the brain Flashcards
(14 cards)
Q: What is sensory adaptation?
A: The process of getting used to a specific, constant stimulus.
Q: How do sensory signals from the body enter the CNS?
A: Via the spinal cord.
Q: What is the function of the thalamus?
A: It acts as the brain’s main relay station for incoming sensory signals.
Q: What structure connects the nervous and endocrine systems?
A: The hypothalamus via the pituitary gland.
Q: What makes up the hindbrain?
A: Medulla, pons, and cerebellum.
Q: What does the midbrain do?
A: It combines sensory input and helps direct attention.
Q: What is the function of the basal ganglia?
A: It helps modulate movement and selectively inhibit actions.
Q: What does the cerebellum control?
A: Balance, posture, movement timing, and motor learning.
Q: What is the role of the primary motor cortex?
A: It sends motor commands directly to the spinal cord for movement execution.
Q: What are the four lobes of the cerebral cortex and their main functions?
A:
Frontal: Planning & motor control
Parietal: Sensory integration
Temporal: Auditory processing
Occipital: Visual processing
What is a topographic map in the brain?
A spatial map in sensory cortex matching the position of receptor cells.
What does “contralateral” processing mean?
A: Each hemisphere processes sensory input from and controls the opposite side of the body.
Q: What is the corpus callosum?
A: A bundle of axons that connects the left and right cerebral hemispheres.
Q: Why is perception not objective?
A: Because every signal is modified by other brain activity before reaching awareness.
