Quote:
Originally Posted by ontheEdgeof17
(Post 617333)
I believe it to be true (what I said). We just need Dr. Brad to verify.
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on wikipedia about the frontal lobe of the brain:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frontal_lobe
"In the human brain, the precentral gyrus and the related cortical tissue that folds into the central sulcus comprise the primary motor cortex, which controls voluntary movements of specific body parts associated with areas of the gyrus.
The Frontal lobes have been found to play a part in impulse control, judgment, language, memory, motor function, problem solving, sexual behavior, socialization and spontaneity. The Frontal lobes assist in planning, coordinating, controlling and executing behavior. People that have damaged frontal lobes may experience problems with these aspects of cognitive function, being at times impulsive; impaired in their ability to plan and execute complex sequences of actions; perhaps persisting with one course of action or pattern of behavior when a change would be appropriate (perseveration).
Cognitive maturity associated with adulthood is marked by related maturation of cerebral fibers in the frontal lobes between late teenager years and early adult years. Research by Arthur Toga, UCLA, found increased myelin in the frontal lobe white matter of young adults compared to that of teens, whereas gray matter in parietal and temporal lobes was more fully matured by teen years. Typical onset of schizophrenia in early adult years correlates with poorly myelinated and thus inefficient connections between cells in the fore-brain.
A report from the National Institute of Mental Health says a gene variant that reduces dopamine activity in the prefrontal cortex is related to poorer performance and inefficient functioning of that brain region during working memory tasks, and to slightly increased risk for schizophrenia.
Dopamine-sensitive neurons in the cerebral cortex are found primarily in the frontal lobes. The dopamine system is associated with pleasure, long-term memory, planning and drive. Dopamine tends to limit and select sensory information arriving from the thalamus to the fore-brain. Poor regulation of dopamine pathways has been associated with schizophrenia.
The so-called executive functions of the frontal lobes involve the ability to recognize future consequences resulting from current actions, to choose between good and bad actions (or better and best), override and suppress unacceptable social responses, and determine similarities and differences between things or events.
The frontal lobes also play an important part in retaining longer term memories which are not task-based. These are often memories with associated emotions, derived from input from the brain's limbic system, and modified by the higher frontal lobe centers to generally fit socially acceptable norms (see executive functions above). The frontal lobes have rich neuronal input from both the alert centers in the brain-stem, and from the limbic regions.
Psychological tests that measure frontal lobe function include Finger tapping, Wisconsin Card Sorting Task, and measures of verbal and figural fluency."
