Ch. 3

Question 1

CNS

Answer 1

Central nervous system; includes the brain and the spinal cord

Question 2

Tracts

Answer 2

A bundle of axons in the CNS

Question 3

Frontal lobe

Answer 3

Anterior to the central sulcus and superior to the lateral fissure

Question 4

Thalamus

Answer 4

Just below the lateral ventricles, where it receives information from all the sensory systems except olfaction and relays it to the respective cortical projection areas

Question 5

Hypothalamus

Answer 5

Smaller structure just inferior to the thalamus, plays a major role in controlling emotion and motivated behaviors, such as eating, drinking, and sexual activity

Question 6

Pineal gland

Answer 6

Secretes melatonin; controls seasonal cycles in nonhuman animals and participates with other structures in controlling daily rhythms in humans

Question 7

Midbrain

Answer 7

Contains structures that have secondary roles in vision, hearing, movement

Question 8

Pons

Answer 8

Contains centers related sleep and arousal, which are part of reticular formation (a collection of nuclei running through the middle of the hindbrain and the midbrain)

Question 9

Medulla

Answer 9

Forms the lower part of the hindbrain; its nuclei are involved with control of essential life processes, such as cardiovascular activity and respiration

Question 10

Cerebellum

Answer 10

Structure in the hindbrain that contributes the order of muscular contractions and their precise timing to intended movements and helps maintain posture and balance; also necessary for learning motor skills and contributes to non-motor learning and cognitive activities

Question 11

Spinal cord

Answer 11

Finger-sized cable of neurons that carries commands from the brain to the muscles and organs and sensory information into the brain

Question 12

Plasticity

Answer 12

Ability to be modified

Question 13

Blood-brain barrier

Answer 13

The brain’s protection from toxic substances and neurotransmitters in the bloodstream; the small openings in the capillary walls prevent large molecules from passing through unless they are fat soluble or carried through by special transporters

Question 14

Fetal alcohol syndrome

Answer 14

Condition caused by the mother’s use of alcohol during the third trimester of pregnancy; neurons fail to migrate properly often resulting in intellectual disability; the leading cause of intellectual disability in the Western world

Question 15

Corpus collosum

Answer 15

The largest of the groups of neurons connecting the two cerebral hemispheres