Activity 8.2.4 Brain Anatomy Answer Key
Introduction
The brain is a complex organ composed of lobes, ventricles, and systems that are
organized into specialized regions. These regions are responsible for functions such
as speech, emotion, and memory as well as vision, hearing, and taste. Other regions
of the brain control involuntary functions such as blood pressure, heart rate, and
temperature. The central nervous system (CNS) consists of the brain and spinal
cord and is the processing center for the nervous system.
In previous activities you investigated the five senses: sight, touch, taste, smell and
hearing. Senses such as sight and smell are processed by the brain after signals are
sent through specialized nerves such as the optic nerve. Alternately, sensory
neurons in the skin send signals through the spinal cord in order for the brain to
interpret sensations of touch, pain, heat, and cold throughout the body. A specialized
structure within the brain is the thalamus. With the exception of smell, the thalamus
acts as a relay station for all the senses. The thalamus sorts the important
information from the insignificant before sending information to the cerebral cortex of
the brain.
In this activity you will explore a computer animation to learn about the structure and
functions of the human brain.
Equipment
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Laboratory journal
Pencil
Colored pencils or crayons
Computer with Internet access
Procedure
1. Access and explore the PBS website, 3-D Brain Anatomy, at
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/brain/3d/index.html
2. Label and color the following structures on the exterior of the brain

Cerebrum, made of 4 lobes:
o Frontal lobe (purple)
o Parietal lobe (red)
o Occipital lobe (orange)
o Temporal lobe (brown)
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Cerebellum (green)
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Brain Stem (yellow)
Cerebrum (all 4 lobes)
Parietal
Lobe
Frontal
Lobe
Occipital
Lobe
Temporal
Lobe
Brain Stem
3. Label and color the following structures on the interior of the brain

Cerebrum, made of 4 lobes:
o Frontal lobe (purple)
o Parietal lobe (red)
o Occipital lobe (orange)
o Temporal lobe (brown)

Cerebellum (green)
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Brain Stem (yellow)
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Corpus Callosum (blue)
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Limbic System (label)
o Pineal Gland
o Hypothalamus
o Amygdala
Cerebellum
o Hippocampus
o Thalamus (pink)
Free images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
1. In previous activities you investigated the five senses. Use the PBS website to
locate the part(s) of the brain responsible for:
Vision
optical nerves, thalamus, and occipital lobes
Hearing
auditory nerves, temporal lobes, thalamus
Smell
olfactory nerves, olfactory bulbs, olfactory center, hypothalamus
Touch
nerves, thalamus, parietal lobe
Taste
frontal lobe, hypothalamus, amygdala, thalamus
_____
2. What structure acts as a relay station for all senses except smell?
thalamus
(introduction)
3. Identify the part(s) of the brain involved with:
Short-term memory
parietal, upper temporal, and occipital lobes
Long-term memory hippocampus, frontal lobes, thalamus, and hypothalamus
Movement
cerebellum
4. What part of the brain controls essential survival functions such as breathing and
heart beat?
Brain stem
(medulla oblongata)
Conclusion
1. What region of the brain is responsible for complex thinking such as memory,
speech, emotion, planning, and reasoning? Explain.
Frontal lobe; largest of the cerebrum’s 4 lobes, it is well connected (leads to) with
the limbic system
2. Why is the brain stem sometimes called the “reptilian brain”?
It contains the same brain parts as a reptile- brain stem and cerebellum, This is
the oldest and most basic brain region evolutionarily- animals that have been
on the earth before humans had a very basic, noncomplex brain that just had
the brain stem and cerebellum, our brains have many more complex parts
etc.
3. Why do you “see stars” when you hit the back of your head?
You may damage the occipital lobe which is connected to the optical nerves