If the spine is the cable that connects the brain to the rest of the body then the nerve roots are the wires that come off of the cable and go out through holes in bone to various parts of the body. At each level of the spine one nerve root goes to the right and the other nerve root goes to the left.

The spinal nerves or nerve roots connect to the spinal cord at various levels. The spinal nerves traverse through the neuroforamen along the side of the spine where they extend to the body.