Editing Cerebral cortex (section)

====Sensory areas====
[[File:Blausen 0102 Brain Motor&Sensory.png|thumb|Motor and sensory regions of the cerebral cortex]]

The sensory areas are the cortical areas that receive and process information from the [[senses]]. Parts of the cortex that receive sensory inputs from the [[thalamus]] are called primary sensory areas. The senses of vision, hearing, and touch are served by the primary visual cortex, primary [[auditory cortex]] and [[primary somatosensory cortex]] respectively. In general, the two hemispheres receive information from the opposite (contralateral) side of the [[Human body|body]]. For example, the right primary somatosensory cortex receives information from the left limbs, and the right visual cortex receives information from the left visual [[receptive field|field]].

The organization of sensory maps in the cortex reflects that of the corresponding sensing organ, in what is known as a [[Topographic map (Neuroanatomy)|topographic map]]. Neighboring points in the primary [[visual cortex]], for example, correspond to neighboring points in the [[retina]]. This topographic map is called a [[retinotopy|retinotopic map]]. In the same way, there exists a [[tonotopy|tonotopic map]] in the primary auditory cortex and a [[somatotopy|somatotopic map]] in the primary sensory cortex. This last topographic map of the body onto the [[posterior central gyrus]] has been illustrated as a deformed human representation, the somatosensory [[Cortical homunculus|homunculus]], where the size of different body parts reflects the relative density of their innervation. Areas with much sensory innervation, such as the fingertips and the lips, require more cortical area to process finer sensation.