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Shanel Stewart
Kelley Eltzroth
10/01/2012
Psychology 101
Chapter 2 Learning Experience
Many people believe that only ten percent of the brain’s capacity is used, do you believe
this is so, or do you disagree? Whatever you may believe, there are many examples that proves
this isn’t the case. For instance, how many brain structures do you think are being used when
driving a vehicle? Almost your whole brain has an active part in this whole process.
The frontal lobe, which holds the primary motor cortex, is used to plan or initiate your
movement. It would be used to move your head around to check your surroundings (when to
switch lanes), and it would be used to turn the wheel and stay in your lane, or to move your
foot to the brake or gas pedal. The pressure on the brake or gas pedal would be the function of
the parietal lobe. The parietal lobe’s function is to process the body’s information and holds the
somatosensory cortex.
Another function that is completely different would be the brainstem. The brainstem
connects the brain to the spinal cord and neurons are able to deliver messages from the brain
to the body and back from the body to the brain. It also helps regulate basic life functions such
as your heartbeat, breathing, movement and alertness. Pons in the brainstem coordinates
movement with the left and the right sides of the body, while the reticular formation regulates
attention and alertness. Pons and the reticular formation are a part of the brainstem, and help
with alertness and movement when driving to sustain proper reactions. If you’re alert, you can
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easily maneuver the vehicle to avoid accidents, when someone slams on their brakes, or to stop
when the light changes to suddenly red. To be alert and to move when you want to, these
functions would have to be used the entire time.
The occipital lobe holds the primary visual cortex and processes visual information.
Another function that would be connected would be Wernicke’s area. Wernicke’s area is the
comprehension of written or spoken language. These two functions would be a huge section of
the brain that’s active while driving. You need to be able to see and process what you are
seeing. Signs like “STOP” and “YIELD” wouldn’t be comprehended without the visual cortex and
Wernicke’s area helps you read the sign. You have to see the road, other cars, lights, your
surroundings, the lanes, and multiple other things when driving. How would you be able to
drive without the visual cortex? It’s simple, you wouldn’t.
The temporal lobe and Broca’s area both help each other with their functions. The
temporal lobe holds the primary auditory cortex and processes the auditory information.
Broca’s area is where your production of speech comes from. You can process the music playing
(if any) and sing along with it at the same time. This also involves Wernicke’s area, as afore
mentioned. Or, if you experience road rage and yell at other vehicles, you are using Broca’s
area. The temporal lobe would also be used if you hear emergency vehicles, you know to pull
over. You hear horns and engines from other vehicles. Also some vehicles have warnings that
ding and you know something is wrong, like you forget to put your seatbelt on and after you
hear the ding you remember what you forgot.
The Amygdala is involved in memory and emotion. The thalamus processes and
integrates sensory information while also relaying this information to the cerebral cortex, and it
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also regulates emotional aspects of sensation. Both functions involve emotion or an emotional
level. Amygdala can be used when get lost in a bad part of town and you get scared, or when
someone cuts you off and you get really mad. This is the same for the thalamus, but its relaying
these senses into the correct passages in the brain.
All of these functions, frontal lobe, primary motor cortex, parietal lobe, somatosensory
cortex, brain stem, pons, reticular formation, occipital lobe, primary visual cortex, Wernicke’s
area, Broca’s area, temporal lobe, amygdala, and the thalamus are active when you are driving
a vehicle. Therefore, do you still believe only ten percent of your brain’s capacity is being used,
or do you think this myth should be challenged?