Coordination and Control

Quick Now!
What is the organ of personality?

Of course, the answer is your brain. Maybe you never thought about it that way, but your brain is YOU. Remember the slogan, "Cells Are Us," in our modules on cell-level functions? That slogan was meant to remind you that our bodies are made up of cells. Now, we want to look at more than your body. We want to consider how the brain creates your mind and your personality. The brain is who you are as a person.

After completing this lesson, the student should be able to:

Explain what neurons are and what they do
Summarize the direct actions of the brain and spinal cord on controlling:
- detection of environmental change
- consciousness
- learning and memory
- emotions
- movement
Summarize what we know about cholinesterase insecticides and "nerve gas"

Note: Coordination also involves hormones, which is a large area of biology that we do not cover here. The most common health hazard involving hormones is adult-onset diabetes. The American Diabetes Association reports that diabetes can occur in all people, but that it is twice as likely in Hispanics and 1.7 times as likely in blacks.