FUNCTIONAL AREAS OF THE o function:
CEREBRAL CORTEX • contraction of specific
skeletal muscles on
1. Sensory Areas contralateral or opposite side
o receive sensory information from of the body
the various receptors and
sensory/ascending tracts b. Broca’s motor speech area
o involved in the conscious o location: frontal lobe
awareness of a sensation called o function:
“perception” • translates thoughts into
speech
1. Primary somatosensory area • impairment causes non-
o “general sensory area” fluent, expressive or Broca’s
o location: parietal lobe (postcentral aphasia – cannot express
gyrus) thoughts clearly but can
o functions: understand; stuttering.
• perception of touch,
pressure, vibration, 3. Association Areas
proprioception, pain, itching, o makes associations between
tickle, and temp. various kinds of sensory information
• allows one to discriminate – interprets and creates output
where sensations originate o also associates new sensory inputs
with memories of past experiences
2. Primary visual area and plans appropriate motor
o location: occipital lobe responses
o function:
• visual perception a. Somatosensory association area
o location: parietal lobe
3. Primary auditory area o functions:
o location: temporal lobe • integrates and interprets
o function: what is felt such as the
• perception of sound exact shape and texture
of an object
4. Primary gustatory area
o location: parietal lobe b. Visual association area
o function: o location: occipital lobe
• perception and o functions:
discrimination of taste • interprets what is being
seen; relates present and
5. Primary olfactory area past visual experiences
o location: temporal lobe
o function: c. Auditory association area
• perception and o location: temporal lobe
discrimination of smell o functions:
• interprets sound
2. Motor Areas
o control the execution of voluntary d. Wernicke’s area
movements o location: temporal lobe
o function:
a. Primary motor area • interprets the meaning of
o location: frontal lobe (precentral speech by recognizing
gyrus) spoken words
• impairment causes fluent, o transmits motor output from primary
receptive or Wernicke’s motor area (frontal lobe) in the
aphasia – difficulty in cerebral cortex to the skeletal
understanding and muscles
interpreting spoken words
– give short directions to HEMISPHERIC LATERALIZATION
patients and don’t hurry
o refers to the functional asymmetry
e. Facial recognition area of the two cerebral hemispheres
o location: temporal lobe
o functions: LEFT HEMISPHERE
• stores information about
faces o receives sensory signals from and
• allows one to recognize controls the right side of the body
people by faces o more important for spoken and
written language, numerical and
f. Premotor area scientific skills, ability to use and
o location: frontal lobe understand sign language and
o functions: reasoning in most people – more
• carries out learned motor on concrete ability, critical
skills by allowing different thinking, math skills, and reasoning
muscles to contract in a o right-handed – dominant: left side
specific sequence of the brain
g. Prefrontal area RIGHT HEMISPHERE
o location: frontal lobe
o functions: o receives sensory signals from and
• personality, intellect, controls the left side of the body
complex learning abilities, o more important for musical and
recall of information, artistic awareness, spatial and
initiative, judgement, pattern perception, recognition of
foresight, reasoning, faces and emotional content of
conscience, (executive language and for generating
functions) mental images of sight, sound,
• intuition, mood, planning touch, taste, and smell
for the future, and o left-handed – dominant: right side
development of abstract of the brain
ideas
SOMATIC SENSORY AND SOMATIC
MOTOR PATHWAYS
1. Somatic Sensory Pathways
o relays sensory input from somatic
sensory receptors to the primary
somatosensory area (parietal lobe)
in the cerebral cortex
2. Somatic Motor Pathways
Locations of the Functional, Motor, and Association Areas of the Cerebral Cortex
o Primary auditory area
o Primary olfactory area
Temporal Lobe o Auditory association area
o Wernicke’s area
o Facial recognition area
o Primary motor area
o Broca’s motor speech area
Frontal Lobe
o Premotor area
o Prefrontal area
o Primary visual area
Occipital Lobe
o Visual association area
o Primary somatosensory area
Parietal Lobe o Primary gustatory area
o Somatosensory association area
