Lobes of the Brain

The cerebrum (principal part of the brain) is divided into two hemispheres or halves. The right half of the cerebrum controls the left side of the body and the left half of the cerebrum controls the right side of the body. This is called contra-lateral control and is important for understanding that an injury to one side of the brain will usually result in a deficit on the opposite side of the body. The hemispheres are connected by a bundle of fibers, the corpus callosum which functions as a highway of nerve conductors that transmit signals between the two halves of the brain.

The brain is further divided into four lobes and two base of brain structures, each with a distinctive role in human thinking, action and feeling. The next section will review the lobes of the brain, and although they are not that clearly delineated in an actual brain, it gives you a sense of landmarks of the brain. The lobes are connected by complex neural fibers, helping the areas work together intricately exchanging signals and information to and from the cortex.