Anatomy of the cerebellum is located at the base of the brain, with the large mass of the cerebral cortex above it and the portion of the brainstem called the pons in front of it. It is separated from the overlying cerebrum by a layer of tough dura mater; all of its connections with other parts of the brain travel through the pons. Anatomists classify the cerebellum as part of the metencephalon, which also includes the pons; the metencephalon in turn is the upper part of the rhombencephalon or "hindbrain". Like the cerebral cortex, the cerebellum is divided into two hemispheres; it also contains
Cerebellum transform sensory inputs in some sophisticated way, perhaps to compensate for changes in body posture. In fact, James M. Bower and others have argued, partly on the basis of these structures and partly on the basis of cerebellar studies, that the cerebellum itself is fundamentally a sensory structure, and that it contributes to motor control by moving the body in a way that controls the resulting sensory signals. Despite Bower's viewpoint, there is also strong evidence that the cerebellum directly influences motor output in mammals. Even the earliest anatomists were able to recognize the cerebellum by its distinctive appearance. Aristotle