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Positron emission tomography (PET)—shows brain activity when radioactively tagged glucose rushes to active neurons and emits positrons.

Functional MRI (fMRI)—shows brain activity at higher resolution than the PET scan when changes in oxygen concentration near active neurons alter magnetic qualities.

Central nervous system (CNS)—brain and spinal cord.

Peripheral nervous system (PNS)—portion of the nervous system outside the brain and spinal cord; includes all of the sensory and motor neurons, and subdivisions called the autonomic and somatic nervous systems.

Autonomic nervous system (ANS)—subdivision of PNS that includes motor nerves that innervate smooth (involuntary) and heart muscle. Its sympathetic nervous system prepares the body for “fight or flight”; the parasympathetic nervous system causes bodily changes for maintenance or rest.

Sympathetic nervous system—subdivision of PNS and ANS whose stimulation results in responses that help your body deal with stressful events.

Parasympathetic nervous system—subdivision of PNS and ANS whose stimulation calms your body following sympathetic stimulation by restoring normal body processes.

Somatic nervous system—subdivision of PNS that includes motor nerves that innervate skeletal (voluntary) muscle.

Spinal cord—portion of the central nervous system below the level of the medulla.

Brain—portion of the central nervous system above the spinal cord.

According to the evolutionary model, the brain consists of three sections:reptilian brain (medulla, pons, cerebellum); old mammalian brain (limbic system, hypothalamus, thalamus); and the new mammalian brain (cerebral cortex).

According to the developmental model, it consists of three slightly different sections:the hindbrain (medulla, pons, cerebellum), the midbrain (small region with parts involved in eye reflexes and movements), and the forebrain (including the limbic system, hypothalamus, thalamus, cerebral cortex).

• Convolutions—folding-in and out of the cerebral cortex that increases surface area of the brain.

• Gyri—folding-out portions of convolutions of the cerebral cortex.

• Sulci—folding-in portions of convolutions of the cerebral cortex.

• Contralaterality—control of one side of your body by the other side of your brain.

The functions of parts of your brain include:

Medulla oblongata—regulates heart rhythm, blood flow, breathing rate, digestion, vomiting.

Pons—includes portion of reticular activating system or reticular formation critical for arousal and wakefulness; sends information to and from medulla, cerebellum, and cerebral cortex.

Cerebellum—controls posture, equilibrium, and movement.

Basal ganglia—regulates initiation of movements, balance, eye movements, and posture.

Thalamus—relays visual, auditory, taste, and somatosensory information to/from appropriate areas of cerebral cortex.

Hypothalamus—controls feeding behavior, drinking behavior, body temperature, sexual behavior, threshold for rage behavior, activation of the sympathetic and parasym-pathetic systems, and secretion of hormones of the pituitary.

Amygdala—influences emotions such as aggression, fear, and self-protective behaviors.

Hippocampus—enables formation of new long-term memories.

Cerebral cortex—center for higher order processes such as thinking, planning, judgment; receives and processes sensory information and directs movement.

Association areas—areas of the cerebral cortex that do not have specific sensory or motor functions, but are involved in higher mental functions such as thinking, planning, and communicating.

Geographically, the cerebral cortex can be divided into eight lobes, four on the left side and four on the right side:

Occipital lobes—primary area for processing visual information.

Parietal lobes—front strip is somatosensory cortex that processes sensory information including touch, temperature, and pain from body parts; association areas perceive objects.

Frontal lobes—interpret and control emotional behaviors, make decisions, carry out