RBRobert Bascom · Sep 16, 2026
Brain Anatomy
Brain anatomy can be seen from at least three different perspectives: 1. structural, 2. topographic, and 3. functional. Humans (and animals) share huge amounts of basic structural anatomy, while we are obviously wired quite differently across species and individuals. Topographic anatomy refers to the fact that we have brain maps of our viscera, the skin of our bodies (quite detailed in our parietal lobes), and our peri-personal space, as well as maps of the world around us. But it is functional anatomy that is perhaps the key to how our brains work, Functional anatomy describes neural networks which are then referred to as if they were structural (e.g. Broca's area is the network or area that is activated when producing speech).