Overview
The neocortex (or cortex) refers to the outermost matter of the mammalian brain. It essentially serves as a cover that contains a large majority of the brain’s mass that plays critical roles in sensory, motor, and association functions. Advances in imaging and modeling technology increasingly have shed light on its many simultaneous roles. That research reveals its importance to adolescence through its links to memory and storage of information because those functions are important during adolescence (as they grow during that period), become anchors in adulthood, and play roles in common pathologies (such as autism and epilepsy). As a result of this research, the neocortex has become understood as being key to the understanding of the brain’s functions as well as part of the brain that holds promise for developing diagnostic and curative tools.
The Nature and Function of the Neocortex
The neocortex, often referred to simply as the cortex, is the outermost brain matter covering...
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Levesque, R.J.R. (2018). Neocortex. In: Levesque, R.J.R. (eds) Encyclopedia of Adolescence. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-33228-4_700
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-33228-4_700
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