prefrontal cortex

noun

|Updated on: 7 Jun 2018

Definition of prefrontal cortex

: the gray matter of the anterior part of the frontal lobe that is highly developed in humans and plays a role in the regulation of complex cognitive, emotional, and behavioral functioning

Recent Examples of prefrontal cortex from the Web

When a person is learning a new skill, the prefrontal cortex is highly active.

— david grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Scientists Examine Why Some Pilots Thrive Under Pressure, and Some Crack," 21 May 2018
One system, the hippocampus and the prefrontal cortex, optimize decision-making and multitasking.

— ellen byron, WSJ, "A Mother Whose Lapse Led to Child’s Death Seeks to Prevent Further Hot-Car Casualties," 3 May 2018
Studies of the brains of children raised in Romanian orphanages with ten-to-one infant-adult ratios found abnormalities in the prefrontal cortex and amygdala.

— katherine reynolds lewis, The Cut, "Can Scientists Tell Me If I’m a Good Mom?," 17 Apr. 2018
Thanks to a more active prefrontal cortex, women are extremely adept at big-picture thinking and strategy.

— katty kay, Time, "How to Help Young Girls Keep Their Confidence During Puberty," 20 Apr. 2018
Kable and his team found the people who chose to take the biggest gambles tended to have larger amygdalae, with fewer connections to the medial prefrontal cortex.

— angus chen, Scientific American, "Did You Buy Bitcoins? Your Brain’s Anatomy Might Be to Blame," 5 Apr. 2018
Another reported increased connectivity between regions engaged when the brain is at rest and parts of the prefrontal cortex involved in regulating stress.

— bruce lieberman, Washington Post, "Mindfulness meditation is huge, but science isn’t sure how, or whether, it works," 24 Mar. 2018
During REM sleep, some areas of the brain are deactivated, specifically, the prefrontal cortex, the region of the brain associated with logic, executive function, decision-making.

— linda rodriguez mcrobbie, BostonGlobe.com, "How our dreams made us human," 23 Mar. 2018
When trauma occurs, the prefrontal cortex often shuts down, and more primitive parts of the brain take over.

— kathy dobie, Daily Intelligencer, "To Catch a Predator," 16 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'prefrontal cortex.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of prefrontal cortex

1900

in the meaning defined above

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