Nervous System

General info:

The central nervous system is made up of the brain, Spinal Cord and peripheral nerves.
The Cerebrum is the largest part (85% of the brain's mass) and controls such things as voluntary movements, speech, memory, vision, hearing, smell and touch.

The Cerebellum controls involuntary actions. It plays a crucial role in posture, balance and co-ordination. When you are doing complex activities that require a number of muscles to work together, the cerebellum makes sure that they work in harmony.

Messages to and from the brain all pass through the brain stem. It contains important control systems. These include controlling certain involuntary actions such as breathing, heartbeat and digestion.

Our nerves and neurones transmit information or data from the internal and external environment to our Central Nervous System. The sensory receptors are found all over the body from in the skin, to in the nose and eyes. Information can only travel in one direction through the neurones and so when the sensory receptor register a form of stimuli, they send the electrical impulses to our C.N.S. Our brain is full of connector neurones and sorts out which data is most important. From here the data is sent via motor neurones to effectors (either muscles or glands) to cause our body to move and function properly. For example if we hold our hands near a fire, our sensory receptors in our skin register high temperatures and in response our brain instructs (via motor neurones) our arm muscles to move further away.

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