Brain Part II Lecture

Question 1

what are multimodal association areas

Answer 1

they take signals and inputs from different places and integrate them; responsible for higher order cognitive functions; can interact with multiple areas

Question 2

what are two examples of multimodal association areas

Answer 2

prefrontal cortex and the language center

Question 3

what is the most complex part of the cerebral cortex

Answer 3

the prefrontal cortex

Question 4

what is the prefrontal cortex responsible for

Answer 4

intellect, learning, motivation and personality ; associated with working (short term) memory and emotions

Question 5

what area of the brain would a frontal lobotomy affect

Answer 5

the prefrontal cortex; cuts signals that would be received from amygdala as well as many other areas of the brain; would affect intellect, learning, personality the most

Question 6

what does the Wernicke’s area do

Answer 6

understand and recognize spoken and written language

Question 7

what is true of both Broca’s and Wernicke’s areas?

Answer 7

they are both only found in one hemisphere and usually are found in the same one unless pathology is present

Question 8

T/F: wernicke’s area receives input from visual and auditory cortices

Answer 8

True

Question 9

List the pathway of travel for seeing a written word and then speaking it out loud

Answer 9

1 - sensory receptors see the word (the eye)
2 - the optic nerve notifies the CNS that we have info
3 - goes to primary visual cortex in the occipital lobe
3 - then to visual association area in Wernicke’s area
4 - then to broca’s area for speech planning to tell muscles what to do
5 - then to primary motor cortex to stimulate the muscles

Question 10

Wernicke’s area is where you ___ and ___ the language

Answer 10

compare and understand language

Question 11

T/F: Wernicke’s center is taught rules, so therefore people’s centers are different (French speaker vs. English speaker)

Answer 11

True

Question 12

What happens if someone has damage to their visual association area

Answer 12

they cannot compare their vision

it won’t go to the Wernicke’s association area

Question 13

What is described below:

Primary motor cortex - through nerves - mouth - jaw - tongue - muscles will move

Answer 13

leaving the brain going to make a sound

Question 14

hearing a word

Answer 14

spoken words - sensory (pitch rhythm and volume) - auditory cortex - wernicke’s association area - broca’s area - motor cortex

Question 15

what will happen if someone’s broca’s area is damaged?

Answer 15

be able to create sounds, but the speech would not be coherent ; they know what they will want to say ; variety of symptoms; can range from not being able to say anything understandable to being able to say some things

Question 16

broca’s aphasia is what?

Answer 16

damage to the broca; not necessarily gibberish but its super difficult to execute the actual speech and produce the sound ; impact can range ; but the person understands and knows what he wants to say but he just can’t execute it properly ; work to improve, but you can’t fix it
(ex. someone has so much trouble executing speech but can sing perfectly)

Question 17

what is apraxia?

Answer 17

involves the primary motor cortex; conductor is there and have all the notes, but the people playing the strings section not all of them can function/execute it correctly; problem with the actual muscles not because lack of a plan but because we don’t have the right neurons to execute the plan ; apraxia can be well treated at a young age by the right speech therapies - they won’t be able to fix the primary motor cortex, but fix how they use what they are able to use in a better way

Question 18

what is wernicke’s aphasia?

Answer 18

the person knows they can execute; the problem is it’s not going to make sense; throwing out words that are not making sense; usually not aware of how much they don’t understand; ex. abroad and you try to understand something in another language and you’re kind of guessing what they’re saying but you really don’t know

Question 19

what is the lateralization of the hemispheres

Answer 19

each hemisphere has functions that it may not necessarily share with the other hemisphere or it may be that the trait is stronger in one side than the other - it can be about strength - ex. being right handed - means that writing is more developed/stronger in the left hemispheres

Question 20

which hemisphere is more rational (IN GENERAL)

Answer 20

the left hemisphere - mathematics, rationalization, writing, speech, “the more logical person”, more past and future

Question 21

which hemisphere is more creative (IN GENERAL)

Answer 21

thinking more about the current, immersing in the current situation, more creative, doesn’t think about past, present, future as much and more present

Question 22

Basal nuclei - what are they

Answer 22

gray matter embedded within the white matter; basal nuclei are clusters of cell bodies; not the only function of the basal nuclei but they are responsible for onset and cessation of intentional movements; help to make a motor plan and really helpful in balancing between antagonistic muscles ex. bicep/triceps

Question 23

what happens if the basal nuclei don’t work to fullest potential

Answer 23

tremors; Parkinson’s disease

Question 24

the corpus callosum does what

Answer 24

connects the two hemispheres

Question 25

T/F: someone will die/not be able to function without their corpus callosum

Answer 25

false

Question 26

what is savant

Answer 26

all savant people are on the autistic spectrum, but not all autistic people are savant - savant are people with severe mental disabilities that demonstrate certain abilities far in excess of the average

Question 27

diencephalon is composed of what

Answer 27

thalamus, hypothalamus and epithalamus

Question 28

what is the thalamus

Answer 28

gidi example: sending letters: they go to post office to be sorted so the sending of letters is much more effective;
thalamus is our sensory post office: sensory inputs synapse with thalamus (composed of a bunch of nuclei) and our afferent impulses synapse in thalamus, edited, sorted and sent out to cortex
(smell is the only exception) - smell is directly connected to the cortex; but other than smell everything goes to thalamus before the sensory cortex

Question 29

talk about the hypothalamus

Answer 29

has many important functions; has many nuclei of its own; visceral control system of the body; “CEO one level above the ANS”; link between the nervous and endocrine system; pituitary gland in the hypothalamus; main regulator of autonomic nervous system; regulates body temp; some nuclei are both neurons and glands ; thirst, sex, hunger - responsible for our drives

Question 30

where is my cardiovascular center

Answer 30

in the medulla oblongata in lower part of the brain ; medulla will say “i need to decrease the heart rate” - are we aware? no - this never reaches the cerebral cortex

Question 31

what does this example show

ex. police comes to door and your heart rate goes up - higher functions are controlling the medulla through the hypothalamus - hypothalamus will say with all due respect medulla to BP, but we need a flight or flight response

Answer 31

the hierarchy that exists in the brain

Question 32

what is referred to as the sensory relay center of the brain

Answer 32

the thalamus

Question 33

T/F: sensory afferent impulses converge and synapse in the thalamus

Answer 33

true

Question 34

T/F: impulses of similar function are sorted out, edited and relayed as a group

Answer 34

True

Question 35

T/F: all sensory inputs ascending to the cerebral cortex pass through the thalamus

Answer 35

False - all except smell

Question 36

what are the 3 parts of the brain stem

Answer 36

midbrain, pons, medulla oblongata

Question 37

what is in the brain stem

Answer 37

it is the structural framework, hosting ascending and descending neural fibers; the nuclei that are responsible for our built in automatic system

Question 38

where are the substantia nigra found

Answer 38

they are nuclei found in the midbrain

Question 39

what do the substantia nigra do

Answer 39

they release dopamine to the basal nuclei

Question 40

what is dopamine’s effect on basal nuclei

Answer 40

dopamine inhibit basal nuclei by generating IPSP