NEUROBIOLOGY OF THE BRAIN ACTUAL
TEST QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS BUNDLED
REVIEW MATERIAL
●● What unique cognitive abilities set humans apart from other species?
Answer: Abstract thinking, gossiping for protection, forming
relationships in larger groups, and the ability to communicate about past
events.
●● What are the main roles of the brain?
Answer: Survive and reproduce.
●● Are the right and left sides of the brain involved in different types of
thinking and emotion?
Answer: Generally true; one side may be predominantly involved in
certain types of processing, but the brain functions as a system.
●● Can people focus on more than one task at a time?
Answer: No, we can perform two tasks simultaneously but cannot focus
on more than one thing at a time.
●● Can the brain create new neurons?
, Answer: Not really; while adults can develop some new neurons,
especially in the limbic system, a five-year-old has almost twice as many
brain connections.
●● What determines whether brain circuits will thrive or be pruned?
Answer: The environment to which a child is exposed.
●● Does the frontal lobe integrate all of our experiences?
Answer: It's unclear; there are areas of multimodal processing, but
identifying where integration occurs remains elusive.
●● Can the brain predict the future?
Answer: Yes, humans create expectations about how things will occur,
and even babies can notice changes in their environment.
●● What happens to the brain of a person in a coma?
Answer: It can shut down to maintain basic bodily functions, but some
individuals may be aware of sounds and sights around them.
●● What is the approximate number of neurons in the brain?
Answer: About 86 billion neurons.
●● What are groups of neurons in the central nervous system called?
TEST QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS BUNDLED
REVIEW MATERIAL
●● What unique cognitive abilities set humans apart from other species?
Answer: Abstract thinking, gossiping for protection, forming
relationships in larger groups, and the ability to communicate about past
events.
●● What are the main roles of the brain?
Answer: Survive and reproduce.
●● Are the right and left sides of the brain involved in different types of
thinking and emotion?
Answer: Generally true; one side may be predominantly involved in
certain types of processing, but the brain functions as a system.
●● Can people focus on more than one task at a time?
Answer: No, we can perform two tasks simultaneously but cannot focus
on more than one thing at a time.
●● Can the brain create new neurons?
, Answer: Not really; while adults can develop some new neurons,
especially in the limbic system, a five-year-old has almost twice as many
brain connections.
●● What determines whether brain circuits will thrive or be pruned?
Answer: The environment to which a child is exposed.
●● Does the frontal lobe integrate all of our experiences?
Answer: It's unclear; there are areas of multimodal processing, but
identifying where integration occurs remains elusive.
●● Can the brain predict the future?
Answer: Yes, humans create expectations about how things will occur,
and even babies can notice changes in their environment.
●● What happens to the brain of a person in a coma?
Answer: It can shut down to maintain basic bodily functions, but some
individuals may be aware of sounds and sights around them.
●● What is the approximate number of neurons in the brain?
Answer: About 86 billion neurons.
●● What are groups of neurons in the central nervous system called?
