Introduction
I have made a hypothetical tour of “Brain: The Inside Story” by Google Arts & Culture, an exposition that informs about the anatomy and functions of the brain and various neurological disorders. The paper points out that analysis of the brain anatomy and functions is an important aspect in fields relevant to neuroscience. This is because it becomes helpful in identifying the real functions of the brain and developing ways in which the treatment and understanding of neurological disorders can be enhanced.
Exploration Experience
The virtual exhibit of “Brain: The Inside Story” explains three main brain regions: the cerebral cortex, the hippocampus, and the amygdala. The cerebral cortex is the outermost area of the brain and is responsible for higher cognitive functions, including thinking, reasoning, and judgment (Google, 2010). The hippocampus, on the other hand, is one of the major control centers of memory located within the medial temporal lobe (Chao, et al.,2020). Situated deep in the temporal lobes, this small portion of the brain is shaped like an almond and takes part in the processing of emotions, and more specifically, the feeling of fear and anxiety.
The insights from the virtual tour into such neurological disorders as these go a long way to equip any aspiring neuroscience scholar with such necessary context for understanding the practical application of neuroscience concepts. For instance, in the elaboration that such a tour provides, it becomes very simple to understand the formation and consolidation of memories with the help of the hippocampus. It becomes evident to the reader, especially when one is learning, how the structure and loss of memories
That is where the real understanding of how complex the human mind is, by showing in precise details the structures and functions of the brain. I would find the interactive features, such as the ability to zoom in for various parts of the brain and to turn it around for different perspectives, very helpful in better understanding the brain’s structural makeup. Without a real responsive interlocutor, it’s hard to say that a virtual tour could react all that well to a flesh-and-blood person asking questions which had certain nuances in mind, or even to provide personalized feedback. But actually, the very insights shared on the neurological disorders and functions of the brain in the tour give the context to make the practical application of these neuroscience concepts clearer.
Personal Connections
Explain if there were any personal connections made during the exploration. How the virtual experience resonated with their interests or something they already knew.
As a student, the virtual tour was a very useful recourse in my learning neuroscience. The interactive elements were interesting and they allowed me to explore the delicacies of the structures of the brain in an interesting and vivid way.
The visual representations of the structures of the brain and its workings in the virtual tour were immersive and contributed to a great extent to me in the comprehension of how the human mind is complex. Interactive features such as being able to zoom in on sections of the brain and view them from different angles were particularly useful to me in appreciating the complex structure of the brain.
Concept Understanding
Visuals—depicting structure and functioning—are helpful in understanding the nitty-gritty of the human mind. Interactive things like zooming in to focus on detailed parts of the brain or rotating the view really aided in getting the depth and detail of the complex structures in the brain. In particular, in reference to the complexities of the human mind, the virtual tour to depict the structure and function of the brain was pretty handy. The interactive parts were mostly useful in getting the idea of the details on the complex construction of the brain.
Critical Evaluation
What was particularly helpful in gaining an understanding of the complexities of the human mind from the virtual tour was the visual presentation of the brain’s structures and functions. The most helpful interactive aspects of the website were in understanding the complex structures of the brain via the ability to zoom into particular areas and view it from a range of angles (Mendez‐Lopez, et al., 2022). It is a limitation that can be a barrier to a virtual tour answering details or offering feedback that is personalized, but if the general program that allows interaction is provided by the available virtual tours among the other technological tools or methods, the point might not be a problem.
Application to Course Material
Especially the virtual presentations of the structures and functions of the brain were of great help in order to be able to understand the complexities in the human mind. The interactive parts of the visualisation, such as the ability to enlarge certain areas of the brain and to see it from different angles, were particularly useful for a better understanding of the highly complex structure of the brain. The virtual tour gave good context through the various parts on the different neurological disorders in order to understand how these concepts are applied in the real field of neuroscience.
Reflection
Overall, the virtual tour provided a valuable resource in trying to understand the complexities of the human mind. In relation to the structures and functions of the brain, the visual presentation of knowledge was very enlightening, showing the highly complex structures of the brain. This included the interactive parts such as the zooming possibilities into certain areas of the brain and the viewing of different parts from various angles, very helpful in developing a sense of perception for the highly complex structures in the brain. However, it allowed no chance for a deep, real-time interaction with a human tutor who could answer numerous picky questions or give sophisticated feedback. Still, the virtual tour made an awesome contribution to explaining in-depth how concepts of neuroscience could be put into practice in the context of neurological disorders.
References
Chao, O. Y., de Souza Silva, M. A., Yang, Y. M., & Huston, J. P. (2020). The medial prefrontal cortex-hippocampus circuit that integrates information of object, place and time to construct episodic memory in rodents: Behavioral, anatomical and neurochemical properties. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 113, 373-407. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0149763419309030
Google. (2010). Google Arts & Culture. Google Arts & Culture. https://artsandculture.google.com/
Mendez‐Lopez, M., Juan, M. C., Molla, R., & Fidalgo, C. (2022). Evaluation of an augmented reality application for learning neuroanatomy in psychology. Anatomical sciences education, 15(3), 535-551. https://anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ase.2089
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