Why would a split-brain patient say that he saw the word "ART" when "HE•ART" is flashed on the screen in front of him?
A) "ART" goes to the left hemisphere, which has the ability to speak
B) "ART" goes to the right hemisphere, which has the ability to speak
C) "ART" goes to the corpus callosum, which has the ability to speak
D) "ART" goes to the thalamus, which has the ability to speak

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

In a split-brain patient, the corpus callosum, which connects the two hemispheres of the brain, has been severed. As a result, when a word is presented to one visual field (e.g. the left visual field), it is processed in the opposite hemisphere (in this case, the right hemisphere). However, only the left hemisphere has the ability to produce language/speak. Therefore, the patient can only report verbally what they see in their right visual field (processed by the left hemisphere). In this case, "ART" is presented in the right visual field, so it is processed by the left hemisphere and can be verbally reported. "HE•ART" is split between the two visual fields, with "HE" in the left visual field (hence processed by the right hemisphere) and "ART" in the right visual field (hence processed by the left hemisphere). Therefore, the patient can only report verbally what they see in the right visual field, which is "ART".

Why Would a Split-Brain Patient Say That He Saw the Word