Let's learn about your brain's superpower: the cerebral cortex.

Have you ever wondered how amazingly complex your brain is? The way we talk, the way we learn new things, the way we remember old things, the way we laugh, cry, and make decisions, all of this is underpinned by our brain. Today we are going to talk about a very important part of the brain, the one that works like the `(CPU)` of a computer – the cerebral cortex , or as we say in English, the `(Cerebral Cortex)`.

What is the cerebral cortex?

Simply put, your brain has a layer of tissue called the cerebral cortex, which is the outermost layer of the brain. It's like a covering all around. Have you ever seen pictures of the brain with wrinkles? Those wrinkles are in the cerebral cortex. These wrinkles are what allow a lot of information to be processed in a small space. Imagine a large piece of cloth folded into a small box. These wrinkles have deep grooves called sulci, and raised ridges called gyri. These increase the surface area of ​​the cerebral cortex, allowing more nerve cells to function. Did you know that the cerebral cortex makes up about half of the weight of your entire brain!

This part of the brain called the cerebral cortex has six layers of `nerve cells`. Imagine, there are between 14 and 16 billion `nerve cells` in this small space. And it is only two to four millimeters (mm 2-4) thick. That means it is like a very thin membrane.

Our cerebral cortex is divided into four main parts, or regions . They are:

1. Frontal Lobe

2. Parietal Lobe

3. Temporal Lobe

4. Occipital Lobe

Each of these regions performs a different function. In general, the cerebral cortex is responsible for many of a person's higher-level mental processes . For example, things like language, memory, reasoning, thinking, learning, decision-making, emotions, intelligence, and personality.

Why is this cerebral cortex called "gray matter"?

You've probably heard of the brain being divided into two parts, "gray matter" and "white matter." The outer layer of the brain, called the cerebral cortex, belongs to the gray matter . That's because this part contains the cell bodies of nerve cells and parts called "dendrites." "Dendrites" are the fiber-like parts that help a nerve cell receive chemical messages from another cell. These nerve cell parts are gray because they lack the fatty covering called "myelin."

So what is white matter? It is made up of long, rod-like sections of nerve cells called axons. Around these axons is the previously mentioned white fatty covering called myelin. That myelin is what gives those tissues their white color.

What is the difference between the cerebral cortex and the cerebrum?

This may seem a little complicated, but it's simple. The cerebrum is the largest part of your brain. The outermost layer of the cerebrum is called the cerebral cortex . It's like the skin of a fruit.

The cerebrum divides our brain into two hemispheres, the right and the left. These two hemispheres are connected by a bundle of nerve fibers called the corpus callosum. This corpus callosum allows the two hemispheres to communicate with each other.

What is this new brain (Neocortex)?

Most of our cerebral cortex belongs to this new brain called ``Neocortex''. "Neo" means "new". It gets its name because this part arose relatively recently in the evolution of vertebrates. This new brain makes up 90% of the cerebral cortex of a human.

What are the superpowers of our cerebral cortex? (Function)

We've already said that the cerebral cortex is involved in a lot of our higher-level mental processes. Things like reasoning, emotions, thoughts, memory, language, and consciousness. Now let's look at what happens in each of these four main regions of the cerebral cortex.

1. The boss in front: Frontal Lobe

This is located at the front of your brain, behind the forehead. It works like the boss in an office. Here are some things the forehead helps with:

• Decision making, problem solving.
• Conscious thoughts. (Things we consciously think about)
• Paying attention.
• Control of emotions and behavior.
• Speech production. (Forming the words we speak)
• Personality. (Our traits)
• Intelligence.
• Body movements.

There are several other specialized areas on this forehead:

• Motor Cortex : This is where the messages are sent to move the muscles in our body.
• Prefrontal Cortex: This is what controls what are called "executive functions." That is, things like thinking, planning, and problem-solving. It acts like a supervisor directing the other parts of the brain.
• Broca's Area : This area helps us to correctly put words together and form sentences when speaking.

2. Vision Specialist: Occipital Lobe

This is located at the back of the brain. As its name suggests, its main function is to control vision .

• Processing and understanding visual information. (Understanding what we see with our eyes)
• Collecting visual data like color, movement, and orientation.
• Recognition of objects and faces.
• Understanding depth and distance.
• Building the world we see in our brain like a map.

3. Sensory and spatial specialist: Parietal Lobe

It is located between the frontal lobe and the occipital lobe, above the concha lobe. Its function is to:

• Processing sensory information such as touch, pressure, pain, position, vibration, and temperature.
• Spatial processing and spatial manipulation. That is, providing a three-dimensional understanding of where you are and your surroundings. For example, this part helps you navigate your way through the clutter in your home without tripping over it, or when you're walking down a street.

A special area in this lateral plane is the somatosensory cortex. This is where we receive sensations (feelings) from all over our bodies.

Imagine this scenario: You reach out to pick up a cup of hot soup from the kitchen table.

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* The motor cortex in your frontal lobe is what tells the muscles in your hand and fingers to "pick up the cup."

