Explain how damage to different regions of the brain would affect an athlete's movement capabilities. (6 marks)
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Sample Answer
- Cerebellum damage directly impairs coordination and balance control.
- This causes athletes to struggle with fine movements and postural adjustments during sport.
- Basketball players cannot shoot accurately because the cerebellum normally refines these precise movements.
- As a result, they lose the smooth, coordinated actions essential for performance.
- Motor cortex damage leads to weakness or paralysis in specific body regions.
- This occurs because the motor cortex has a mapped organisation controlling different body parts.
- Damage to leg regions prevents running while arm regions result in lost throwing abilities.
- Therefore, the location of motor cortex damage determines which movements are affected.
- Parietal lobe damage affects spatial awareness and body positioning.
- This impairs the brain’s ability to integrate sensory information with movement planning.
- Athletes cannot judge distances accurately which means they struggle to navigate playing fields effectively.
- Consequently, sports requiring spatial judgment become extremely difficult.
- Brain regions normally work together through neural networks.
- When damage occurs to one area, it disrupts communication with other regions.
- Combined deficits appear worse than individual impairments because the integrated brain function is compromised.
- Thus, athletic performance depends on all movement-related brain regions working together.
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Sample Answer
- Cerebellum damage directly impairs coordination and balance control.
- This causes athletes to struggle with fine movements and postural adjustments during sport.
- Basketball players cannot shoot accurately because the cerebellum normally refines these precise movements.
- As a result, they lose the smooth, coordinated actions essential for performance.
- Motor cortex damage leads to weakness or paralysis in specific body regions.
- This occurs because the motor cortex has a mapped organisation controlling different body parts.
- Damage to leg regions prevents running while arm regions result in lost throwing abilities.
- Therefore, the location of motor cortex damage determines which movements are affected.
- Parietal lobe damage affects spatial awareness and body positioning.
- This impairs the brain’s ability to integrate sensory information with movement planning.
- Athletes cannot judge distances accurately which means they struggle to navigate playing fields effectively.
- Consequently, sports requiring spatial judgment become extremely difficult.
- Brain regions normally work together through neural networks.
- When damage occurs to one area, it disrupts communication with other regions.
- Combined deficits appear worse than individual impairments because the integrated brain function is compromised.
- Thus, athletic performance depends on all movement-related brain regions working together.