Psych 314
Louis seems to be particularly responsive to situations that people find frightening. He is easily startled and when frightened tends to be very frightened. What area of his brain is most likely to be involved in these fear responses?
Amygdala
Which structure conveys an impulse toward other neurons, an organ, or a muscle?
An axon
What structure(s) is/are implicated in movement disorders like Parkinson's and Huntington's?
Basal ganglia
Frederick is interested in using his diet to elevate his mood. He knows that dietary tryptophan is necessary for the synthesis of serotonin, which will, in turn, help his mood. What is the BEST way for him to increase the amount of tryptophan available to his brain?
Decrease consumption of phenylalanine-containing foods
Which method best allows researchers to examine brain anatomy?
EEG
Mr. Garcia has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. What type of cells, that form the lining of blood vessels, will shrink, thereby allowing harmful chemicals to enter his brain?
Endothelial
Which lobe contains the primary motor cortex?
Frontal
The cerebral cortex is organized in six layers of cell bodies, parallel to the surface of the cortex, called ____.
Laminae
____ is thought to help control appetite by decreasing it.
Leptin
Which type of neurons lack axons?
Local
Which researcher is credited with demonstrating the existence of chemical synapses?
Loewi
What recording technique uses faint magnetic fields to measure activity in the brain?
MEG
Which structure controls vital reflexes, including breathing, heart rate, vomiting, salivation, coughing, and sneezing?
Medulla
Which type of effect is particularly important for sensations like taste and long-lasting aspects of arousal and motivation?
Metabotropic
Which cell structure performs the activities that provide cells with energy?
Mitochondrion
Which neurotransmitter is a gas that is released by local neurons and has the effect of dilating nearby blood vessels and thus increasing blood flow to the brain?
Nitric oxide
Dot is a cat with a huge brown spot on her dorsal side. The rest of her fur is white. Where is the spot located?
On dot's back
Dr. Kerr studies the functions of a specific type of neuron by exciting or inhibiting those neurons using light. What method is Dr. Kerr using?
Optogenetics
Which system consists of the cranial nerves and nerves from the sacral spinal cord?
Parasympathetic
Dr. Chiarella is interested in how the brain responds to touch and pressure sensations. Which lobe will Dr. Chiarella study?
Parietal
Nicola just burned her finger on a hot pan. What is the circuit from sensory neurons to muscle response called that transmitted the message that she should remove her finger from the pan?
Reflex arc
Which cell structure synthesizes the substances used for building materials by the cell?
Ribosomes
Which type of glial cell builds myelin sheaths in the periphery of the body
Schwann Cells
Why is it that, once the sodium-potassium pump moves sodium outside the membrane, the sodium does not leak back in?
Selective permeability prevents it.
Consider a wiring arrangement of neurons in which the two neurons (A and B) stimulate a third neuron (X). Neither neuron A nor B can stimulate neuron X on its own, but, in combination, they can excite neuron X. This demonstrates ____.
Spatial Summation
What term describes periodic production of action potentials, even without synaptic input?
Spontaneous firing
Which class of drugs decreases reuptake and prolongs the effects of serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine?
Stimulants
Moira was walking home along at night when a loud noise frightened her. Which system prepared Moira for "fight or flight"?
Sympathetic
Which lobe contributes to visual processing related to perception of movement and recognition of faces?
Temporal
What term is used for the cumulative effect of repeated stimulation over a brief period?
Temporal summation
When a neuron is resting, there is more sodium outside it than inside it and more potassium inside it than outside it. What is this phenomenon called?
The concentration gradient
What procedure enables researchers to use a magnet to temporarily inactivate an area of the brain in order to better understand the relationship between that area of the brain and behavior?
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
Sherrington inferred the presence of a gap between neurons based on ____.
a slower-than-predicted speed of conduction
Epinephrine and norepinephrine are produced in the ____.
adrenal medulla
Nearly all neurotransmitters are synthesized from _____,
amino acids
Which type of glial cells both take up and re-release the ions and transmitters released by axons?
astrocytes
Neuropeptides are characterized by ____.
being released mostly from dendrites
The question of how various brain areas combine to produce integrated behavior and experience is referred to as the ____.
binding problem
Cerebrospinal fluid is produced by the ____.
choroid plexus
A motor neuron receives excitation through its ____.
dendrites
Lawrence says he really enjoys smoking and thinks he may even be addicted to cigarettes. Smoking cigarettes feels rewarding in part because it triggers the release of ____.
dopamine
Bursts of neurotransmitters are released from the presynaptic neuron in _____.
exocytosis
Clusters of cell bodies like the clusters of sensory neurons outside the spinal cord are called ____.
ganglia
The brain's primary source of energy is ____.
glucose
Which substance is moved across the blood-brain barrier via active transport?
glucose
Most of the brain's excitatory ionotropic synapses use the neurotransmitter ____.
glutamate
The temporary hyperpolarization of a membrane is a(n) ____.
inhibitory postsynaptic potential
Gordon is having trouble sleeping and decides to take a supplement containing a hormone that is manufactured in the pineal. What is he most likely taking?
melatonin
Research using contemporary imaging methods have shown that people with a larger amygdala tend to have ____.
more social contacts
In his studies of infant brains, Santiago Ramón y Cajal demonstrated that ____.
nerve cells are separate, not merged into each other
The primary visual cortex is located in the ____ .
occipital lobe
Transmission of the action potential down an axon is called ____.
propagation
The slightly negative electrical potential of the inside of a resting neuron relative to the outside is called the _____.
resting potential
The jumping of action potentials from node to node is referred to as ____.
saltatory conduction
Many hallucinogenic drugs are chemically similar to ____.
serotonin
What happens at the peak of the action potential?
sodium channels close
Which structure is very important for vision?
superior colliculus
According to the all-or-none law, provided the threshold is reached, the amplitude and velocity of an action potential are independent of _____.
the intensity of the initiating stimulus
The permeability of the proteins that allow sodium and potassium to cross a neuron's membrane depends on the ____.
voltage difference across the membrane