Chapter 2 - Part 2

Question 0

Medulla

Answer 0

Base of the brainstem; controls heartbeat and breathing

Question 1

Brainstem

Answer 1

The oldest part and central core of the brain; responsible for automatic survival functions

Question 2

Reticular Formation

Answer 2

A nerve network in the brainstem that plays an important role in controlling arousal

Question 3

Thalamus

Answer 3

The brain’s sensory switchboard located on top of the brainstem; directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla

Question 4

Hippocampus

Answer 4

Limbic system component; processes memory

Question 5

Cerebellum

Answer 5

“Little brain” attached to the rear of the brainstorm; processes sensory input and coordinating movement output and balance

Question 6

Limbic System

Answer 6

Doughnut-shaped system of neural structures at the border of the brainstem and cerebral hemispheres; includes hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus; handles emotions such as fear and aggression

Question 7

Amygdala

Answer 7

Two lima bean-sized neural clusters that are components of the limbic system and linked to emotion (fear and aggression)

Question 8

Hypothalamus

Answer 8

Directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature) and helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland and linked to emotion

Question 9

Cerebral Cortex

Answer 9

Intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells that covers the cerebral hemispheres; the body’s control and information processing center

Question 10

Glial Cells

Answer 10

Cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons

Question 11

Frontal Lobes

Answer 11

Portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forehead; involved in speaking and muscle movements and in making plans and judgements

Question 12

Occipital Lobes

Answer 12

Portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the head; includes the visual areas, which receive visual information from the opposite visual field

Question 13

Parietal Lobes

Answer 13

Portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head and toward the rear; receives sensory input for touch and body position

Question 14

Temporal Lobes

Answer 14

Portion of the cerebral cortex lying above the ears; includes auditory areas, each of which receives auditory information primarily from the opposite ear

Question 15

Motor Cortex

Answer 15

An area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements

Question 16

Sensory Cortex

Answer 16

An area at the front of the parietal lobes that registers and processes body touch and movement sensations

Question 17

Association Areas

Answer 17

Areas of the cerebral cortex that are not involved in primary motor or sensory functions; involved in higher mental functions such as learning, remembering, thinking, and speaking

Question 18

Phineus Gage

Answer 18

Got a rod shot through his left cheek and out the top of his skull, frontal lobe badly damaged, personality change

Question 19

Aphasia

Answer 19

Impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damage either to Broca’s Area (speaking) or to Weirnicke’s Area (understanding)

Question 20

Broca’s Area

Answer 20

Controls language expression - an area of the frontal lobe, usually in the left hemisphere, that directs the muscle movement involved in speech

Question 21

Wernicke’s Area

Answer 21

Controls language reception - a brain area involved in language comprehension and expression; usually in the left temporal lobe

Question 22

Plasticity

Answer 22

The brain’s capacity for modification, as evident in brain reorganization following damage (especially in children) and in experiments on the effects of experience on brain development

Question 23

Corpus Callosum

Answer 23

The large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them

Question 24

Split Brain

Answer 24

A condition in which the two hemispheres of the brain are isolated by cutting the connecting fibers (mainly those of the corpus callosum) between them