How the brain works

Question 1

The brain receives information through our five senses: _, _, _ - often many at one time.

Answer 1

sight, touch, taste, and hearing

Question 2

The brain controls our _, _, and _. Movement of arms and legs, and the function of many organs within our body.

Answer 2

thoughts, memory, and speech.

Question 3

The _ is composed of the brain and spinal cord.

Answer 3

central nervous system

Question 4

The _ is composed of spinal nerves that branches from the spinal cord and cranial nerves that branch from the brain.

Answer 4

peripheral nervous system

Question 5

The brain has three main parts: _, _, and _.

Answer 5

the cerebrum, cerebellum and the brain stem

Question 6

Is the largest part of the brain and is composed of right and left hemispheres. It performs higher functions like interpreting touch, vision, and hearing, as well as speech, reasoning, emotions, learning, and fine control of movement. What is this?

Answer 6

the cerebrum

Question 7

Is located under the cerebrum. Its function is to coordinate muscle movements, maintain posture and balance. What is this?

Answer 7

the cerebellum

Question 8

Acts as a relay center connecting the cerebrum and the cerebellum to the spinal cord. It performs many automatic functions such as breathing, heart rate, body temperature, wake and sleep cycles, digestion, sneezing, coughing, vomiting, and swallowing. What is this?

Answer 8

the brainstem

Question 9

The cerebrum is divided into two halves: _ and _

Answer 9

right and left hemispheres

Question 10

Each _ controls the opposite side of the body.

Answer 10

hemisphere

Question 11

The _ controls speech, comprehension, arithmetic, and writing.

Answer 11

the left hemisphere

Question 12

The _ controls creativity, spatial ability, artistic, and musical skills.

Answer 12

the right hemisphere

Question 13

The _ is dominant in hand use and language in about 92% of people.

Answer 13

the left hemisphere

Question 14

The cerebrum is divided into left and right hemispheres. The two sides are connected by the nerve fibers called _

Answer 14

corpus callosum

Question 15

Each hemisphere has 4 lobes: _, _, _, and _

Answer 15

frontal, temporal, parietal, and occipital.

Question 16

The _ controls personality, behavior, emotions, judgment, planning, problem-solving, speech (speaking and writing), body movement, intelligence, concentration, and self-awareness

Answer 16

the frontal lobe

Question 17

The _ interprets language, controls words, sense of touch, pain, temperature (sensory strip), interprets signals from vision, hearing motor, sensory, and memory.

Answer 17

the parietal lobe

Question 18

The _ interprets vision (color, light, movement)

Answer 18

the occipital lobe

Question 19

The _ controls understanding language (Wernicke’s area), memory, hearing, sequencing, and organization

Answer 19

the temporal lobe

Question 20

In general, _ of the brain is responsible for language and speech and is called the “dominant” hemisphere.

Answer 20

the left hemisphere

Question 21

The _ plays a large part in interpreting visual information and spatial processing

Answer 21

the right hemisphere

Question 22

Is a disturbance of language affecting speech production, comprehension, read or writing, due to brain injury - most commonly from a stroke or trauma. What is this?

Answer 22

Aphasia

Question 23

Lies in the left frontal lobe. If this area is damaged, one may have difficulty moving the tongue or facial muscles to produce the sound of speech. What is this?

Answer 23

The Broca’s area

Question 24

Lies in the left temporal lobe. What is this?

Answer 24

Wernicke’s area

Question 25

The surface of the cerebrum is called _. It has a folded appearance with hills and valleys.

Answer 25

The cortex

Question 26

The cortex contains _ that are arranged in specific layers

Answer 26

76 billion neurons

Question 27

The nerve cell bodies color the cortex _ giving it its name - gray matter

Answer 27

grey-brown

Question 28

Beneath the cortex are long _ that connect brain areas to each other - called the white matter

Answer 28

nerve fibers (axons)

Question 29

A fold is called a _ and the valley between is a _

Answer 29

a gyrus and the valley between is a sulcus

Question 30

Pathways called _ connect areas of the cortex to each other

Answer 30

white matter tracts

Question 31

Is located in the floor of the third ventricle and is the master control of the autonomic system. It plays a role in controlling behaviors such as hunger, thirst, sleep, and sexual response. (It also regulates body temperature, blood pressure, emotions, and secretion of hormones). What is this?

