chapter 14 questions

A pituitary tumor can cause perceptual losses in the lateral visual field. The pituitary gland is located directly inferior to the hypothalamus. Why would this happen?

as the tumor gets bigger, it would press against the optic chiasm and fibers form the medial retina would be disrupted

Which of these sensory modalities does not pass through the ventral posterior thalamus?

audition

Which nucleus in the medulla is connected to the inferior colliculus?

cochlear nucleus

Which of these cranial nerves is part of the gustatory system?

facial

What is the name for the topographical representation of the sensory input to the somatosensory cortex?

homunculus

Visual stimuli in the upper-left visual field will be processed in what region of the primary visual cortex?

inferior right

Which location on the body has the largest region of somatosensory cortex representing it, according to the sensory homunculus?

lips

What type of receptor cell is involved in the sensations of sound and balance?

mechanoreceptor

What type of receptor cell is responsible for transducing pain stimuli?

nociceptor

Which region of the frontal lobe is responsible for initiating movement by directly connecting to cranial and spinal motor neurons?

primary motor cortex

Axons from which neuron in the retina make up the optic nerve?

retinal ganglion cells

Which submodality of taste is sensitive to the pH of saliva?

sour

The sweetener known as stevia can replace glucose in food. What does the molecular similarity of stevia to glucose mean for the gustatory sense?

stevia will bind to the glucose receptor in sweet-sensitive taste buds

The prefrontal lobotomy is a drastic—and largely out-of-practice—procedure used to disconnect that portion of the cerebral cortex from the rest of the frontal lobe and the diencephalon as a psychiatric therapy. Why would this have been thought necessary for someone with a potentially uncontrollable behavior?

the prefrontal cortex is responsible for decision -making functions. so by scripting the connections to the prefrontal cortex, it would change the behavior

Following a motorcycle accident, the victim loses the ability to move the right leg but has normal control over the left one, suggesting a hemisection somewhere in the thoracic region of the spinal cord. What sensory deficits would be expected in terms of touch versus pain? Explain your answer.

the right leg would feel painful stimuli but not touch.

Why does the blind spot from the optic disc in either eye not result in a blind spot in the visual field?

the visual information from the right visual field falls on the left side of the retina and vice versa.

If a reflex is a limited circuit within the somatic system, why do physical and neurological exams include them to test the health of an individual?

they are simple circuits within the nervous system and can be used to quickly assess the state of neurological function for a person.

Which region of gray matter in the spinal cord contains motor neurons that innervate skeletal muscles?

ventral horn

Which extrapyramidal tract incorporates equilibrium sensations with motor commands to aid in posture and movement?

vestibulospinal tract

What type of reflex can protect the foot when a painful stimulus is sensed?

withdrawal reflex

Which of the following is a direct target of the vestibular ganglion?

Cerebellum

The inability to recognize people by their faces is a troublesome problem. It can be caused by trauma, or it may be inborn. She cannot recognize the faces of close family members or herself. What other information can a person suffering from prosopagnosia use to figure out whom they are seeing?

Even if a person cannot recognize a person's face, other cues such as clothing, hairstyle, or a particular feature such as a prominent nose or facial hair, can help make an identification.

The basilar membrane is the thin membrane that extends from the central core of the cochlea to the edge. What is anchored to this membrane so that they can be activated by movement of the fluids within the cochlea?

The hair cells are located in the organ of Corti, which is located on the basilar membrane. The stereocilia of those cells would normally be attached to the tectorial membrane (though they are detached in the micrograph because of processing of the tissue).