Akademik

cerebral cortex n the convoluted surface layer of gray matter of the cerebrum that functions chiefly in coordination of sensory and motor information called also pallium see neocortex

the intricately folded outer layer of the cerebrum, making up some 40% of the brain by weight and composed of an estimated 15 thousand million neurones (see grey matter). This is the part of the brain most directly responsible for consciousness, with essential roles in perception, memory, thought, mental ability, and intellect, and it is responsible for initiating voluntary activity. It has connections, direct or indirect, with all parts of the body. The folding of the cortex provides a large surface area, the greater part lying in the clefts (sulci), which divide the upraised convolutions (gyri). On the basis of its microscopic appearance in section, the cortex is mapped into Brodmann areas; it is also divided into functional regions; including motor cortex, sensory cortex, and association area. Within, and continuous with it, lies the white matter, through which connection is made with the rest of the nervous system.