Viewing the Cerebellum

Now that you know the inputs to the cerebellum, we need to learn WHERE in the cerebellum each afferent terminates. To understand this distribution scheme, you need to know the conventional way in which the gross cerebellum is viewed. Past experience has shown that this is a bit confusing.

Pictured to the right are two views of the brain that show the location and shape of the cerebellum. (A) is a medial view while (B) is a lateral view. A portion of the occipital cortex that lies above the cerebellum has been removed in order to see the dorsal aspect of the cerebellum. If we were to "lop off" the brain stem and cerebellum at the spot marked "cut" in A on a WHOLE (not one-half) brain, we would see what is pictured in the dorsal view, lower left (C). Now you can see the midline region of the cerebellum and the two (right and left) hemispheres.