Exam 2: The Biological Basis of Behavior

In regards to the brain, the term "plasticity" refers to ________.

The hormone that causes the anterior pituitary gland to release hormones that prolong responses to stress, thus causing you to remain aroused for some time after extreme emotional excitement is ________.

The branch of the autonomic nervous system that prepares the body for quick action in an emergency is the ________ division.

The term "gray matter" refers to ________.

Macroelectrode techniques are used to ________.

A frog muscle is stimulated with an electric current but the muscle doesn't twitch. This probably happens because ________.

Describe the location and functioning of the medulla, cerebellum, thalamus, hypothalamus, and cerebral cortex.

Pairs of tiny threadlike bodies that carry genes are ________.

Undifferentiated precursor cells that, under the right conditions, can give rise to any specialized cell in the body are called ________ cells.

Simply put, Broca's area is important for ________, and Wernicke's area is important for ________.

A person with schizophrenia is most likely to have a problem with which of the following neurotransmitters?

Describe the basic functions of the endocrine system, including the specific functions of the thyroid gland, pancreas, pituitary gland, gonads, and adrenal glands.

Afferent neurons carry messages from the central nervous system.

Despite its dangers, a young man continues to take cocaine because of the feelings of euphoria it produces for him. This powerful arousal of his nervous system is probably due to cocaine's ability to ________.

Phineas Gage suffered personality changes as a result of damage to his temporal lobes.

Both CT scanning and MRI provide pictures of brain activity.

Which hemisphere of the cerebral cortex is usually dominant in language tasks?

Corey was in an automobile accident that resulted in an injury to her brain. She now has difficulty reading road maps and telling other people how to get somewhere. She has most likely suffered an injury to her ________ lobe.

When a neuron is polarized, ________.

In many important psychological characteristics, a number of genes make a small contribution to the trait in question. This process is known as ________.