MODULE 12- Cognitive Functions and the Organization of the Cerebral Cortex

Question 1

cognitive functions are carried out by

Answer 1

association cortices

Question 2

how many layers of neocortex

Answer 2

6 layers

Question 3

cytoarchitectonic areas of neocortex

Answer 3

subregions based on histological differences
-the archiecture of neurons and their processes and connections
-much variability in cytoarchiectonic areas among species and individuals
-BRODMANN’S AREA

Question 4

the human brain can be divided into ____ cytoarchitectonic areas based on histology

Answer 4

50

Question 5

3 layers of cerebral cortex

Answer 5

-neuocortex
-paleocortex
-archiocortex

Question 6

how many layers of paleocortex

Answer 6

3

Question 7

how many layers of archiocortex

Answer 7

4

Question 8

layer 1 of neocortex

Answer 8

mostly neuropil

Question 9

layers 2 and 3 of neocortex

Answer 9

smaller pyramidal neurons with corticocortical connections

Question 10

layer 4 of neocortex

Answer 10

stellate neurons with locally ramifying axons

Question 11

layers 5 and 6 of neocortex

Answer 11

pyramidal neurons with exiting axons

Question 12

similarites among the different cytoarchitectonic areas

Answer 12

-each cortical layer has primary source of input and a primary output target
-each area has vertical columnar or radial connections
-interneurons give rise to extensive axons that extend horizontally within the cortex and link functionally similar groups of cells

Question 13

thalamic input to which layer

Answer 13

4

Question 14

input from brainstem does what

Answer 14

modulates each layer

Question 15

3 unique features of association cortices

Answer 15

1. Inputs via the thalamus (e.g., pulvinar, medial dorsal nucleus) reflects sensory and motor info that has already been processed in the primary sensory and motor areas of cerebral cortex.
2. Enriched corticocortical connections and interhemispheric connections.
3. Enriched subcortical connections (i.e., dopaminergic nuclei in midbrain, noradrenergic and serotonergic nuclei in the reticular formation, and cholingergic nuclei in the brainstem and basal forebrain).

Question 16

connectivity patterns wtihin cerebral cortex

Answer 16

implications for behavioral and psychiatric disorders
(ex: addiction, depression, attention deficit disorder, psychoses)

Question 17

synesthesia

Answer 17

mixing of senses (ex: colored hearing, colored graphemes, or colored taste)
-in one of the most common forms of synesthesia, black and white letters or digits are perceived in assorted colors
-colored touch and smell have also been reported

Question 18

potential cause of synesthesia

Answer 18

“miswiring” as new synaptic connections are established

Question 19

parietal association cortex

Answer 19

attention and awareness

Question 20

contralateral neglect syndrome

Answer 20

inability to attend to objects or even one’s own body, in a certain space, despite visual acuity, somatic sensation, and motor ability
-OPPOSITE the parietal lesion

Question 21

caveat of contralateral neglect syndrome

Answer 21

-associated with damage to the RIGHT parietal cortex
-right parietal cortex mediates attention to both the right and left halves of the body and extrapersonal space, whereas the LEFT hemisphere mediates attention primarily to the right, perhaps because of the left hemisphere’s devotion to language functions

Question 22

lest hemisptial neglect is caused by

Answer 22

damage to right inferior parietal lobe

Question 23

when are neurons in the parietal cortex activated

Answer 23

when the animal attends to a target, but not when the same target is ignored

Question 24

Balint’s syndrome

Answer 24

bilateral damage to dorsal posterior parietal and lateral occipital cortex

Question 25

Balint's syndrome causes waht 3 things

Answer 25

-simultanagnosia -optic ataxia -ocular apraxia

Question 26

simultanagnosia

Answer 26

inability to perceive more than 1 visual object at a time

Question 27

optic ataxia

Answer 27

difficulty in visually guided reaching

Question 28

ocular apraxia

Answer 28

difficulty in voluntary scanning of visual scenes

Question 29

simultagnosia test

Answer 29

patients take a clearly piecemeal approach to interpreting the scene by reporting isolated items from the image -for instance, a patient may report seeing a "boy," "stool," and a "woman" -however, when asked to interpret the overall meaning of the picture, the patient fails to comprehend the global whole

Question 30

agnosias arise from

Answer 30

temporal lobe damage

Question 31

how do agnosias present

Answer 31

difficulty in identifying, naming, and recognizing objects

Question 32

right temporal lesions lead to agnosia for what

Answer 32

faces and objects

Question 33

left temporal lesions lead to what agnosia

Answer 33

difficulties with language-related material

Question 34

prospagnosia

Answer 34

arises from damage to the RIGHT inferotemporal cortex (ITC)

Question 35

how does prosopagnosia present

Answer 35

inability or difficulty in recognizing and identifying faces or people

Question 36

visual agnosia

Answer 36

inability to recognize visual objects -can copy visual stimuli -cannot interpret, understand, or assign meaning to objects -a patient with visual agnosia can see perfectly well but is no longer able to recognize or make sense of what he sees

Question 37

visual agnosia is caused by

Answer 37

damage to inferior left temporal cortex (IT)

Question 38

what mediates face recognition

Answer 38

inferior temporal cortex, particularly RIGHT fusiform gyrus

Question 39

frontal association cortex

Answer 39

planning and decision making

Question 40

damage to prefrontal cortex results in

Answer 40

behavioral and social problems, such as acting inappropriately to certain social circumstances

Question 41

damage to prefrontal cortex was seen in the famous case of

Answer 41

Phineas Gage -metal rod went through skull -dramatic effects on personality

Question 42

short term memory functions are situation ____ in the frontal lobe

Answer 42

dorsolateral

Question 43

planning and social restraint function are located ____ in the frontal lobe

Answer 43

ventromedial

Question 44

wisconsin card sorting task

Answer 44

to respond correctly, the subject must retain information about the previous trial, and then use it to guide behavior on future trials -sort by color, shape, number

Question 45

activation in the ____ correlates with subjective preferences for soft drinks

Answer 45

ventromedial prefrontal cortex

Question 46

prefrontal cortex contributes to

Answer 46

planning adaptive behavior

Question 47

delayed response task

Answer 47

used to assess frontal lobe damage and determine whether short term memory is intact

Question 48

delayed task response used on monkeys

Answer 48

1. food is placed in a randomly selected well visible to monkey 2. screen is lowered and the food is covered for a standard time 3. screen is raised and monkey uncovers the well containing the food -the animal has to remember where the food is placed during the delay so that it can be used to get reward -some neurons in the prefrontal cortex are activated maximally during the delay period