by Wendy Brock

Created on: February 13, 2008

The human brain is a complex and intricate organ that governs your daily existence. Without it, you cannot survive. What makes this organ particularly interesting is how it works, how much of it is actually used, and the many sections of the brain that oversees the entire body. Our thoughts, our movements, our memories, and our entire life depends on the proper functions of the brain.

The brain has three main regions: the central core, the limbic system, and the cerebral cortex. The central core supervises the basics of living such as breathing, sleeping, pulse, and movement. The Limbic system

The central core has five departments: the medulla, the pons, the reticular formation, the thalamus, and the cerebellum. The medulla regulates breathing, waking, sleeping, and heartbeat. The pons triggers dreaming and waking from sleep. The reticular formation sends signals about stimulation and keeps you alert at all times. The thalamus processes the signals it receives. For example, if you put your hand near a hot stove, the thalamus lets you know that you're about to get burned. The cerebellum maintains balance, coordinates body movements, and controls your posture.

The limbic system has three divisions: the hippocampus, the amygdala, and the hypothalamus. In "Meet the Robinsons," young Lewis creates a memory brain scanner. When he invents this machine, which we later find out is important to the time-space continuum, Lewis shouts, "I've cracked the hippocampus!" But exactly what does the hippocampus do? It is central to emotions, learning, and memory. The amygdala is important for behaviors with aggression, eating, drinking, and sexual behaviors. The hypothalamus monitors glucose levels, salt, blood pressure, and hormones. It's connected to the central and autonomic nervous systems and endocrine system.

The Cerebral Cortex is divided into two halves called hemispheres, with each hemisphere containing four lobes. The frontal lobe controls planning, decision making, and setting goals. The parietal lobe assists in attention and language comprehension. The occipital lobe processes what you see and passes on the information to the parietal and temporal lobes. The temporal lobe aids in what you hear, language comprehension, and what you see.

This basic overview of the brain doesn't begin to describe the complexities of the capabilities of the brain.

5 QUICK FACTS THAT YOU SHOULD KNOW:
The Brain:
1. Makes up only 2% of your body weight.
2. Generates 25 watts of power - enough to light up a light bulb.
3. Humans have the most complex brain of any animal.
4. The left side of your brain controls the right side of your body and the right side of your brain controls the left side of your body.
5. The human brain is about 75% water.

With all that water making up a huge portion of our brains, it's very important to drink plenty of water. This keeps the brain functioning properly.

Sources:
http://www.learner.org
http://www.ma mashealth.com

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