biopsychology (ii)
Each hemisphere of the cerebral cortex receives most of its input from the ____ side of the body and controls the muscles on the ____ side.
contralateral; contralateral
A function of the cerebrospinal fluid is to ____.
cushion the brain
A cross section of the spinal cord indicates that gray matter is ____.
densely packed with cell bodies and dendrites
The field of epigenetics deals with how ____.
experiences can turn genes on or off
Which technique is dependent upon the release of oxygen from hemoglobin molecules?
fMRI
Individuals afflicted with PKU need to avoid ____.
foods high in phenylalanine
If the prefrontal cortex is damaged, an individual may ____.
have difficulty remembering where s/he just placed the keys
An individual has difficulty remembering certain things after brain damage, but all memories stored before the damage are intact. The brain area most likely damaged is the ____.
hippocampus
The pituitary gland synthesizes and releases hormones ____.
into the bloodstream
The hindbrain consists of the ____.
medulla, pons, and cerebellum
The hippocampus plays a major role in ____.
memory
In which area of the brain would one find the tectum, tegmentum, superior and inferior colliculi, and substantia nigra?
midbrain
Changes in single genes are called ____.
mutations
Someone who suddenly loses the ability to identify objects by feeling them has probably suffered damage to what area of the cerebral cortex?
parietal lobe
Together, the somatic nervous system and the autonomic nervous system make up the ____ nervous system.
peripheral
The ability of the brain to change its anatomy over time, within limits, is known as ____.
plasticity
The function of neurotrophins is to ____.
promote survival of axons
After damage to the dorsal roots of the spinal cord, an individual will suffer what kind of loss?
sensation from the affected body area
In addition to problems with balance and coordination, a person with damage to the cerebellum will likely have problems with ____.
shifting attention between auditory and visual stimuli
A cortical cell originally responded to stimulation of the middle finger. After amputation of that finger, it begins responding to the second and fourth fingers. Which action most likely accounts for this?
synaptic reorganization
Which lobe seems to be especially involved in the comprehension of spoken language in humans?
temporal
Evolution improves the fitness of the population, which is defined as ____.
the number of copies of one's genes that endure in later generations
Prefrontal lobotomies were conducted in the United States in an attempt to ____.
treat severe psychiatric disorders
After learning strengthens one set of synapses, other synapses ____.
weaken
What is TRUE about altruistic behavior?
It is difficult to explain from an evolutionary/genetic point of view.
Sex-limited genes are found on ____.
any chromosomes
The term rhombencephalon refers to the ____.
hindbrain
Closed head injury is ____.
the most common cause of brain damage in young adults
The nucleus basalis is a key part of the brain's system for ____.
Attention
If you could selectively damage the individual laminate of the cortex, damage to which layer would most likely affect visual sensation?
Layer IV of the occipital cortex
Which part of the nervous system prepares the body for "fight or flight" activities?
Sympathetic
What is signaled by nerve growth factor (NGF)?
That a target cell has "accepted" an axon
Damage to the right hemisphere of the cortex will most like cause loss of sensory or motor control on the left side of the body... (T/F)
True
The fluid-filled cavity within the neural tube becomes the central canal of the spinal cord and the four ventricles of the brain... (T/F)
True
The most common cause of brain damage in children is closed head injury... (T/F)
True
Thus far, it appears that the brain feature most strongly correlated with IQ in humans is the ____.
amount of gray matter
The areas of the cortex used by expert video game players are most likely to ____ than the same cortical areas of those who do not play video games.
be thicker
An example of a sex-linked trait is ____.
color vision deficiency
Given the characteristics of small-molecule transmitters and neuropeptides, we can conclude that small-molecule transmitters...
Are well-suited to roles as neurotransmitters, whereas neuropeptides are well-suited to roles as neuromodulators
Following release from the presynaptic cell, neuropeptides...
Can diffuse away from synapses, whereas small-molecule transmitters are deactivated by reuptake
Which method would be best suited to answer questions about which specific brain areas in humans are activated while performing a mental task?
Computerized Axial Tomography (CT/CAT) INCORRECT ABLATION, EEG OR FMRI
Chemically, what is the route from genes to their expression?
DNA to RNA to proteins
What type of pathway in the substantia nigra deteriorates in Parkinson's disease?
Dopamine
Cell bodies of motor neurons are located outside of the spinal cord... (T/F)
False
Myelination of the brain and spinal cord is complete by the time of birth... (T/F)
False
The elbow is more distal to the shoulder than the hand... (T/F)
False
The parasympathetic nervous system activate the "fight or flight" response.. (T/F)
False (the sympathetic nervous system does that response; para- is called the "rest and digest" system)
Why is it that all neurons in a healthy adult brain have made appropriate connections?
If an axon does not make the appropriate connections by a certain age, it dies.
Which method is dependent upon injecting a radioactive chemical into the blood to measure blood flow?
PET
Damage to the right hemisphere of the cortex will most likely cause loss of sensory or motor control on the left side of the body... (T/F)
True
Synaptogensis is a process that begins before birth and continues throughout life... (T/F)
True
The prefrontal cortex is important for working memory... (T/F)
True
How much alcohol, if any, can a pregnant woman drink without worrying about the negative effects on her child?
Unknown, and therefore abstention is recommended
Why do children with PKU develop intellectual disabilities?
Unmetabolized amino acids accumulate and affect the brain.
The results of several studies of facial expressions in people who were born blind suggest ____.
a major role for genetics as well as environment in the control of facial expressions
Migration requires ____.
a precise chemical environment
What structure is composed of the medulla, pons, the midbrain, and certain central structures of the forebrain?
brain stem
What is the process called when a primitive neuron begins to develop dendrites and an axon?
differentiation
The cell bodies of sensory neurons that are in clusters of neurons outside of the spinal cord are called ____.
dorsal root ganglia
Focal hand dystonia, sometimes called "musician's cramp", is caused by ____.
extreme overlap of cortical representation of the fingers
Proteins called ____ bind DNA into a shape that is more like string wound around a ball.
histones
A person with two recessive genes is considered to be ____ for that trait.
homozygous
The medulla is considered part of the brain rather than the spinal cord because it ____.
is contained in the skull
People with damage of the parietal cortex tend to have trouble _____.
locating objects in space
After cells have differentiated as neurons or glia, they ____.
migrate
If most of the axons that transmit dopamine to some brain area die or become inactive, the remaining dopamine synapses become ____.
more responsive
Organisms that help those they recognize as capable of returning the favor are displaying ____.
reciprocal altruism
The sweat glands, adrenal glands, and muscles that constrict blood vessels have input from only the ____ nervous system.
sympathetic
Chemicals in the amphibian tectum guide the growth of axons from the retina to their correct location in the tectum by ____.
using a chemical gradient
The fluid-filled cavity of the developing neural tube becomes the ____.
ventricular system
The fluid—filled cavity of the developing neural tube becomes the ____.
ventricular system