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AP Brain Flashcards

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4866036257Medulla OblongataLower part of the brain stem; controls breathing and heart rate0
4866036258Cerebellum"Little brain" located below and behind the cerebrum; smooths movement; controls balance and coordination and things you do "automatically" like habits1
4866036259Hypothalamusbelow the thalamus; controls hunger, thirst, and temperature2
4866036260Amygdalacontrols emotions, especially fear3
4866036261HippocampusSmall area of each temporal lobe; allows us to store a memory4
4866036262ThalamusPart of the forebrain; relay station for sensory information5
4866036263Ponsconnects upper and lower parts of the brain; produces sleep chemicals (it's the "lump" on the brain stem)6
4866036264Right HemisphereControls the left side of the body; it is the more artistic and creative side of the brain7
4866036265Left HemisphereControls the right side of the body; it is the more academic and logical side of the brain; language areas (Broca's and Wernicke's)8
4866036266Corpus Callosumconnects the right and left hemispheres9
4866036267CerebrumTwo hemispheres/Four lobes; Outermost layer (and largest part) of the brain; responsible for thinking and processing information from the five senses (Don't confuse with cerebellum - which means "little brain")10
4866036268Frontal Loberesponsible for thinking, decision making, and planning; also movement in the motor cortex11
4866036269Parietal LobeProcesses sensastion like temperature, pain, and touch in the somatosensory cortex (strip of brain at front of parietal lobe)12
4866036270Temporal Lobeprocesses auditory information (hearing)13
4866036271Occipital LobeBottom, back part of the cortex; processing visual information (sight)14
4866036272reticular activating system or reticular formationIn the middle of the brainstem, it controls your "alertness"; without it, we would be in a "coma" as our brain would not send/receive signals15
4866041110Broca's areaarea of the frontal lobe in left hemisphere that directs muscle movements involved in speech; patients with damage have no trouble understanding language but are unable to speak; Dr. Broca's patient could only say "tan"16
4866041111Wernicke's AreaControls language reception. Damage creates inability to comprehend language and inability to create sentences (would speak gibberish); usually in the left temporal lobe17
4866043096Motor cortexan area of the brain, near the rear of the frontal lobes, that initiates voluntary movement18
4866044646Somatosensory (sometimes just sensory) cortexan area of the brain in the front of the parietal lobe that receives information on touch sensation, pain, and temperature19
4866053579Primary Auditory Cortexlocated in temporal lobe; receives info from the ear and auditory nerve; understands only basic sounds (this part of the brain does not interpret what you hear)20
4866053580Primary visual cortexIn the occipital lobe, it receives only basic pieces of information in your sight (an edge, a curve, a color) and then the association area must interpret what is being seen21
4866126893Cortexouter layer of the brain that is packed with neurons (translates "bark")22
4866129900grey matterThe portions of the central nervous system that are abundant in cell bodies of neurons rather than axons. The colour appears grey relative to white matter.23
4866129901white matterThe portions of the central nervous system that are abundant in axons rather than cell bodies of neurons. The colour derives from the presence of the axon's myelin sheaths24

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