Penfold's ‘homunculus’ redrawn to include complex movements

The iconic ‘homunculus’ diagram, which shows how the brain controls individual body parts, has been overhauled to include complex movements. Since the 1930s, the diagram has been used to show a brain region called the primary motor cortex and how it dedicates much more space to some body parts, such as the hands and mouth, than others. Now, hours of magnetic resonance imaging have revealed three interconnected areas that aren’t specific to any one body part. Instead, they connect to parts of the brain that are responsible for critical thinking, maintaining the body’s physiology and planning actions.