Brain Facts - Chapter 1

What vertebrate contained the earliest known example of a developing brain?

• Lancelet

• Coelacanth

• Hagfish

• Lungfish

Answer explanation

The earliest vertebrates probably had brains much like the one in the modern lancelet Amphioxus — little more than a wide spot in the hollow nerve cord running down its back. (Brain Facts, p. 12)

How did the forebrain adapt to detect chemicals and light?

• By creating the prefrontal cortex.

• By forming the olfactory bulbs and image-producing eyes.

• By creating chemoreceptors in the nose.

• Creation of rods and cones.

Answer explanation

In the forebrain, the region able to detect chemicals expanded to form the olfactory bulbs, and with the evolution of image-producing eyes, light-sensing regions expanded and began processing more complex visual signals. (Brain Facts, p. 12)

Which of the 3 bulges did the cerebellum originate from?

• Occipital

• Hindbrain

• Forebrain

• Midbrain

Answer explanation

The cerebellum appeared as the hindbrain and expanded the regions that control escape movements and orient the body in space. (Brain Facts, p. 12)

Why did we eventually gain a cerebellum?

• Because humans needed a part of the brain to aid in balance and timing.

• To control escape movements and change the orientation of the body in space.

• To allow signals to and from muscle fibers to be transmitted.

• To allow Pavlovian learning for better survival odds.

Answer explanation

The cerebellum appeared as the hindbrain and expanded the regions that control escape movements and orient the body in space. (Brain Facts, p. 12)

When nerve fibers of region-spanning neurons form distinct bundles, these are called…

• Neural tracts

• Nerve tracts

• Neural networks

• Spinal tracts

Answer explanation

When the nerve fibers of region-spanning neurons form distinct bundles, these are called nerve tracts. (Brain Facts, p. 12)

What is one example of a major nerve tract?

• Spinal cord

• Corpus callosum

• Optic nerve

• Auditory nerve

Answer explanation

Examples of major nerve tracts include the corpus callosum (the thick bundle of neurons connecting your left and right cerebral hemispheres) -> (Brain Facts, p. 12)

What is the anterior commissure responsible for?

• Transmitting signals between the left and right temporal lobes

• Transmitting signals between the optic nerve and the occipital lobe

• Transmitting signals between nociceptors and the parietal lobe

• Transmitting signals between the hippocampus and the hypothalamus

Answer explanation

The smaller anterior commissure that transmits signals between the left and right temporal lobes (Brain Facts, p. 12).

What is the difference between the anterior commissure and the corpus callosum?

• There is no difference between the two.

• The anterior commissure connects the two cerebral hemispheres; the corpus callosum doesn't.

• The anterior commissure transmits signals between the right and left temporal lobes specifically; the corpus callosum connects the left and right hemispheres.

• The anterior commissure connects the right and left temporal lobes; the corpus callosum is responsible for transmitting signals between the temporal lobes.

Answer explanation

The corpus callosum (the thick bundle of neurons connecting your left and right cerebral hemispheres) and the smaller anterior commissure that transmits signals between the left and right temporal lobes (Brain Facts, p. 12).

What is a group of nerve tracts called?

• Neural tract

• Neural network

• Spindle fibers

• Spinal network

Answer explanation

A group of nerve tracts connecting a series of regions in the brain is called a neural network (Brain Facts, p. 12).

How do neural networks route signals?

• Through a linear pathway, analyzing and organizing various types of information.

• Through a feedback loop, where signals are analyzed and organized accordingly.

• Through a linear pathway, acting as receptors.

• Through a linear pathway, sending various signals in communication with other systems of the body.

Answer explanation

Neural networks route signals through the brain along a linear pathway, analyzing and organizing different types of information within fractions of a second (Brain Facts, p. 12).