Chapter 7 Homework

The sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions are two arms of the ________.

autonomic nervous system

The part of the neuron that typically conducts nerve impulses away from the cell body is the ________.

axon

The term central nervous system refers to the ________.

brain and spinal cord

The midbrain, pons, and medulla oblongata are housed in the ________.

brain stem

The thalamus, hypothalamus, and epithalamus collectively constitute the ________.

diencephalon interbrain

What are the two major functional properties of neurons?

irritability and conductivity

Which of the following is NOT a major region of the brain?

ventral ramus

What cells form the myelin sheaths around nerve fibers in the PNS?

Schwann cells

Which of the following is one of the major functions of the pons?

breathing

Which of these neuroglial cells forms the myelin sheath in the central nervous system?

oligodendrocytes

What division of the autonomic nervous system is often called the "rest-and-digest" division?

parasympathetic

The hypothalamus regulates the ________.

pituitary gland

Which division of the peripheral nervous system activates skeletal muscles?

somatic nervous system

Which branch of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) mobilizes the body during extreme situations, such as rage or fear?

sympathetic division

Bundles of nerve fibers (neuron processes) running through the CNS are called ________, whereas in the PNS they are called ________.

tracts; nerves

How many pairs of spinal nerves emerge from the spinal cord?

31

Which statement describes a function of the spinal cord?

The spinal cord sends sensory information to the brain and carries motor signals from the brain to motor neurons.

What are the two main functional subdivisions of the nervous system?

sensory and motor

An action potential is caused by an influx of these ions into the cell ________.

sodium

What ion depolarizes the membrane when it diffuses into the axon of a neuron?

sodium

What are the major positive ions situated outside the neuron when it is polarized?

sodium ions

The gap between two communicating neurons is termed ________.

synaptic cleft