Physiological Psych. Module 6.2 Quiz
An individual with damage to the primary somatosensory cortex would most have problems with ____.
ability to locate where they are being touched
What is a dermatome?
an area of the skin innervated by a given spinal nerve
Each spinal nerve has ____.
both a sensory and a motor component
Large-diameter pain axons ____.
carry sharp pain information
Along each strip of somatosensory cortex, different sub-areas respond to ____.
different areas of the body
A mild degree of pain releases the neurotransmitter ____. A more intense pain also releases ____.
glutamate; substance P
Itching is primarily the result of ____.
histamine release
Somatosensory information travels from the thalamus to which area of the cortex?
parietal lobe
The sensory aspect of pain activates the ____ cortex, whereas the emotional aspect activates the ____ cortex.
somatosensory; cingulate
What neurotransmitter is released by axons that carry pain information to the brain?
substance P
The somatosensory system involves sensation of ____.
the body and its movements
The eighth cranial nerve contains both a(n) ____ component and a ____ component.
auditory; vestibular
Studies with placebos and studies using hypnotism suggest that much of the reduction in pain is the result of decreased activation in the ____.
emotion areas of the brain
Morphine and other opiate drugs decrease sensitivity to pain by ____.
mimicking the effects of endorphins at the synapses
What does the vestibular system detect?
movement of the head
What process is predicted by the gate theory of pain?
non-pain information can inhibit pain information
The brain chemicals known as endorphins produce effects similar to which substance?
opiates
In the otolith organs, the otoliths are calcium carbonate particles that ____.
push against hair cells when moved
Pacinian corpuscles respond best to ____.
rapid mechanical pressure
Anti-inflammatory drugs, such as ibuprofen, relieve pain by ____.
reducing the release of chemicals from damaged tissues
Which two structures provide information about vestibular sensation?
semicircular canals and otolith organs
Pain receptors of the skin are ____.
simple, bare neuron endings
Morphine is effective in relieving ____.
slow, dull pain
An acceleration of the head at any angle causes ____.
the jelly-like substance in one of the semicircular canals to push against hair cells
When mechanical pressure bends the membrane of a Pacinian corpuscle, ____.
the membrane's resistance to the flow of sodium ions decreases
Which statement is TRUE of various types of somatosensation?
they are at least partly distinct all the way from the receptors to the cerebral cortex
A distinctive feature of itch is that it relies on ____.
unusually slow axons
The ____ nucleus of the thalamus is associated with pain perception of the body.
ventral posterior
Which ability would be most impaired with damage to the vestibular senses?
visually tracking an object while dancing
