Question 1

Broca's and Wernicke's areas process sign language as well as spoken language.

Accepted Answer

Broca's and Wernicke's areas, traditionally associated with the production and comprehension of spoken language, respectively, are also involved in processing sign language. This indicates that these brain regions are more broadly responsible for language processing, regardless of whether the language is spoken or signed.

Question 2

Researchers have developed a "bionic arm." This technology is possible primarily because of two facts of amputation. First, the motor cortex still sends out control signals even if certain voluntary muscles are no longer there to innervate. Second, when doctors amputate a limb, they do not remove all the nerves that once carried signals to the muscles in that limb. If those nerve endings can be redirected to a working muscle group, and the person thinks "grab the handle and turn," then the brain will send out corresponding signals to the nerves and communicate with the new limb. Based on your knowledge of voluntary motor tasks, explain how this technology is possible.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Researchers have developed a "bionic arm." This...

Question 3

Describe the structure of the spinal cord and how the spinal cord is organized.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Describe the structure of the spinal cord...

Question 4

Somatic reflexes involve somatic neurons transmitting information to smooth and cardiac muscle cells.

Accepted Answer

Somatic reflexes involve somatic neurons transmitting information to skeletal muscles, not smooth or cardiac muscle cells.

Question 5

Liz is a seventy -year -old woman who is both a wife and a mother. She is moderately obese (BMI 32), and has smoked a half a pack to a pack of cigarettes a day since she was 16 years old. Liz awakes one morning with weakness on her right side. She is confused, sees double, and has slurred speech. She stumbles and has an awkward gait trying to get to the restroom, where she collapses. Her husband calls 911 and Liz is transported to the hospital.
Upon physical examination, Liz is found to have partial paralysis (hemiparesis) on her right side and diminished sensitivity to a pin prick on her arm and right side of her face. She has difficulty answering questions, speaking only a few words which are slurred and grammatically incorrect. Her ability to respond to verbal commands, whether spoken or written, is not impaired. In addition, her blood pressure is high (148/and a serum lipid profile that was ordered when she first arrived at the hospital has come back with a high LDL and total cholesterol level.
Based on this case answer the following questions:
a) What is a stroke?
b) Describe the mechanisms by which strokes can occur.
c) List the risk factors that predispose an individual to suffer a stroke.
d) List at least three classical signs of stroke
e) What type of aphasia does Liz display? Explain how you came to this conclusion.
f) Based on the historical and physical exam findings, what is the possible cause for Liz's stroke and what specific areas of the brain have been damaged as a result of her stroke?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Liz is a seventy -year -old woman...

Question 6

Adults spend more time sleeping as they age.

Accepted Answer

As people age, they often experience changes in sleep patterns, including a decrease in deep sleep and an increase in awakenings throughout the night, leading to a reduction in overall sleep time.

Question 7

The cortex is not the only functional portion of the cerebrum; subcortical structures are important to a number of systems. Describe the subcortical structures of the cerebrum and their various functions.

Accepted Answer

The answer of The cortex is not the only functional...

Question 8

All voluntary lateral pathways cross -over, or decussate, in the spinal cord.

Accepted Answer

Most voluntary lateral pathways, such as those involved in the corticospinal tract, decussate in the medulla oblongata, not in the spinal cord.

Question 9

As the night progresses, we spend more time in rapid eye movement sleep.

Accepted Answer

As the night progresses, the proportion of REM sleep increases in each sleep cycle, leading to longer periods of REM sleep in the second half of the night.

Question 10

Stress can come in the form of exercise, changes in the environment, and injury.

Accepted Answer

Stress can be caused by various factors including physical activity (exercise), environmental changes (such as temperature or location changes), and physical harm (injury), all of which can trigger the body's stress response.

Question 11

The reticulospinal tract is associated with sleep.

Accepted Answer

The reticulospinal tract is involved in motor control, posture, and locomotion, not directly associated with sleep.

Question 12

The development of the cerebral cortex is what appears to set humans apart from other species. Identify the structures and general functions of the cortex.

Accepted Answer

The answer of The development of the cerebral cortex is...

Question 13

All that we learn is put into memory.

Accepted Answer

Not everything we learn is consciously stored in memory; some information or skills are processed and retained subconsciously, and not all learned information is retained long-term due to factors like attention, relevance, and the forgetting curve.

Question 14

Define sleep, listing the theories that have been developed to explain our need for sleep. Include in this discussion the two types of sleep and the characteristics of each type of sleep.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Define sleep, listing the theories that have...

Question 15

Characterize the four types of reflexes, including the essential components of a reflex arc, and describe the details of the withdrawal reflex.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Characterize the four types of reflexes, including...

Question 16

Initiation of a withdrawal reflex also activates the crossed -extensor reflex.

Accepted Answer

The initiation of a withdrawal reflex, such as pulling away from a painful stimulus, simultaneously activates the crossed-extensor reflex on the opposite side of the body to maintain balance and posture.

Question 17

The maintenance of an uninterrupted delivery of oxygen and glucose to the brain is essential to its function. What is it about the brain and nervous tissue in general that makes them so sensitive to changes in blood flow?

Accepted Answer

The answer of The maintenance of an uninterrupted delivery of...

Question 18

Motor neurons are exclusively excitatory, which means that activity of those motor neurons cannot be modulated.

Accepted Answer

Motor neurons can be modulated by various neurotransmitters and mechanisms, influencing their activity levels, not exclusively excitatory.

Question 19

Sleeping is an active process.

Accepted Answer

Sleep involves active processes in the brain that cycle through various stages, including REM and non-REM sleep, each with distinct brain activity patterns.

Question 20

The frontal lobes are associated with personality.

Accepted Answer

The frontal lobes are crucial for cognitive functions and control of voluntary movement or activity. They are also associated with the ability to project future consequences resulting from current actions, the choice between good and bad actions (or better and best), the override and suppression of socially unacceptable responses, and the determination of similarities and differences between things or events. Therefore, they play a significant role in shaping our personality and behavior.

Quiz 9: The Nervous System: Central Nervous System