Test 2: The Brain

Question 1

Membrane

Answer 1

A sheet of tissue that covers or connects organs.

Question 2

Meninges

Answer 2

The layers of membrane under the skull surrounding the brain.

Question 3

Neurotransmitters

Answer 3

Chemical messengers released by the axon that travel across the synapse (a gap) to neighbouring neurons.

Question 4

Neuroimpulses

Answer 4

The messages that travel along a neuron.

Question 5

Cerebrospinal fluid

Answer 5

The fluid that surrounds and protects the brain.

Question 6

Corpus callosum

Answer 6

Nerve tissue connecting the two hemisphere of the brain.

Question 7

Cerebellum

Answer 7

A primitive part of the brain responsible for balance and motor coordination.

Question 8

Cortex

Answer 8

Outer layer of the brain where most processes take place, such as thinking.

Question 9

Lobe

Answer 9

A clearly obvious division of an organ, such as in the brain or ear.

Question 10

Contralateral

Answer 10

They control the opposite sides of the body.

Question 11

Hemispheres

Answer 11

Half of a sphere; in psychology, the left or right half of the brain.

Question 12

Spatial neglect

Answer 12

Damage to one hemisphere of the brain that results in loss of awareness for the contralateral (opposite side) of the body.

Question 13

Change blindness

Answer 13

When objects around you change without you realising.

Question 14

Brain banks

Answer 14

An organisation that collects, organises, handles and distributes brain tissue.

Question 15

Hallucinations

Answer 15

Mistaken perceptions, illusions; experiencing something that is not real. Hallucinations can be visual, auditory or tactile.

Question 16

When does the brain develop?

Answer 16

• The brain begins to develop from the moment the sperm enters the egg during fertilisation.

Question 17

Fourteenth day?

Answer 17

• By the fourteenth day of life the zygote is developing its nervous system.

Question 18

End of eight weeks?

Answer 18

• By the end of the eighth week, the foetus is 1.8cm in length and it is producing 250 000 neuroblasts a minute which will eventually turn into neurons.

Question 19

Eighth month?

Answer 19

• By the eighth month of pregnancy, the development of the brain is almost complete.

Question 20

Weight of brain when we are born?

Answer 20

• When we are born, our brain weighs 400 grams.

Question 21

At one year old?

Answer 21

• By the time we are one, our brain weighs a kilogram.

Question 22

Adult brain?

Answer 22

• The average weight of an adult brain is 1.4kg.

Question 23

CNS:

Answer 23

Is the brain and the spinal cord.

Question 24

PNS:

Answer 24

Anything outside the brain and spinal cord.

Question 25

Dendrites:

Answer 25

Branch-like extensions at the front end of a neuron that receive messages from other neurons.

Question 26

Soma:

Answer 26

The cell body of a neuron, containing its nucleus and DNA.

Question 27

Axon:

Answer 27

A cable-like extension from the cell body of a neuron that sends messages to other neurons.

Question 28

Myelin sheath

Answer 28

Fatty, white insulating tissue that surrounds the axon of neurons.

Question 29

Endorphins

Answer 29

Chemical substances in our brains that act as natural painkillers in times of pain or stress. Endorphins can also cause people to feel better after spontaneous exercise.

Question 30

Acetylcholine:

Answer 30

A neurotransmitter that plays a large role in learning.

Question 31

Dopamine:

Answer 31

A hormone that plays an important role in cognitive functions such as memory, problem solving and attention. It is also known as the ‘pleasure’ hormone, as it provides feelings of enjoyment and happiness.

Question 32

How many neuron connections are there in the brain?

Answer 32

40 quadrillion different patterns of connections.

Question 33

Frontal lobe:

Answer 33

Decision making, problem solving, movement, motor control

Question 34

Temporal lobe:

Answer 34

Hearing, speech, memory

Question 35

Cerebellum:

Answer 35

Balance, motor coordinaton

Question 36

Occipital lobe:

Answer 36

Vision, visual processing

Question 37

Parietal lobe:

Answer 37

movement, processing information

Question 38

Brain care:

Answer 38

• Exercise
• Diet
• Sleep

Question 39

Right Brain functions:

Answer 39

Art awareness, creativity, Imagination, Insight, Music awareness etc.

Question 40

Left Brain functions:

Answer 40

Analytic thought, Logic, Language, Reasoning, Science and maths, Written, Number skills.