psychology ch 5-7 Flashcards
The nervous system is made up of which two sub-divisions?
Central nervous system (CNS) and Peripheral nervous system (PNS)
The Brain and spinal CORD is part of which system?
CNS
which two systems make up the peripheral nervous system?
Somatic and autoNOMIC nervous systems
the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems are part of what bigger system?
The autonomic nervous system
roughly where would the forebrain, midbrain and hindbrain be located in the brain.
refer to text book
What is the function of the corpus callosum?
the corpus callosum is the thick band of about 200 million nerve fibres that acts as a ‘bridge’ for neural messages that are sent between the two hemispheres of the brain, allowing left and right hemispheres to interact and exchange information.
what is the role of the CNS?
It enables the brain to communicate with the rest of the body by conveying messages from the brain to the peripheral nervous system, and from the
peripheral nervous system to the brain
What are the two main roles of the PNS?
- to communicate information from the body’s organs,glands and muscles to the CNS (info from outside world -temperature and inside world like aches and pains)
- To communcate information from the CNS to the body’s organs, glands and muscles.
what is the somatic nervous system responsible for?
It is responsible for carrying sensory and motor information to and from the CNS.
which nervous system is responsible for voluntary movement of skeletal muscles?
PNS => somatic nervous system
What muscles do the autonomic nervous system control? and give examples
they control involuntary body functions and non-skeletal muscles such as heartbeat, blood flow etc.
what does the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system do in response to an emergency?
- The sympathetic nervous system prepares the body for action and is like an emergency system that activates when we are faced with fear, danger or anxiety. (it involves increase HR, decrease of digestion etc)
- The parasympathetic rather operates where danger is not present and calms the body after action, if we did not have this system we would always be on edge, increasing the risk of stress.
what is homeostasis?
This is the body’s resting functions that the parasympathetic ns is responsible for maintaining and returning.
What is the cerebral cortex?
The cortex a very thin (approximately 3 millimetres) and contains billions of neurons that enables us to plan and carry out a series of body movements and use words to make intelligible conversation. It also allows us to undertake a range of tasks, from the simple (like making toast) to the complex (like constructing buildings and developing computers).
What enables the cerebral cortex to hold many of these neurons?
Its convolutions – the many folds, grooves and bulges – make the surface area (and volume) of the cortex large enough to contain an enormous number of neurons and blood vessels that can supply energy.
what are the four lobes in the cerebral cortex?
(F-POT) Frontal, parietal, occipital and temporal
what is the primary cortex of the frontal lobe?
The primary motor cortex.
what is the primary motor cortex responsible for?
The primary motor cortex controls skeletal muscles and voluntary body muscle movements.
what does it mean if the primary motor cortex functions contralaterally?
it means that the left side controls the right side of the body and the right controls the left side of the body.
What are some other functions of the frontal lobe?
- voluntary movement
- personality
- planning
- decision making
- impulse control
- problem solving
- motivation
- emotion
where is broca’s area located?
it is located in the left frontal lobe.
name three things broca’s area is responsible for?
- production of clear and articulate speech
- grammatical structure of sentences (adding ing and ed to the end of words)
- understanding sequence and conjunctions in spoken language ( words like was, and etc)
if broca’s area is damaged, what is this disability referred to?
Broca’s aphasia
what are some symptoms of broca’s aphasia?
- speech is non-fluent, pauses between words
- patient is aware of their condition and can judge that others do not understand them
- comprehension difficulties are mostly unaffected
what is the primary cortex of the parietal lobe?
primary somatosensory cortex
what separates the primary somatosensory cortex and the primary motor cortex.
the central fissure
what is the role of the primary somatosensory cortex
it receives and processes sensory information such as touch, pressure, temperature and pain from the body.
In the primary motor cortex which body part would be devoted more cortex, the hands or the legs? explain why
hands would be devoted more cortex as the primary motor cortex devotes more cortex to body parts that require more complex movements.
In the primary somatosensory cortex which body part would be devoted more cortex, the eyes or feet? explain why
the eyes. this is because the amount of cortex provided is dependent of the sensitivity of the body part.
which lobe is responsible for processing sensory information from the body?
the parietal lobe.
where is the primary visual cortex located and what is it responsible for?
the occipital lobe and it is responsible for receiving the visual information coming from the eyes.
describe how the brain processes visual information.
- the left half of each eye receives information from the right half of the visual field and sends it to the left occipital lobe
- The right half of each eye receives information from the left half of the visual field and sends it to the right occipital lobe.
