Cerebellum been identified as important: (1) feedforward processing, (2) divergence and convergence, (3) modularity, and (4) plasticity. There is considerable evidence that the cerebellum plays an essential role in some types of motor learning. The tasks where the cerebellum most clearly comes into play are those in which it is necessary to make fine adjustments to the way an action is performed. There has, however, been much dispute about whether learning takes place within the cerebellum itself, or whether it merely serves to provide signals that promote learning in other brain structures. Most theories that assign learning to the circuitry of
Anatomy of the cerebellum cerebellar cortex. Under resting conditions in animal experiments, groups of olivary neurons discharge synchronously at 5 to 10 Hz (impulses/s). In the cerebellar cortex, the response of Purkinje cells takes the form of complex spikes. The cerebellum send its projections back to the cerebral cortex via the Cerebellothalamic tract. The cerebellar lateral expansion, or the neocerebellum, may be associated with cognitive functions, and it is anatomically linked with the lateral prefrontal cortex. It shows greatest activity during speech, with a one-sided predominance consistent with a possible linkage (via the thalamus) with the motor speech area. When lesions occur in the