Deck 6: A: the Cerebral Cortex and Our Divided Brain

Question 1

Association areas are located

A) only in the frontal lobes.
B) only in the frontal lobes and temporal lobes.
C) only in the frontal, temporal, and parietal lobes.
D) in the frontal, temporal, occipital, and parietal lobes.

Answer 1

in the frontal, temporal, occipital, and parietal lobes.

Question 2

Direct stimulation of the motor cortex would most likely result in

A) feelings of anger.
B) acceleration of heartbeat.
C) a sensation of being touched on the arm.
D) movement of the mouth and lips.

Answer 2

movement of the mouth and lips.

Question 3

The process of comparing currently experienced visual input with past visual memories takes place in

A) the thalamus.
B) the cerebellum.
C) association areas.
D) the corpus callosum.

Answer 3

association areas.

Question 4

To trigger a person's hand to make a fist, José Delgado stimulated the individual's

A) motor cortex.
B) corpus callosum.
C) sensory cortex.
D) frontal lobe.

Question 5

Which regions of the cerebral cortex are positioned closest to our eyes?

A) temporal lobes
B) frontal lobes
C) parietal lobes
D) occipital lobes

Question 6

A monkey with electrodes implanted in its brain is able to move a computer cursor simply by thinking about the move. This brain-computer interface best illustrates the potential value of

A) neural plasticity.
B) neurogenesis.
C) cognitive neural prosthetics.
D) magnetic resonance imaging.

Question 7

The region of your cerebral cortex that enables you to recognize a person as your own mother is

A) the cerebellum.
B) the sensory cortex.
C) the corpus callosum.
D) an association area.

Question 8

An area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements is called the

A) sensory cortex.
B) motor cortex.
C) corpus callosum.
D) frontal association area.

Question 9

The sensory cortex is located in the ________ lobes.

A) parietal
B) temporal
C) frontal
D) occipital

Question 10

The parietal lobes are to ________ as the occipital lobes are to ________.

A) hearing; speaking
B) sensing touch; seeing
C) tasting; smelling
D) speaking; seeing

Question 11

Which region of the human brain best distinguishes us from other animals?

A) corpus callosum
B) cerebral cortex
C) parietal lobe
D) temporal lobe

Question 12

Alana suffered a brain disease that destroyed major portions of her temporal lobes. Alana is most likely to suffer some loss of

A) auditory perception.
B) hunger and thirst.
C) pain sensations.
D) muscular coordination.

Question 13

The thin surface layer of interconnected neural cells that covers the cerebrum is called the

A) cerebellum.
B) corpus callosum.
C) association areas.
D) cerebral cortex.

Question 14

Which regions of the cerebral cortex lie at the back of the head and receive visual information?

A) occipital lobes
B) parietal lobes
C) temporal lobes
D) association areas

Question 15

The cortical regions that are NOT directly involved in sensory or motor functions are known as

A) the cerebellum.
B) frontal lobes.
C) association areas.
D) parietal lobes.

Question 16

Phineas Gage underwent a dramatic personality change after a tamping iron inflicted massive damage to his ________ lobes.

A) parietal
B) temporal
C) occipital
D) frontal

Question 17

Nerve cells in the brain receive life-supporting nutrients and insulating myelin from

A) glial cells.
B) neurotransmitters.
C) motor neurons.
D) sensory neurons.

Question 18

If a neurosurgeon directly stimulated parts of your sensory cortex, which of the following would you most likely experience?

A) indistinct odors
B) flashes of light
C) repetitive sounds
D) a sense of being touched

Question 19

Damage to the association areas in the frontal lobe is most likely to interfere with the ability to

A) formulate plans.
B) recognize familiar faces.
C) understand word meanings.
D) recognize familiar voices.

Question 20

Suppose that a speech synthesizer could produce specific words when signaled by the brain activation patterns involved when a person merely thinks about these words. This would be an illustration of

A) constraint-induced therapy.
B) lateralization.
C) neurogenesis.
D) cognitive neural prosthetics.

Question 21

Neurogenesis refers to

A) the initiation of an action potential.
B) the formation of new neurons.
C) the release of neurotransmitters into the synaptic gap.
D) the reabsorption of neurotransmitters by a sending neuron.

Question 22

After Terry lost a finger in an industrial accident, the area of his sensory cortex devoted to receiving input from that finger gradually became very responsive to sensory input from his adjacent fingers. This best illustrates

A) neural transmission.
B) neurogenesis.
C) plasticity.
D) hemispherectomy.