* When you touch the cup, your somatosensory cortex in your parietal lobe assesses things like its temperature and how hard you should hold it.

* At the same time, the spatial processing capabilities in the lateral plane allow you to accurately measure the distance of the cup relative to the table and other objects, and hold it without missing a beat.

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Have you seen how amazing it is that each part of the brain works together?

4. Listener and Memory Storer: Temporal Lobe

This is located between the frontal lobe and the parietal lobe, below the lateral lobe. It's like being on either side of the ear. Its job is to:

• Understanding language, word formation, learning.
• Memory (especially remembering new things)
• Hearing. (Sound recognition)
• Understanding nonverbal communication (e.g., facial expressions, tone of voice)
• Converting sounds into visual images.

An important area in this concha layer is Wernicke's Area . This area helps us understand language based on the tone and sound patterns of a person's voice when they speak, and also helps us associate the sounds with previously learned ones.

Another way to look at it: functional areas

Some scientists look at the brain in another way. They classify the areas of the cerebral cortex into three main types based on their functions: sensory areas, motor areas, and association areas.

1. Sensory Areas

These areas receive sensory information from our senses and the environment.

• Comprehending visual information and recognizing objects. (This is done by the visual cortex in the parietal lobe.)
• Receiving information from the body such as touch, temperature, position, vibration, pressure, and pain. (This is done by the somatosensory cortex in the lateral plane.)
• Processing of auditory information. (This is done by the auditory cortex in the cochlea.)
• Taste perception. (This is done by the gustatory cortex in the frontal lobe.)

2. Motor Areas

These areas are involved in our voluntary muscle movements, which are mainly controlled by the frontal lobe.

• Coordination of muscle movements.
• Planning complex movements.
• Learning through imitation and empathy.

3. Association Areas

These areas are spread across all four regions. They connect information from sensory and motor areas, contributing to more complex processes.

• Organizing information coming from sensory and motor areas and giving it meaning.
• Controlling personality and emotional behavior.
• Spatial awareness and reasoning.
• Memory processing.
• Thinking visually and retaining visual memories.
• Building with visual information, memories, sounds, and language.

How can the cerebral cortex be damaged?

Such an important place can be damaged for various reasons. For example:

• Brain tumors
• Severe head injuries (Trauma)
• Some autoimmune diseases
• A cerebrovascular accident (that is, a bleed in the brain or a ``Stroke'')

What symptoms can occur if the cerebral cortex is damaged?

This depends on which part of the cerebral cortex was damaged .

If the frontal lobe is damaged:

• Memory problems.
• Personality changes.
• Difficulty solving problems and making decisions.
• Attention problems.
• Weaknesses in emotional control, antisocial behavior, and changes in behavior patterns.
• Inability to understand or express speech (Aphasia).
• Difficulty speaking (Apraxia).
• Weakness, paralysis, loss of muscle control on one side of the body (Flaccid Hemiplegia).
• In addition, conditions such as dementia can also cause damage to the frontal lobe.

If the parietal lobe is damaged:

• Problems with memory formation.
• Difficulty or inability to write (Agraphia).
• Difficulty solving mathematical problems.
• Numbness.
• Disorientation.
• Impaired hand-eye coordination.
• Inability to recognize objects by touch alone (Astereognosis).
• Loss of sensation.
• Speech difficulties `(Aphasia)`.
• Movement difficulties `(Apraxia)`.

If the temporal lobe is damaged:

• Hearing difficulties.
• Memory problems.
• Difficulty recognizing faces and objects.
• Language impairments (e.g., Wernicke's Aphasia - difficulty understanding language).
• In addition, conditions such as epileptic seizures, developmental dyslexia, and Alzheimer's disease can also damage the concha.

If the occipital lobe is damaged:

• Difficulty seeing several objects at once.
• Difficulty recognizing objects visually.
• Color blindness.
• Hallucinations involving vision.
• Completely blind.

This may sound a bit complicated to you, but it is important to know this information. Because then we can take better care of our health, especially our brain. This knowledge will also help us seek medical advice quickly if we have any symptoms.

Summary: Things to Remember (Take-Home Message)

Okay, so let's recap the main points from what we talked about today:

• The cerebral cortex is the outermost layer of our brain. It is corrugated, which allows many nerve cells to function.
• It is divided into four main regions : the frontal lobe, the parietal lobe, the temporal lobe, and the occipital lobe.
• This cerebral cortex is essential for almost all of our higher-level mental processes , such as thinking, memory, learning, language, emotions, and decision-making.
• Damage to different parts of the cerebral cortex can cause problems with the functions related to that part. For example, speech difficulties, memory problems, and vision problems.
• Your brain is an amazing, precious organ . It's your responsibility to take care of it. Eat brain-healthy foods, exercise, get enough sleep, and try to reduce stress.

So, I hope you have gained a good understanding of the cerebral cortex today. Being aware of things like this is very valuable for our lives.

` Cerebral Cortex, Brain Function, Parts of the Brain, Nervous System, Memory, Learning, Frontal lobe, Lateral lobe, Concha lobe, Parietal lobe