Intro | Primary Auditory Cortex | Central Fissure | Frontal Lobe | Lateral Fissure | Primary Motor Cortex | Occipital Lobe | Parietal Lobe | Primary Somatosensory Cortex | Temporal Lobe | Primary Visual Cortex
Part 1: Image-Mapped Tutorial
Part 2: Matching Self-Test
Part 3: Multiple-Choice Self-Test
The Parietal Lobe lies behind (posterior to) the frontal lobe and central fissure, above (superior to) the temporal lobe, and in front of (anterior to) the occipital lobe. The parietal lobe is divided into regions that integrate information from multiple sensory modalities. For example, it is in this region of cortex that we are able to recognize the identity of a friend and imagine his face based on the sound of his voice alone. The ability to sense the position of our body in space is also mediated by this cortical region. In addition, parietal lobe contains primary somatosensory cortex.
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Damage to the parietal lobe results in a variety of symptoms; that suggest this region plays a role in the interpreting the sensations of touch and body position and in the use of this information for the control of movement. For example, a blind person may lose the ability to read Braille. Clumsy movement occurs on the side opposite (contralateral) to the damaged cortex. A person may neglect the contralateral side of her body and external space, especially following right-hemispheric damage. She may dress only the right side of her body and read only the right side of the newspaper. Bizarre distortions of body image may result. Finally, parietal cortex integrates information about spatial location with visual and tactile information. The ability to recognize the same object from different visual angles or perspectives and the ability to draw and use maps to guide movement are mediated by the parietal lobe.