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Amygdala Research Paper

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The amygdala is the name of the collection of nuclei found in the frontal portions of the temporal lobes in the brains of all primates (the term Amygdala derives from the Greek word, αμύγδαλο or amýgdalo meaning almond). This collection of nuclei is a small almond shaped structure located on either side of the thalamus at the lower end of the hippocampus in the limbic system which is located in the frontal portion of the temporal lobe. Considering the human brain is bilaterally symmetrical, there are two amygdalae, both located in relatively the same place, but one in the left side of the brain, and one in the right side of the brain. Although this structure is merely as big as an almond, there are vast amounts of functions that begin and travel …show more content…

The limbic system as a whole is the part of the brain that houses emotional life as well as the formation of memories. Considering that is where the amygdala is located in our brain, we can conclude that without much knowledge on the topic, the amygdala deals with emotion and memory. But how exactly does that work? The amygdala is one stop on an entire railway of emotional and memory formation progress, the ways in which our amygdala function have much to do with the levels of emotion we feel, and how we perceive this notion. Without an amygdala, there are no ground breaking changes in a person’s sense of self, but from knowledge and research dealing with those who have had destruction or loss of the amygdala, we can determine the actual understanding of this structure. Not only is the amygdala a single solitary structure, but it is also a processing center that is “connected” to receive incoming messages from our senses and internal organs. The amygdala processes things such as memories, emotions, and responses to the environment. Although these two structures (amygdalae) are seemingly small, a vast amount of stimuli and other intakes are processed through these structures each and every moment of our

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