Does the human brain have a “reptilian cortex”? How often is it used?? Can certain situations activate it and cause reptile-like behavior???
No-- what you have is the base of your brain, where primitive instincts lie. Because it is often assumed to antedate the more “advanced” parts of the brain, it is sometimes referred to as reptilian.
Josh
Thanks, JoshMoses.
When you say “base of your brain”, are you talking about a physical structure, deep inside the brain? One that brain scientists have probed or disected??
Well, I suppose that that depends on what you mean. Generally, it’s agreed that the “older” portions of the human brain are similiar to the entire brains of reptiles. In general, the brain stem is the most primitive, and is often likened to a reptilian or fish brain. Next is the cerebellum, which has some components in common with reptile brains but some more in common with lower mammals. The top portion is the cerebrum, which is only present in higher mammals. Since the whole thing is really an analogy, it doesn’t matter too much what you call the “reptilian brain” (cortex is probably a misnomer in this case)-- some might refer only to the base of the brain, where it meets the spinal cord, or some might include the cerebellum. In any case the entire brain has been amply dissected many, many times.
Josh