What else does the occipital lobe do with visual stimuli?
It processes the visual information.
Name three things the temporal lobe is responsible for?
- receiving and processing auditory information
- language comprehension
- facial recognition
- memory
- learning
what does the primary auditory cortex do?
receives and processes auditory information
What do the left and right auditory cortex specialise in?
- left specialises in verbal sounds (words)
- right specialises in non-verbal sounds ( barking)
where is wernicke’s area located?
In the left temporal lobe.
what is wernicke’s area responsible for?
- language comprehension
- producing meaningful speech
- locating intended words from memory
What are some symptoms of wernicke’s aphasia?
- speech is fluent but nothing they say (or write) makes sense
- loss of ability to recall names
- have trouble retrieving the correct words from memory
- unaware of their condition
- what they say is referred to as a ‘word salad’
‘What kind of work have you done, Mr Johnson?’ I asked.
‘We, the kids, all of us, and I were working for a long time in the … you know … it’s the kind of space, I mean place, rear to the speed van …’
this answer by this participant shows which type of disability and why?
Wernike’s aphasia. This is because although the person is showing fairly fluent speech, what they are saying does not make sense at all. Also the participant has trouble saying the work “place” which is a symptom of wernicke’s aphasia, not being able to recall the right words.
what are association areas and what do they do?
provide an example if them in action
association areas are areas that lie outside the primary cortex of each lobe. The INTEGRATE sensory, motor and other information provided by the primary cortices to initiate higher order mental processes.
eg you see a bear in the forest (visual cortex) this is also combined with its loud roar ( auditory cortex). These two pieces are put together in the frontal lobe to tell your body there is danger so you can run away (motor cortex)
what are some of the things the left hemisphere specialises in?
- language (reading, writing and speaking)
- mathematical skills
- analytic skills and reasoning
- problem solving and logic
- voluntary movement of right hand side of the body
- receives and processes sensory information from right hand side of the body
what are the things the right hemisphere specialises in?
- spatial abilities (maps, jigsaw, 3D images)
- creativity (art and music appreciation)
- abstract thinking
- voluntary movement of left hand side of the body
- receives and processes sensory information from left hand side of the body
given an example of a sentence for someone with broca’’s aphasia?
they might say “drive car” instead of “i drove the car”
define spatial neglect and give an example of what a patient might do with this disorder
This is an attention disorder cause by damage to the right parietal lobe, which results in individuals failing to notice (or ignoring) anything on the left side of their world.
eg shaving one half of their face or drawing one half of a picture
When asked to draw his favourite toy in his childhood, David only drew the right side of the toy on a piece of paper.
what disability is Davis showcasing?
Spatial neglect as this disorder also applies for internal thought rather than the real world. David is failing to notice or ignoring the right side of the toy
How is spacial neglect formed in humans?
Usually stroke and accident victims
What does split brain surgery involve?
It involves surgically cutting the corpus callosum, thus disconnecting one hemisphere from the other
why is spit brain surgery done?
it is undertaken at a ‘last resort’ to prevent any spread of epileptic seizures from one side of the brain to the other.
what are symptoms of split brain surgery?
- Despite the fact the two hemispheres virtually act as two seperate brains, there has no seemed to be any major side effect involved with patients.
In Sperry and Gazzinga’s split brain study, what did patients do when shown a word in the right visual field?
They were able to say the word without any problems. This is because reading and speaking are associated with the left side of the brain.
In Sperry and Gazzinga’s split brain study, what did patients do when shown a word in the left visual field?
They were unable to say the word yet when given a pen and a piece of paper, the patient was able to draw the image of the word with their eyes closed. This is because spatial activities and voluntary muscle movement are specialized in the right side of the brain.
what are the pons responsible for?
They control movement, breathing and sleeping, dreams and walking.
what is the cerebellum responsible for?
cerebellum is reponsible for Perception and cognition, balance and fine muscle control.
what is the medulla responsible for?
the medulla is responsible for Heartbeat, breathing and
other vital bodily functions
What does the Midbrain do?
It co-ordinates sleep, movement and arousal.
What part of the brain controls agression and fear(emotional memory)
The amygdala
what is the hippocampus responsible for?
Long-term memory and spatial orientation.
What is the outer layer of the brain known as and what does it do?
cerebral cortex.
higher mental processes and complex behaviors.
what is the main function of the spinal chord?
Its main function is to relay information between the brain and the body.
