (the little brain) covers both the top and the bottom portions of the crown. It is responsible for regulating our body movement through provision of motor and muscle coordination and body balance.

Midbrain is located above the cerebellum and helps in hearing and sight process, in addition it registers pain.  Thalamus is an egg like structure located in the upper part of the brain involved in integrating and coordinating the incoming impulses from the lower stratus of the brain to the upper parts. Hypothalamus controls the disposition of motivation and emotion that we experience in our daily life.

The limbic system is more advanced in development compared to the central core. Primitive animals that mostly rely on this system follow a universal way of engaging in various activities such as mating compared to the mammals that employ cerebellum hemisphere that is flexibly and more advanced. Hippocampus helps human beings to form new memories and its damage results to memory loss.  Amygdala works in collaboration with the hippocampus to maintain the stimulation and preservation of one's emotion.

The cerebral cortex accounts for about 80% of the area covered by brain; it's divided into two main hemispheres namely: The right and left hemispheres. Each of these hemispheres contains four lobes that are specialized to perform various functions. Occipital lobe helps in interpreting visual information that comes from the associate neurons. Temporal lobes helps in language understanding, maintain body balance, recognizing people's faces and receives and process information from the ears. Parietal lobe helps in receiving all the information from the sensory parts by registering it on somatosensory cortex. Also enhances spatial abilities such as following a map of an area and provision of direction. Frontal lobe influences voluntary body movement through coordinating the signals from the lobes and guides the emotional control and attention prescribed to attain a specific behavior.

The right and the left hemispheres are connected through the corpus callosum that is located in the cortex part of the brain. In this illustration the person is looking at the incoming ball that is reflected on the right side of the screen. Using the concept of hemisphere specialization; it is recorded on the left side of the brain hemisphere which is accountable for the ability of language, muscle movement in writing and tasks involving symbolic reasoning. The left hemisphere is also responsible for controlling the right side of the body whereas the right hemisphere is accountable for controlling the left side of the body. According to the research done this has been proved using split brain persons. The split brain person portrays the way the two hemispheres communicate with one another when the corpus collosum is eliminated. When the object is reflected on the right side of the screen the person is in a position to recognize the object and name it.

This is because the left hemisphere receives half visual information from the right side of the body and coordinates the right hand to touch the object. Conversely the right hemispheres receives left half visual field  information from the left side of the body and help coordinating the left side of the body in performing spatial tasks. But in centrally to the right hemisphere it has no language ability thus making it hard for split brain people to explain the object in question. In this scenario the person tries to block the incoming ball using the right hand because the information is recorded and interpreted in the mind that the ball is about to hit him. Using the right left hemisphere which has the ability to mobilize the right side of the body sends a message to the motor and reflex muscle to initiate the lifting of the hand.

 

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