Chapter 4

Question 1

What is Sylvian fissure (lateral fissure)?

Answer 1

the large sulcus between the frontal and temporal lobe, which has a more prominent upward curl in the right hemisphere than it does in the left hemisphere, where it is relatively flat.

Question 2

sulcus vs gyrus

Answer 2

Question 3

Wernicke’s area vs Broca’s area (function / location).

Answer 3

Broca’s and Wernicke’s area are special language areas
Wernicke’s area - involved with the comprehension (understanding) of written and spoken language located in temporal lobe within the left cerebral hemisphere
Broca’s area is also known as the motor speech area, which is concerned with the production of speech and located in the frontal lobe of the dominant hemisphere, usually the left.

Question 4

lateralization definition

Answer 4

is localization of function or activity on one side in the body (part of the brain) in preference to the other

Question 5

What are the cortical areas (Brodmann areas)? For example? The cortex is comprised of?

Answer 5

Cortical areas are areas of the brain located in the cerebral cortex. The whole of the cerebral cortex was divided into 52 different areas, which are known as Brodmann areas. An example is Brodmann area 17 (occipital lobe), which is the primary visual cortex. In more general terms the cortex is typically described as comprising three parts: sensory, motor, and association areas.

Question 6

What is cerebrum? Function?

Answer 6

The largest part of the brain, which is divided into two cerebral hemispheres. It controls the voluntary movements and coordinates mental actions, such as speech, thought, emotions, reading, writing, and learning.

Question 7

Cerebral cortex definition and function?

Answer 7

The cerebral cortex is a layered sheet of cells - neurons (that form tissues) across the surface of the brain. The outer layer of neural tissue of the cerebrum is composed of gray matter. It plays a key role in memory, thinking, learning, problem-solving, emotions, consciousness and functions related to senses.

Question 8

What is neural circuit? It’s function?

Answer 8

A neural circuit is a population of neurons interconnected by synapses (pass chemical signals), which carry out a specific function when activated. Neural circuits interconnect to one another to form large scale brain networks. They accomplish a given brain function, such as processing visual information, generating movement, forming a reflex or even recognizing your own grandmother

Question 9

The left and right cerebral hemispheres are connected by?

Answer 9

the corpus callosum and 2 much smaller fiber tracts (the anterior and posterior commissures)

Question 10

Corpus callosum s-re

Answer 10

The corpus callosum is divided into the anterior portion, called the genu; the middle portion, known as the body; and the posterior portion, called the splenium (posterial section).

Question 11

homotopic vs heterotopic connections?

Answer 11

heterotopic - are connections from one region that travel within the corpus callosum to a DIFFERENT region in the opposite hemisphere.
homotopic - are connections from one region that travel within the corpus callosum to a CORRESPONDING region in the opposite hemisphere. Heterotopic and homotopic areas transfer information through the corpus callosum, while ipsilateral connection doesn’t.

Question 12

What is cerebellum? It’s function?

Answer 12

Cerebellum – is a large part of the brain, which is responsible for coordination of motor movements and muscles. Cerebellum is not part of the brain stem.

Question 13

What is microanatomical structural difference between both anterior and posterior language cortex? Include hemisphere difference.

Answer 13

a difference in the sizes of pyramidal cells (Nissl-stained): in the right hemisphere they are smaller than in the left hemisphere.

Question 14

Heterotopic vs Homotopic areas?

Answer 14

Heterotopic are noncorresponding areas of the brain with DIFFERENT locations in the two hemispheres. For instance, a connection between M1 on the left side and V2 on the right side joins heterotopic areas.
Homotopic - areas, which are in CORRESPONDING locations in the two hemispheres. A connection between M1 on the right side and M1 on the left side joins homotopic areas.

Question 15

What is DTI (diffusion tensor imaging)? Its function?

Answer 15

It’s a new version of MRI neuroimaging technique that detects how water travels along the white matter, which is formed by the axon tracts in the brain.

Question 16

What is the Wada Test? How it works and what information provides?

Answer 16

The Wada Test is used to determine which hemisphere contains the brain’s speech center. In the Wada test, amobarbital drug is injected into one of the patient’s right or left carotid arteries, producing a brief anesthesia of the ipsilateral hemisphere (i.e., the hemisphere on the same side as the injection).
If the right carotid artery is injected, the right side of the brain is inhibited and cannot communicate with the left side. The effect shuts down any language and/or memory function in that hemisphere in order to evaluate the other hemisphere

Question 17

contralateral vs ipsilateral. Example?

