Summer Workshop Series: Neuroanatomy 2019

Neuroanatomy is the study of the structure and organisation of the nervous system. Last Saturday afternoon, Dr Scott Wersinger, who teaches in New York City at University at Buffalo, conducted the annual neuroanatomy workshop inviting curious attendees to learn about the different structures and functions of the brain. Beginning with a simple description on the different regions of the brain – central, peripheral, horizontal, coronal, saguaro, superior, inferior, lateral, medial, etc – Dr Wersinger’s engagement was engaging and intriguing. This also brought about an admiration for people like Dr Wersinger, whose dedication to the field has undoubtedly saved the lives of patients with brain injuries or defects.

There were so many interesting takeaways from the slideshows itself, as Dr Wersinger talked about the divisions of the brain – hindbrain, forebrain and midbrain – along with their medical terms, and what each division consists of. He also brought about the sad truth that each photograph of the dissection of a human brain tells a tragic story of the victim of brain injury. In the example he showed us, it was of a person who experienced a huge stroke.

Did you know that the part of our brains that is involved in the creation of our memories is called a Hippocampus? Even more interestingly, it is nicknamed “the seahorse” because it actually resembles one! It was great that we got a hand at looking for it ourselves, with the help of Dr Wersinger.