Lecture 6

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Questions and Answers

Which hemisphere is primarily responsible for controlling motor responses on the left side of the body?

Left hemisphere

Both hemispheres equally

Neither hemisphere

Right hemisphere (correct)

What is indicated by a person's hand-preference in terms of hemispheric function?

Bilateral brain activity

Equal functioning of both hemispheres

Dominance of one hemisphere for manual control (correct)

Lack of motor skills

What area of the brain is associated with producing speech?

Amygdala

Broca's Area (correct)

Hippocampus

Wernicke's Area

Damage to Wernicke's Area leads to which type of speech difficulty?

Comprehension problems with fluent but meaningless speech Signup and view all the answers

What evidence supports the lateralization of language functions in the brain?

Dichotic listening task results showing faster response to the right ear Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following describes expressive aphasia?

Difficulty in producing speech but preserved comprehension Signup and view all the answers

What happens to communication between the hemispheres when the corpus callosum is cut?

Disruption of information sharing between hemispheres Signup and view all the answers

Which cognitive function is considered the most strongly lateralized in the human brain?

Language Signup and view all the answers

What was the primary finding of Roger Sperry's study on split brain patients regarding object recognition?

Patients could name objects placed in their right hand. Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following statements about the functions of the right hemisphere is true?

The right hemisphere contributes to the emotional content in speech. Signup and view all the answers

What happened to Henry Molaison ('HM') after his brain surgery?

He was left unable to learn new information. Signup and view all the answers

What type of amnesia did patients with hippocampal damage experience?

Anterograde amnesia, preventing creation of new long-term memories. Signup and view all the answers

What does the hippocampus primarily contribute to?

Creation of new long-term declarative memories. Signup and view all the answers

Brenda Milner's studies of HM revealed what about older memories?

Older memories remained intact despite new learning deficits. Signup and view all the answers

What is a common characteristic of patients with hippocampal damage regarding procedural learning?

They show normal procedural learning despite memory deficits. Signup and view all the answers

Wernicke-Korsakoff’s Syndrome is primarily associated with what cause?

Brain damage resulting from excessive alcohol use. Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Hemispheric Lateralisation

The brain is divided into two hemispheres, the left, and the right.
The right hemisphere receives sensory input from the left side of the body and controls the left side of the body.
The left hemisphere receives sensory input from the right side of the body and controls the right side of the body.
The left hemisphere is usually dominant for language, while the right contributes to emotional understanding.

Language Lateralisation

Speech and comprehension are more commonly controlled by the left hemisphere.
Damage to the left hemisphere can lead to aphasia, a language disorder.
Dichotic listening tasks show an advantage in understanding words presented to the right ear, which is connected to the left hemisphere.

Speech Function Areas

Broca's Area: Located in the lower posterior frontal lobe, damage to this area can cause difficulties with speaking, known as "expressive aphasia" or "non-fluent aphasia". Individuals with Broca's aphasia can generally understand speech but struggle with complex sentences.
Wernicke's Area: Located in the posterior region of the left temporal lobe, damage to this area can lead to difficulty understanding speech, known as "receptive aphasia". People with Wernicke's aphasia produce fluent speech but with no meaning, often called "fluent aphasia."

The Split Brain

The corpus callosum connects the two hemispheres of the brain.
Some patients with intractable epilepsy undergo surgery to cut the corpus callosum, called a callosotomy, creating a "split-brain".
Split-brain patients can still walk, talk, and maintain intelligence, but have difficulty coordinating actions between both hands.
The right and left hemispheres can function independently after a callosotomy.
Split-brain patients can name objects presented to the right hand, but not the left hand.
They can also name words flashed on the right side of a screen but not the left.

The Hippocampus

The hippocampus is a key structure in the brain involved in memory.
Henry Molaison (HM), a famous case in neuroscience, had surgery to treat epilepsy, which resulted in the removal of both hippocampi.
HM's surgery effectively treated his epilepsy, but he was unable to form new memories, known as anterograde amnesia.
He could only remember old memories formed prior to the surgery.
Brenda Milner, a neuroscientist, studied HM extensively and helped to understand the role of the hippocampus in memory.
Damage to the hippocampus primarily affects declarative learning and memory.
Procedural learning, however, is relatively unaffected in patients with hippocampal damage.

Wernicke-Korsakoff's Syndrome

This syndrome is a type of amnesia caused by diseases like chronic alcoholism and thiamine deficiency.

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Description

Explore the fascinating concept of hemispheric lateralisation in the brain, focusing on its roles in language and emotional processing. Learn about the specific speech function areas, particularly Broca's area, and examine how damage in these regions can lead to language disorders. This quiz will test your understanding of brain organization related to communication.