ABSTRACT
Our abilities to perceive, to move, to reason and understand, to love and hate, to work, to have moods and emotions, and to take action are based in the structure and function of our brains. To appreciate this truism, one has only to observe the slow decay of these abilities in someone with Alzheimer’s dementia or the frighteningly sudden loss of such abilities following a significant brain injury. The brain, like other organs, is vulnerable to congenital defects and damage from illness or injury. When similar problems affect the heart, the result is an impairment of blood flow. When problems affect the brain, the result is likely to be an impairment in thinking, feeling, and/or behaving.
