In 2012, four researchers at MIT researched the cerebellum’s role in predictions dealing with sounds produced by oneself, as well as sounds produced by others. The initial question in this experiment was whether or not “auditory stimuli are anticipated as a consequence of a motor act” (Knolle, Schröger, Baess, Kotz, 2012). In short, a total of twenty-two patients participated; eleven had a lesion located in the cerebellum, and eleven were healthy controls. Each participant underwent two experimental situations and one control. The conditions were auditory-motor, auditory-only, and motor-only, known as AMC, AOC, and MOC respectively. During the AMC, participants were instructed to tap their finger approximately every 2.4 seconds. The tap generated an immediate playback of a tone. In the auditory-only condition, the tone was played every 2.4 seconds, with no finger taps required. During the MOC, participants tapped their fingers every 2.4 seconds (self-directed). The experiment outcome found that the healthy controls “show the expected N100 suppression” generated by the finger taps (Knolle, et al, 2012). Conversely, participants with cerebellar lesions did not show the same expected brain activity. These participants struggled in predicting the tone playback during the auditory-motor-condition. Therefore, one of the cerebellum’s key roles in brain function is developing predictions using a forward model. A great deal of research finds that a key cerebellar role is motor control and planning; however, this experiment also found that the cerebellum plays a role in “sensory processing and cognition” (Knolle, et al, 2012).
The cerebellum is one of the best-known brain structures; this sector of the brain is approximately the size of...
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.... For example, sexual hormones are secreted when the hypothalamus receives signals from the cerebral cortex; the hypothalamus plays a significant role not only in bodily homeostasis, but in brain function.
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A pea-sized structure found at the base of the brain, below the hypothalamus. Its function is to produce hormones that control other glands and bodily functions...
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The hypothalamus is a part of the brain that has direct control over the release of hormones from the pituitary gland. These hormones are called regulatory hormones. They are considered regulatory hormones because they are molecules secreted into the blood to regulate secretion of anterior pituitary hormones (McKinley 669). Regulatory hormones are produced in the hypothalamus and they travel to the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland; therefore affecting target organs to produce certain functions in the body, and Graves disease is related to this process.
The cerebrum is located at the anterior-most part of the brain and is responsible for the combination of complex sensory and neural functions, as well as the initiation and coordination of voluntary activity in the body. It is the largest brain structure in humans and makes up two-thirds of the total mass of the brain (“Cerebrum Anatomy”, 2015). Its surface, a covering made up of grey matter usually 2-4mm thick, is called the cerebral cortex and is mainly made up of the cell bodies of neurons. The cerebral cortex is responsible for integrating sensory impulses, directing motor activity, and controlling higher intellectual functions. It is also responsible for the state of consciousness, which still remains a mystery to neurologists and the rest of the science community (Swenson, 2007).
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The area at the front of the brain is the largest. Most of it is known as the cerebrum. It controls all of the movements that you have to think about, thought and memory.