Question 23

One stroke patient was put to work cleaning tables, with his good arm and hand restrained. Slowly, the bad arm recovered its skills. He gradually learned to write again and even to play tennis. This best illustrates the value of

A) hemispherectomy.
B) the split brain.
C) plasticity.
D) cognitive neural prosthetics.

Question 24

If primed with the flashed word foot, the ________ hemisphere will be especially quick to recognize the word heel. If primed with foot, cry, and glass, the ________ hemisphere will be especially quick to recognize the word cut.

A) right; left
B) left; right
C) right; right
D) left; left

Question 25

Plasticity refers to the brain's capacity to

A) automatically regulate heartbeat and breathing.
B) generate a sense of conscious awareness.
C) build new neural pathways.
D) transmit information between the two cerebral hemispheres.

Question 26

The left cerebral hemisphere is typically superior to the right in

A) spatial reasoning.
B) speech production.
C) visual perception.
D) musical abilities.

Question 27

A failure to recognize that one's arm or leg is part of one's self is most likely to be associated with damage to the

A) corpus callosum.
B) cerebellum.
C) right hemisphere.
D) thalamus.

Question 28

The ability to recognize faces with the right hemisphere but not with the left hemisphere best illustrates

A) Parkinson's disease.
B) neurogenesis.
C) plasticity.
D) lateralization.

Question 29

People who can hear usually process their speaking with the ________ hemisphere. Deaf people usually process their language signing with the ________ hemisphere.

A) right; left
B) left; right
C) right; right
D) left; left

Question 30

The large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres is called the

A) motor cortex.
B) temporal lobe.
C) association area.
D) corpus callosum.

Question 31

Teaching a patient to regain use of an impaired limb by limiting his or her use of the good limb is called

A) functional magnetic resonance imaging.
B) constraint-induced therapy.
C) cognitive neural prosthetics.
D) lateralization.

Question 32

Visual information processing in the temporal lobe of deaf people whose native language is sign best illustrates

A) cognitive neural prosthetics.
B) the split brain.
C) plasticity.
D) hemispherectomy.

Question 33

The brain is most likely to compensate for a loss of neurons by

A) generating new brain cells.
B) increasing the speed of the action potential.
C) inhibiting the growth of glial cells.
D) decreasing the production of acetylcholine.

Question 34

Physical exercise and exposure to stimulating environments are most likely to promote

A) a split brain.
B) neurogenesis.
C) hemispherectomy.
D) lateralization.

Question 35

Information is most quickly transmitted from one cerebral hemisphere to the other by the

A) corpus callosum.
B) motor cortex.
C) cerebellum.
D) sensory cortex.

Question 36

If an individual's right cerebral hemisphere is completely destroyed by disease, that person is unable to see anything

A) with his or her right eye.
B) with his or her left eye.
C) in his or her right field of vision.
D) in his or her left field of vision.

Question 37

A picture of a cat is briefly flashed in the left visual field and a picture of a mouse is briefly flashed in the right visual field of a split-brain patient. The individual will be able to use her

A) right hand to indicate she saw a cat.
B) left hand to indicate she saw a mouse.
C) right hand to indicate she saw a mouse.
D) left or right hand to indicate she saw a cat.

Question 38

Split-brain patients have had their ________ surgically cut.

A) occipital lobes
B) corpus callosum
C) sensory cortex
D) glial cells

Question 39

When Stoyka was a child, a brain disease required the surgical removal of her left cerebral hemisphere. Stoyka is now a successful college student who lives a normal life. Her success best illustrates the importance of

A) cognitive neural prosthetics.
B) reuptake.
C) glial cells.
D) plasticity.

Question 40

What will most likely happen as a neurosurgeon sedates the entire right cerebral hemisphere of a right-handed patient who is asked to count aloud with both arms extended upward?

A) The patient's left arm will fall limp and he will become speechless.
B) The patient's right arm will fall limp and he will become speechless.
C) The patient's left arm will fall limp but he will continue counting aloud.
D) The patient's right arm will fall limp but he will continue counting aloud.

Question 41

According to Roger Sperry, a recognition that the mind cannot be fully explained by the activity of nerve cells is important for appreciating our human capacity for

A) lateralization.
B) neural plasticity.
C) moral responsibility.
D) developing neural networks.

Question 42

Left-handers are more numerous than usual among those with

A) reading disabilities.
B) musical disabilities.
C) artistic disabilities.
D) mathematical disabilities.

Question 43

Research on left-handedness indicates that

A) twice as many women as men are left-handed.
B) left-handers typically have a smaller corpus callosum than right-handers.
C) left-handers are less likely than right-handers to process speech primarily in their left hemisphere.
D) left-handers generally demonstrate less mathematical competence than right-handers.