It is known that the left and right hemispheres of manbear different functions, which, however, are complementary. Asymmetry is a phenomenon that is inherent in the brain not only of humans, but also of animals. And the left hemisphere is not a mirror image of the right and vice versa. The hemisphere in which each individual individual has a center of speech is dominant. In the overwhelming majority of cases, the verbal-logical left hemisphere appears in this role.
Connections between the hemispheres
There are some interesting facts about the relationship,that exist between the two halves of the brain. First, the left hemisphere is always slightly larger than the right. Secondly, in the right hemisphere there are long nerve fibers that connect it with the left. And the left, on the contrary, contains a large number of short fibers that create connections in limited areas.
Brain asymmetry is a processwhich takes an average of ten to fifteen years. Sometimes its speed may be due to genetic features. It is practically not observed in infants. Asymmetry is an acquired quality. In addition, it has been proven that it is less pronounced for illiterate people. That is, in the process of learning and acquiring new knowledge, the brain becomes increasingly asymmetric. Those who do not pay due attention to education slow down the development of many important functions.
Discovery of asymmetry
Асимметрия – это особенность, которая всегда interested scientists. But until a certain point, it remained a mysterious object that could only cause a lot of assumptions even among the brightest minds of mankind. The history of the development of this area began with the discovery by Paul Brock of the relationship between human speech and the use of the right or left hand. This happened in 1861, when the scientist discovered in his patient, who suffered from speech loss, a lesion in the left hemisphere of the brain.
Also the connection between the two parts is carried outwith the help of a special bundle of neurons - the corpus callosum. Thanks to him, they work harmoniously, as a whole. Some seriously ill patients underwent surgery to cut the corpus callosum. This made it possible to study in more detail the characteristics of the right and left hemispheres.
Split Brain Experiments
Функциональная асимметрия проявляется совершенно paradoxically. For example, it turned out that the left hemisphere is responsible for building logical connections, mathematical calculations. It “understands” any difficult speech well. The right hemisphere, on the contrary, can identify only the most common connections. Upon presentation of the most common items - spoons or a ball of thread - it can be attributed to a particular class. The advantage of the right hemisphere is an excellent orientation in space. An experiment was made: patients with a brain split by medical indications were asked to assemble the structure according to a drawing with their right hand. At the same time they made a lot of mistakes. This was due to the fact that the left hemisphere is responsible for the right side of the body.
Experiments Sperry
Split-brain research also showedthat people with injuries of the right hemisphere are very poorly oriented in space. Often, such patients cannot find their way to the house in which they have lived for several decades.
R.Sperry proved that when dissecting the corpus callosum, the following happens: the processes in the two hemispheres of the brain begin to flow independently. It seems that two different people act independently of each other. According to many scientists, asymmetry is a phenomenon that has got to man in the course of evolution and is its acquisition.
Agnosia for brain damage
Brain asymmetry is actually manifestedmost clearly in case of damage to one of the hemispheres. For example, injuries of the right hemisphere can entail various types of so-called agnosia. In this disorder, a person is not able to perceive previously familiar information. For example, agnosia on faces is known, in which a patient does not recognize faces of familiar people. And this is despite the fact that the memory for other objects of the world and the situation remains absolutely intact.
Two types of thinking
So, brain asymmetry impliesthe division of mental functions into two large spheres - spatial-figurative thinking and abstract-logical. To these concepts, there are many synonyms. For example, the definitions of verbal and non-verbal thinking, as well as discrete and simultaneous, are similar. The right hemisphere is responsible for the simultaneous thinking, because it perceives the object in all the integrity of its properties. The aggregate of perception is inaccessible to the logically oriented left hemisphere. It analyzes and studies each object separately.
Analysis and synthesis functions
Brain asymmetry is responsible fordistribution of functions between the two hemispheres. The left hemisphere is responsible for the analytical processing of information. It is inherent in the thinking of the type “from the particular to the general,” that is, induction. It processes the entire flow of information from the surrounding world according to a logical principle. The right hemisphere is responsible for such a mental operation as synthesis. At the same time, the parts of the perceived object are combined into a whole. Thinking is carried out according to the deductive principle - from the general to the particular. The right hemisphere is responsible for metaphorical, figurative thinking.
Perception of current events in chronologicalThe order is a function of the left hemisphere. For the right, on the contrary, all events seem to occur simultaneously. It is not oriented in time: for it there is only "here and now."
The left hemisphere is focused on reading diagrams, such as information on geographic maps. The right, on the contrary, is oriented in a specific space, for example, in a room.
There is also a difference between the distribution of the function of controlling emotions in the hemispheres of the brain. The left hemisphere is responsible for positive experiences, the right, on the contrary, for negative experiences.
Asymmetry in nature
It should be noted that the phenomenon under considerationpeculiar to many objects of nature. Hemispheric asymmetry is not only the prerogative of man. If symmetry is represented in the structure of molecules and crystals, then asymmetry is in the arrangement of internal organs, the structure of the DNA helix. There is also a hair asymmetry.
Research in this area leaves a lotriddles But the progress of science does not stand still. Perhaps the knowledge that now seems obvious will become completely outdated for the scientists of the future. Perhaps the scientists of the future will be able to finally unravel all the secrets of the highest product of evolution - the human brain.
