Brainpower: Complex
Organ Controls your
every Thought and Move
MODULE 6
LEARNING
OBJECTIVES
Oidentify the left and right brain
functions that may help in
improving one’s learning,
Oexplore mind-mapping techniques
suited to right brain- or left brain-
dominant thinking styles, and
O value the importance of learning
how to be mentally healthy
THE POWER TO ACT
BRAIN STEM
OThe brain stem connects the
spinal cord and the brain.
OIt controls functions that keep
people alive such as breathing,
heart rate, blood pressure and
food digestion.
OThose activities occur without any
thought. You aren't telling
yourself, "Inhale. Exhale. Inhale."
You're just breathing.
CEREBELLUM
OThat region controls voluntary
movement.
OWhen you want to lift your fork,
wave your hand, brush your hair
or wink at a cutie, you form the
thought and then an area in the
cerebellum translates your will
into action. It happens so quickly.
ONeurons, the basic functional units
of the nervous system, are three-
OThey are comprised of a nerve cell
body, axon and dendrite, and they
power the rapid-fire process that
turns thought into movement.
OThe thought moves as an electrical
signal from the nerve cell down the
axon to a dendrite, which looks like
branches at the end of nerve cells.
OThe signal jumps from the end of
the dendrite on one cell across the
space, called a synapse, to the
dendrite of another cell with the
help of chemicals called
neurotransmitters.
CEREBRUM
OThe cerebrum is the largest of the
three brain sections, accounts for
about 85 percent of the brain's
weight, and has four lobes.
OThe lobes-frontal, parietal,
temporal and occipital -- each have
different functions.
OThey get their names from the
sections of the skull that are next
to them.
OThe parietal lobe helps people
understand what they see and feel,
while the frontal lobe determines
personality and emotions.
OVision functions are located in the
occipital lobe, and hearing and
word recognition abilities are in the
A Critical Age
O Because the brain's healthy functioning is
essential to living and determines quality of
life, doctors emphasize protecting the
organ from injury and chemical abuse.
O There is a consensus among researchers
that brain cells regenerate throughout life,
said Doug Postels, a pediatric neurosurgeon
in New Orleans, but that new growth
happens very slowly after a certain age
O "The size of the brain doesn't increase
much after 3," Postels explains.
Drug Damage
O Because so little recovery occurs to
brains damaged after age 3, the effects
of drugs and alcohol on the brain might
be lasting.
O Inhalants, such as glue, paint, gasoline and
aerosols, destroy the outer lining of nerve
cells and make them unable to communicate
with one another.
O In 1993, more than 60 young people died
from sniffing inhalants, according to National
Families in Action, a drug education center
based in Atlanta.
THE DOMINANT SIDE OF
THE BRAIN
O Researchers believed that brain
dominance determines a person’s
preferences, problem-solving style,
personality characteristics, and even
career choices.
WHAT IS MIND MAPPING?
O Mind mapping is a powerful thinking tool. It is
a graphical technique that mirrors the way
the brain works, and was invented by Tony
Buzan.
O Mind mapping helps to make thinking visible.
O Most people make notes using lined paper
and blue or black ink.
OEach branch holds a key image or
a key word. Details are then
added to the main branches and
radiate further out.
OMind maps have a wide variety of
uses, for example, note taking,
revision planning, planning for
writing and problem solving can
all be successfully carried out
using the technique.
YOU CAN GROW YOUR INTELLIGENCE
O How Do We Know the Brain Can
Grow Stronger?
