The Nervous System

The nervous system is the master control center of our body. It is responsible for both voluntary and automatic movement, emotions, memory, thinking, learning, senses, sleeping, aging, and all body processes such as heartbeat and breathing. It is our body's remote control, or the command center. This fast-acting system has three primary functions: sensation, integration, and response.

What is the Nervous System?

SENSATION

The sensation function of the nervous system is all about a stimulus. A stimulus can be defined as an event in the environment, in the nervous system, a stimulus is what causes a sensation. A stimuli has different forms according to what causes it, taste and smell are chemical stimuli. Touch and hearing is a physical stimulus, and sight is a light stimulus. There are also stimuli in the body called internal stimuli.

INTEGRATION

Integration comes after a sensation, or a stimulus. The nervous system processes this sensation. This occurs by stimuli getting compared with other stimuli, previous stimuli memories, or it depends on what state the person is in which causes a specific response. The nervous system combines sensory perceptions and high cognitive functions to integrate what is going on in and outside of the body.

RESPONSE

A response follows the nervous system’s sensation and integration function. The response is either voluntary, for example moving a skeletal muscle, or it is involuntary, like a heartbeat. A response is based on stimuli received by sensory structure to produce a specific response.

Primary Functions

Organization of The Nervous System

Central Nervous System (CNS)

Consists of the brain and spinal cord; responsible for sending messages to the body through nerves

Includes all the nerves and nerve cells separate from the brain and spinal cord; relays information from the CNS to the rest of the body

Brain

Uses neural networks to preform a variety of functions

Spinal Cord

Generates a response to sensory stimulus

Autonomic Nervous System

Controls glands and internal organ muscles, "automatic" actions

Somatic Nervous System

Responsible for voluntary control of skeletal muscles

Sympathetic Nervous System

"fight or flight"

Efferent Nervous System

motor input

Afferent Nervous System

Sensory Input

Parasympathetic Nervous System

"rest + digest"

The Nervous System & The Five Senses

Taste

The nervous system is responsible for why we taste. There are types of papillae on the tongue called our taste buds. The taste buds come in contact with the chemicals in the food you eat. Once this connection occurs, it activates nerve receptors that send a message to the brain and processes the taste.