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Related Concept Videos

Hierarchy of Motor Control01:18

Hierarchy of Motor Control

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The hierarchy of motor control refers to the different levels of organization and processing involved in controlling movement in the body. These levels range from higher cortical areas involved in planning and decision-making to lower spinal cord reflexes that respond automatically to external stimuli.
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Direct Motor Pathways01:11

Direct Motor Pathways

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The direct motor pathways, also known as the pyramidal tracts, are a group of neural pathways that originate in the brain and descend through the spinal cord. They control the voluntary movement of the body. There are two major direct motor pathways: the corticospinal and the corticobulbar tracts.
The corticospinal tract is responsible for the voluntary movement of the limbs and trunk. It originates in the cerebral cortex of the brain and descends through the cerebrum's internal capsule and...
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Motor Units00:46

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A motor unit consists of two main components: a single efferent motor neuron (i.e., a neuron that carries impulses away from the central nervous system) and all of the muscle fibers it innervates. The motor neuron may innervate multiple muscle fibers, which are single cells, but only one motor neuron innervates a single muscle fiber.
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Motor Units01:13

Motor Units

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The motor unit is a fundamental component of the neuromuscular system and plays a crucial role in coordinating muscle contractions. It consists of a somatic motor neuron, which connects and controls multiple skeletal muscle fibers, forming a single functional segment. The axon of the motor neuron branches out and establishes synaptic connections known as neuromuscular junctions with individual muscle fibers within the motor unit.
Motor units come in different sizes, with smaller units...
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Indirect Motor Pathways01:22

Indirect Motor Pathways

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The indirect motor or extrapyramidal pathways originate in the brainstem, the lower portion of the brain that connects it to the spinal cord. They consist of several distinct tracts, each with specialized functions. The four main tracts of the indirect motor pathways are the vestibulospinal tract, the reticulospinal tract, the tectospinal tract, and the rubrospinal tract.
The vestibulospinal tract originates in the vestibular nuclei of the brainstem. The vestibular system detects changes in...
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Motor Unit Stimulation01:20

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When the neuron of a motor unit fires an action potential, it triggers a series of events, leading to a twitch contraction in the muscle fibers. The process of excitation-contraction coupling is crucial in relaying the action potential to the muscle fibers.
The latent period of contraction marks the onset of excitation-contraction coupling, when the action potential propagates across the sarcolemma, preparing the muscle fibers for contraction. As the fibers enter the contraction phase, the...
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 27, 2026

Non-Invasive Modulation and Robotic Mapping of Motor Cortex in the Developing Brain
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Non-Invasive Modulation and Robotic Mapping of Motor Cortex in the Developing Brain

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Motor Planning.

Aaron L Wong1, Adrian M Haith2, John W Krakauer3

  • 1Department of Neurology, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA aaron.wong@jhu.edu.

The Neuroscientist : a Review Journal Bringing Neurobiology, Neurology and Psychiatry
|July 2, 2014
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Motor planning, the preparation for movement, is redefined to include only strictly movement-related processes. This refined definition suggests that motor planning is nearly instantaneous, consuming little reaction time.

Keywords:
attentiondecision makingdynamical systems modelmotor controlmotor goaloptimal control theoryreaction time

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Cognitive Science
  • Motor Control

Background:

  • The traditional definition of motor planning is broad, including non-motor processes like stimulus identification.
  • Current understanding assumes motor planning requires significant reaction time, observable behaviorally.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To critically re-examine the processes linking perception to action.
  • To propose a refined definition of motor planning focusing solely on movement-related processes.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review and conceptual analysis of motor planning.
  • Re-evaluation of the relationship between perception, decision-making, and motor execution.

Main Results:

  • The broad definition of motor planning includes non-motor cognitive processes.
  • A refined definition focuses on processes essential for movement execution.

Conclusions:

  • Many motor planning processes are movement-specific and nearly instantaneous.
  • Motor planning, under a strict definition, occupies a small fraction of total reaction time.