Answer 17

Ipsilateral - refers to an action on the same side of the body. For example, the brain is connected to the spinal cord by the brainstem - same side. While, the term “contralateral” refers to an action on the other side of the body. For example, left side of the body controls right side of brain, which is contralateral.

Question 18

What is interhemispheric (longitudinal) fissure?

Answer 18

is the deep groove that separates the two cerebral hemispheres of the brain

Question 19

Which projections are contralateral to the rest of the body?

Answer 19

1) Somatosensory cortex
2) Motor cortex, which controls contralateral muscles
3) Primary visual cortex

Question 20

Visual cortex - how it works? (Location)

Answer 20

Both hemispheres of the brain include a visual cortex in the occipital lobe; all the information from the left visual field ends up in the right hemisphere (and right retina) and vice versa for the right visual field

Question 21

Corpus Callosum function. What if it’s absent?

Answer 21

The Corpus Callosum ensures that both sides of the brain (2 cerebral hemispheres) can communicate and send signals to each other. Without corpus callosum 2 hands are with disagreements with what to do. We can cut corpus callosum to prevent seizures from one hemisphere to the other.

Question 22

Commissures definition

Answer 22

White matter tracts that connect two cerebral hemispheres. The corpus callosum is the largest commissure in the brain.

Question 23

How somatosensory cortex receives the information? What if it’s damaged?

Answer 23

When senses are triggered, the thalamus sends information to the somatosensory cortex. When the somatosensory cortex is damaged in left hemisphere (such as insult), numbness can result in right parts of the body due to damage in the cortex.

Question 24

Confabulation meaning

Answer 24

is filling gaps in memory through the creation of false memories, so that individual is affected with a memory disorder and unaware that these memories are inaccurate and false (left hemisphere responsible)

Question 25

Causal perception vs Causal inference (Which hemisphere?)

Answer 25

Causal perception – understand causing effect when you see it happen (right hemisphere better)
Causal inference – you have to infer (make conclusion) what incomplete information cause an effect (left hemisphere better)

Question 26

What is planum temporale?

Answer 26

The surface area of the temporal lobe that includes Wernicke’s area. The planum temporale
is believed to be larger in the left hemisphere.

Question 27

What is alien hand syndrome?

Answer 27

is a phenomenon in which one hand is not under control of the mind. The person loses control of the hand, and the limb is acting on its own

Question 28

Matching vs Maximizing behavior. Provide an example

Answer 28

In the red–green example, frequency matching involves guessing red 75 % of the time and guessing green 25 % of the time. Because the order of occurrence is random, this strategy is likely to result in a great number of errors. The second strategy, maximizing, involves simply guessing red every time. This approach ensures an accuracy rate of 75 % because red appears 75 % of the time. Animals such as rats and gold- fish maximize. Humans match.

Question 29

Matching vs Maximizing behavior in which hemispheres occur?

Answer 29

When predicting which of two events will occur, the left hemisphere uses a frequency-matching strategy, where- as the right hemisphere uses a maximizing strategy.

Question 30

What is emotional prosody? For example? Which hemisphere?

Answer 30

It’s a nonlinguistic, emotional component of speech with different variations. For example, a statement such as “John, come here,” can be interpreted in different ways if it is said in an angry tone, a fearful tone or a surprised tone. The processing of the emotional content of language appears to be right-lateralized (hemisphere)

Question 31

What is partial corpus callosotomy? Provide an example.

Answer 31

is a surgical procedure that involves cutting part of the corpus callosum.

Question 32

Global vs Local processing. (Hemispheres/lesions)

Answer 32

Global processing style refers to a stimulus or processing information in a more general and big-picture way, whereas local processing style refers to attending to the specific details of a stimulus or processing information in a narrower and a more detailed way.
Global processing - right hemisphere is better and local processing - left hemisphere is better.
Right hemisphere lesions - loss of global s-re (local remains); left-hemisphere lesions (damage) - loss of local s-re (global remains)

Question 33

Hierarchical structure definition

Answer 33

A configuration that may be described at multiple levels, from global features to local features

Question 34

Target stimulus meaning?

Answer 34

a specific stimulus to which participants in a test or experimental procedure must respond.

Question 35

Split-brain (or callosal syndrome)

Answer 35

is a syndrome, when the corpus callosum that connects 2 hemispheres of the brain is cut (absent) or severed to some degree

Question 36

What is amnesia?

Answer 36

Amnesia refers to the loss of memories, such as facts, information and experiences.