I. The Nervous System

The nervous system is divided into two main components: the central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS) (Walker, 2002, 77). The central nervous system consists of the brain and spinal cord, and functions as the command center for the nervous system. The CNS coordinates the activities of the entire body. It receives and analyzes information through the PNS from the sense organs and other receptors throughout the body, and sends out response information to muscles and glands based on past experience. The peripheral nervous system is composed of the nerves that extend from the brain and spinal cord, which function to relay messages between the CNS and the rest of the body. The PNS has three components, one which relays information to the CNS and two which relay information from the CNS.

The sensory component of the PNS gathers information from the various sensory organs of the body (eyes, ears, nose, pain sensors) and relays this information concerning what is happening in the external environment to the CNS (Walker, 2002, 77). The two components emanating from the CNS are the somatic and autonomic nervous systems. The somatic component relays information from the CNS to body components to make them react in appropriate ways to the messages it has received from the sensory nerves. For example, the somati

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highly convoluted cerebrum is an increase in the capacity of the brain, i.e. the surface folding increases between infancy and adolescence as the brain becomes more complex and enlarges within the confines of the skull (Walker, 2002, 88). (b) The grooves are known as sulci (singular is sulcus), and the outward folds are known as gyri (singular is gyrus). Deep grooves are known as fissures. ¬) The great longitudinal fissure divides the cerebrum into two hemispheres. (d) The parietal and frontal lobes are separated by the central sulcus. The parietal lobe is separated from the temporal lobes by the Sylvian or lateral fissure. 6. (a) What does lateralization of cortical functioning mean? (b) Why is the term cerebral dominance a misnomer? (a) Lateralization of cortical functioning means that the functions controlled by the right and left cerebral cortices differ. The left hemisphere controls the right side of the body and the right hemisphere controls the left side of the body. Usually the left hemisphere is the dominant hemisphere, and that explains why most people are right-handed (Walker, 2002, 93). The left cerebral hemisphere controls such things as written and spoken language, numbers, and problem solving,
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Approximate Pages = 16 (250 words per page)

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