Answer 31

the Hypothalamus

Question 32

Lies in a small pocket of bone at the skull base called the sella turcica. What is this?

Answer 32

the Pituitary gland

Question 33

The pituitary gland is connected to the hypothalamus of the brain by the _ known as the master gland, It controls other endocrine glands in the body. It secretes hormones that control sexual development, promote bone and muscle growth, and respond to stress.

Answer 33

the Pituitary stalk

Question 34

Is located behind the third ventricle. It helps regulate the body's internal clock and circadian rhythms by secreting melatonin. It has some role in sexual development. What is this?

Answer 34

the Pineal gland

Question 35

Serves as a relay station for almost all information that comes and goes to the cortex. It plays a role in pain sensation, attention, alertness, and memory. What is this?

Answer 35

the Thalamus

Question 36

Includes the caudate, putamen and globus pallidus. These nuclei work with the cerebellum to coordinate fine motions, such as fingertip movements. What is this?

Answer 36

the Basal ganglia

Question 37

Is the center of our emotions, learning, and memory. Included in this system are the cingulate gyri, hypothalamus, amygdala (emotional reactions), and hippocampus (memory). What is this?

Answer 37

the Limbic system

Question 38

A complex process that includes three phases: encoding (deciding what information is important), storing, and recalling. What is this?

Answer 38

Memory

Question 39

Your brain has to pay attention and rehearse in order for an event to move from short-term to long-term memory - called _

Answer 39

called encoding

Question 40

The _ holds recent events briefly in short-memory

Answer 40

the Prefrontal cortex

Question 41

The _ is responsible for encoding long-term memory

Answer 41

the Hippocampus

Question 42

Also called working memory, occurs in the prefrontal cortex. It stores information for about one minute and its capacity is limited to about 7 items. What is this?

Answer 42

short-term memory

Question 43

Is processed in the hippocampus of the temporal lobe and is activated when you want to memorize something for a longer time. This memory has unlimited content and duration capacity. What is this?

Answer 43

long-term memory

Question 44

Is processed in the cerebellum, which relays information to the basal ganglia. It stores automatically learned memories like tying a shoe, playing an instrument, or riding a bike. What is this?

Answer 44

skill memory

Question 45

The brain has hollow fluid-filled cavities called _

Answer 45

the Ventricles

Question 46

Inside the ventricles is a ribbon-like structure called _

Answer 46

the Choroid plexus

Question 47

The choroid plexus makes a clear colorless fluid called _

Answer 47

the Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)

Question 48

This liquid flows within and around the brain and spinal cord to help cushion it from injury

Answer 48

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)

Question 49

There are two ventricles deep within the cerebral hemispheres called _. They both connect with the third ventricle through a separate opening called the foramen of Monro

Answer 49

the Lateral ventricles

Question 50

The third ventricle connects with the fourth ventricle through a long narrow tube called _

Answer 50

the aqueduct of Sylvius

Question 51

From the fourth ventricle, CSF flows into _ where it bathes and cushions the brain

Answer 51

the Subarachnoid space

Question 52

CSF is recycled (or absorbed) by special structures in the superior sagittal sinus called _

Answer 52

arachnoid villi

Question 53

The skull is formed from _ that fuse together along suture lines

Answer 53

8 bones

Question 54

The skull is formed with _, _, _, _, _ and _

Answer 54

the frontal, parietal, temporal, sphenoid, occipital and ethmoid

Question 55

The face is formed from _

Answer 55

14 paired bones

Question 56

The face is formed from _, _, _, _, _, _, _, and _

Answer 56

maxilla, zygoma, nasal, palatine, lacrimal inferior nasal conchae, mandible, and vomer

Question 57

Inside the skull, there are three distinct areas: _, _, and _

Answer 57

the anterior fossa, middle fosa, and posterior fossa

Question 58

_ originate from the brainstem, exit the skull through holes called foramina, and travel to the parts of the body they innervate

Answer 58

cranial nerves

Question 59

The brainstem exits the skull through _

Answer 59

the Foramen magnum

Question 60

The brain communicates with the body through _ and _

Answer 60

the spinal cord and twelve pairs of cranial nerves