12. The Central Nervous System

The brain is divided into two cerebral hemispheres by the ________________.

The occipital lobe is found at the ________ of the brain, while the parietal lobe is found at the ________.

A spinal reflex is a rapid, involuntary response to a stimulus. Tala has an issue with motor areas of her brain. Will her spinal reflexes still function? 

Which of the following body parts would you expect to have the greatest size difference between its area on the motor homunculus and its area on the sensory homunculus?

The prefrontal cortex & Wernicke's area can both be classified as association areas, while Broca's area is classified as a motor area.

Which of the following diseases would you expect might result from a dysfunction of the basal nuclei?

Mark the following statements about the brain as true or false. If a statement is false, correct it to make a true statement.

d. The cerebrum is responsible for our basic, involuntary functions and reflexes.

Which statement about cerebral white matter is false?

a. Commissural fibers connect the right and left cerebral hemispheres.

b. Projection fibers connect the cerebral cortex of one hemisphere with structures in the other hemisphere.

c. The corpus callosum is the largest bundle of white matter in the brain.

d. Association fibers connect the gyri of the cerebral cortex with one another.

Mark the following statements about the cerebral cortex as true or false. If a statement is false, correct it to make a true statement.

a. The neocortex is the 'newest' component of the cerebral cortex from an evolutionary perspective.

Mark the following statements about the cerebral cortex as true or false. If a statement is false, correct it to make a true statement.

b. The cerebral cortex is composed of white matter.

Mark the following statements about the cerebral cortex as true or false. If a statement is false, correct it to make a true statement.

c. The primary visual cortex is located in the occipital lobe.

Mark the following statements about the cerebral cortex as true or false. If a statement is false, correct it to make a true statement.

d. The prefrontal cortex is located in the frontal lobe and is concerned with movement.

The central sulcus separates the:

a. parietal and temporal lobes.

b. parietal and occipital lobes.

c. frontal and temporal lobes.

d. frontal and parietal lobes.

Huntington's disease is characterized by a loss of normal inhibition mediated by the basal nuclei. Predict the symptoms you are likely to see with this disease.

How could you tell the difference between an injury that damaged the cerebellum and one that damaged the basal nuclei?

Why do injuries to the hippocampus interfere with the formation of new declarative memories but do not impact memories already encoded in long-term memory? Why do such injuries not affect the formation of nondeclarative memories?

Ms. Norris is brought to the emergency department with injuries to the posterior of her head resulting from a motor vehicle accident. Which lobes of the cerebrum likely sustained injuries? Predict the main signs and symptoms you will see resulting from the injury to these cerebral lobes.

On further examination, Ms. Norris is shown to be in a state of unarousable unconsciousness, or coma. Which area or system of the brain is likely damaged? Explain.