Neuronal Networks: The Central Executive Network... and some philosophy

In previous episodes I have tried to draw pictures in your mind (using those fat crayons that babies like to chew on) of some of the brain networks that are important in many mental illnesses.  We have talked specifically about the Default Mode Network (that is concerned with imaginal thoughts and self-referential thoughts and memories), the Dorsal and Ventral Attention Networks (that help us to identify and pick out details of both our environment and our thoughts and memories), and the Salience Network (that brings the most important details of our perceptions, thoughts, and memories to the forefront of our mind).  What we are missing is a network that takes those salient things, considers alternative options about what they mean and what to do about them, organizes a plan to execute, and motivates us to move.  Our Central Executive Network and its connections to the other networks are integral in these processes.

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