Brain Function (Lec 2)

Question 1

True or False?

The cerebral cortex contains approximately 100 trillion neurons

Answer 1

False, 100 billion

Question 2

Describe Granular neurons

Answer 2

short axons, interneurons, both excitatory (Glutamate) and inhibitory (GABA)

Question 3

Describe Fusiform neurons

Answer 3

smaller output neurons

Question 4

Describe Pyramidal neurons

Answer 4

large output neurons

Question 5

What occurs at the IV layer of cerebral cortex?

Answer 5

termination of most incoming specific sensory signals

Question 6

What occurs at V and VI layers of cerebral cortex?

Answer 6

origin of most output signals, fibers to thalamus from VI

Question 7

What do I, II, and III layers of the cerebral cortex do?

Answer 7

intracortical association functions

Question 8

What are primary motor and sensory areas?

Answer 8

primary motor area: direct connections with specific muscles

primary sensory area: direct specific sensations

Question 9

What are secondary motor and sensory areas?

Answer 9

secondary motor area: provide patterns of motor activity

secondary sensory area: analyze meanings of specific sensory signals

Question 10

What are association areas?

Answer 10

areas that receive and analyze signals simultaneously from multiple motor and sensory cortices

Question 11

Describe the prefrontal association area

Answer 11

receives reanalyzed sensory information necessary for planning effective movements and carries out “thought” processes in the mind

Question 12

This association area provides circuitry for word formation, works closely with Wernicke’s area, and is almost always dominant on the left side of the brain

Answer 12

Broca’s area

Question 13

This association area is concerned with behavior, emotions, and motivation

Answer 13

limbic association area

Question 14

This association is responsible for language comprehension

Answer 14

Wernicke’s area

Question 15

Extensive damage to this area results in prosopagnosia (inability to recognize faces)

Answer 15

Facial recognition area. Has an occipital portion and temporal portion

Question 16

Where do somatic, visual, and auditory association areas all meet one another?

Answer 16

in the posterior part of the superior temporal love

Question 17

What is the dominant side of the brain for left-handed people? For right-handed people?

Answer 17

Right side for left-handed people.

Left side for right-handed people.

Question 18

This area plays the greatest single role of any part of the cerebral cortex for intelligence

Answer 18

Werknicke’s area.
Note: activation of Wernicke’s area may be able to call forth complicated memory patterns involving more than one sensory modality

Question 19

Loss of ability to solve complex problems, inability to string together sequential tasks, inability to multitask, decrease in aggressiveness or ambition, inappropriate social responses, and loss of purpose while performing usual motor pattern functions are consistent with?

Answer 19

prefrontal lobotomy

Question 20

What are some of the abilities provided by the brain’s working memory?

Answer 20

prognostication, planning for future, delay in response to incoming sensory signals, ability to consider consequences of motor actions, ability to solve complicated mathematical problems, control of actives in accord with moral law

Question 21

What is the corpus callosum?

Answer 21

the major commissure between the two hemispheres

Question 22

What would be the result of cutting the corpus callosum?

Answer 22

blocking of transfer of information from Wernicke’s area to non-dominant motor cortex, prevention of the transfer of somatic and visual information from right hemisphere into Wernicke’s area, results in two entirely separate conscious portions of the brain

Question 23

What is declarative memory?

Answer 23

memory of various details of an integrated thought

ex: memory of meaning of experience

Question 24

This type of memory is associated with motor activities

Answer 24

refelxive (skill) memory

Question 25

How long does short-term memory last?

Answer 25

lasts as long as person thinks of number of facts (seconds)

Question 26

Intermediate long-term memory can last for how long?

Answer 26

minutes or weeks, may become long-term memory if memory traces are activated enough

Question 27

What is the mechanism for facilitation?

Answer 27

serotonin release - cAMP - K+ channel inhibited - prolonged AP - prolonged activation of Ca2+ channels - prolongs NT release

Question 28

What are the structural changes involved with long-term memory?

Answer 28

Increase in vesicle release sites, increase in number of transmitter vesicles , increase in number of presynaptic terminals, changes in structures of the dendritic spines