Unit 3b Flashcards
EEG
Read-out of electrical brain activity.
PET scan
Shows the brain’s action by measuring its consumption of sugar glucose
MRI
Provides a picture of the brain’s soft tissue by using magnetic fields and radio waves
fMRI
Can show the brain’s structure and function
Measures blood-flow to and within the brain
Brainstem
Oldest brain region
Survival functions
Medulla
Base of brain stem
Controls heartbeat and breathing
Pons
Helps to coordinate movements
Reticular formation
Nerve network in the brain stem that helps control arousal
Thalamus
Directs messages to sensory receiving areas in the cortex
Cerebellum
Little Brain
Processes sensory input
Hippocampus
Processes memory
Amygdala
Linked to emotion
Aggression and fear
Cerebral cortex
The largest section of the brain
Ultimate control and information processing center
Glial cells
Feed and nourish the nerve cells
Frontal lobe
Speaking
Muscle movements
Making plans and judgements
Parietal lobe
Receives sensory input for touch and body position
Occipital lobe
Receives and processes vision
Temporal lobe
Included auditory areas
Motor cortex
Controls voluntary movements
Sensory cortex
Processes body touch and movement sensations
Association areas
Area of the cerebral cortex Higher mental functioning Learning Remembering Speaking Thinking
Plasticity
The brain reorganizes or reassigns jobs and functions
Who has the most plastic brains?
Children
Neurogenesis
Growth of new brain cells
Corpus Callosum
Links the two hemispheres
Left brain handles
Rational
Logical thought
Speech and words
Right brain handles
Images
Emotions
Intuition
Drawing inferences
Lesion
Tissue distruction
CT Scan
Series of X-ray photographs taken from different angles and combined
Limbic system
Associated with emotion and drives
Aphasia
Impairment of language
Broca’s area
Controls language expression
Wernicke’s area
Controls language reception
Split brain
Procedure that isolates the two brain hemispheres by cutting the fibers connecting them
