The Phineas Gage Paper free essay sample

According to The Soy Story, cognitive function is the mental processes by which knowledge is acquired, these processes include perception, reasoning, acts of creativity, problem solving, and possible intuition (Glossary, Para. ). As everyone knows, the brain is also connected to processing perception, reasoning, creativity, problem solving, and intuition. So by knowing these two facts, you can come to the conclusion that the brain plays a very large role in cognitive functions. The brain is an amazing structure that not only keeps the bodys many processes egulated, but it is also designed to multi-task and also coordinate all of the cognitive functions that separates human beings from other species. One or more areas of the cognitive brain control not only bodily processes, but also emotions, thoughts, and movements Oeanty, 2009). The cerebral cortex, or cerebrum, is the section of the brain where cognitive functions originate from. The cerebral cortex, which takes up majority of the brains mass, is made up of four sections, or lobes. We will write a custom essay sample on The Phineas Gage Paper or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page These four sections are: the frontal lobe, the temporal lobe, the parietal lobe, and the occipital lobe. All of these lobes are in charge of their own set of tasks and functions Oeanty, 2009). The frontal lobe is in charge of planning, problem solving, personality organizing, selective attention, and a variety of other higher cognitive functions Oohnson Jr. , 2009). The temporal lobe consists of two sections, one on each side of the brain. The temporal love controls a persons ability to tell different smells and also different sounds and they also are involved with sorting new information. The right temporal lobe is involved with the visual memory and the left temporal lobe is involved with he verbal memory. The parietal lobe, like the temporal lobe, is divided into two sections at the top of the brain. The parietal lobes contribute too many cognitive functions. The right parietal lobe controls an individuals sense of direction; damage to this section may cause an individual to become easily lost, even if in a familiar place. The left parietal lobe controls the understanding of language, damage to this section may cause an individual may have a hard time understanding written or spoken language Oohnson Jr. 2009). The parietal lobes contain the primary sensory cortex which controls ensation (touch and sensations) and fine sensations Oudgment of texture, weight, size, shape) Oohnson Jr. , 2009). The occipital lobe, which is located in the rear of the brain, controls the processing of all visual information, including visual recognition of shapes and colors Oohnson Jr. , 2009). understanding the cognitive functions may never be fully obtained. However, the accident to Mr. Phineas Gage on September 13, 1948, did shine some light on the cognitive functions and the brain. On September 13, 1948 Mr. Gage was working as a ailroad worker and due to a large accidental explosion a railroad iron entered Gages frontal-left side of his skull (Deakin University, 2006). According to this injury, Mr. Gage should have died instantly, however even though he had an iron through his skull he appeared to be functioning normally. This is what made this day a day to remember throughout the medical history. After Gage returned back to work in 1849, his friends and co-workers then notices that he was suffering from severe behavioral changes. He went from the model employee to an irrelevant, grossly profane, and crude individual. According to John Fleischman, He was struck in the forehead, and the iron must have pierced the frontal lobe of the cortex. If Phineas survived with a large piece of his cortex destroyed, then what does the cortex do (Fleischman, 2002, p. 34)? Gages accident then started a range of questions, which then lead to further investigation into the brain and cognitive functions (Hernandez, 2008). Gages terrible injury showed us that not all injuries to the brain are fatal or permanent damaging. According to Fleischman (2002), a few theories about the brain ame about, although most of them were false they did come to one conclusion, when one section of the brain is injured and can no longer perform its functions, another section of the brain will take over those functions. Thanks to Gages accident, the study of the brain and its functions was pushed ahead. The plasticity of the brain and the ability for it to compensate for certain injuries is truly a miracle (Hernandez, 2008). The very soft tissue, which has been known to have the same texture of J-ello, in a humans skull, is a phenomenal and astonishing machine.