MCAT Psy/Soc 2 Study Guide - Exam
Questions and Answers
Cerebral cortex - ANS>>Forebrain, known as the cerebrum; outer covering of the
cerebral hemispheres; contains 4 lobes: frontal, parietal, occipital, and temporal
Frontal Lobe - ANS>>Forebrain; executive function, impulse control, long-term planning
(prefrontal cortex), motor function (primary motor cortex), and speech production
Broca's area - ANS>>Forebrain; important for speech production, found in the frontal
lobe
Parietal Lobe - ANS>>Forebrain; sensation of touch, pressure, temperature and pain
(somatosensory cortex); spatial processing, orientation, and manipulation
somatosensory cortex - ANS>>Forebrain; found in the parietal lobe, important for touch,
pressure, temperature, and pain sensation
Occipital lobe - ANS>>Forebrain; visual processing
temporal lobe - ANS>>Forebrain; sound processing (auditory complex), speech
perception (Wernicke's area), memory, and emotion (limbic system)
Wernicke's area - ANS>>Forebrain; found in the temporal lobe; important for speech
perception
Basal ganglia - ANS>>Forebrain; coordinates muscle movement from cortex to the rest
of the brain and spinal cord; smooth movements and maintain posture stability
limbic system - ANS>>Forebrain; primarily associated with emotion and memory;
includes the septal nuclei, amygdala, hippocampus
Septal nuclei - ANS>>Forebrain; part of the limbic system; feelings of pleasure,
pleasure-seeking behavior, and addiction
Amygdala - ANS>>Forebrain; part of the limbic system, controls fear and aggression
Hippocampus - ANS>>Forebrain; part of the limbic system; consolidates memories and
communicates with other parts of the limbic system through the fornix
Thalamus - ANS>>Forebrain; sensory relay station for all incoming senses EXCEPT
smell; sorts, and transmits to proper areas of the cortex
Hypothalamus - ANS>>Forebrain; active during high-arousal, aggressive behavior, and
sexual behavior; controls endocrine functions and ANS; maintains homeostasis
, hypophyseal portal system - ANS>>connects hypothalamus to anterior pituitary;
maintains coordination of the endocrine system
Hindbrain - ANS>>"brain stem"; contains the cerebellum, medulla oblongata, and
reticular formation
Cerebellum - ANS>>part of the hindbrain; controls motor movement, and balance
medulla oblongata - ANS>>part of the hindbrain; controls breathing, reflex control, and
maintains upright posture
reticular formation - ANS>>part of the hindbrain; controls normal behavior of walking,
sleeping, waking, and other reflexes; degenerative part of this section is related to
Parkinson's Disease
Midbrain - ANS>>contains the inferior and superior colliculli
inferior colliculli - ANS>>important midbrain nucleus that is involved in the auditory
pathway
superior colliculli - ANS>>important midbrain nucleus that is involved in the visual
pathway, receiving information from the eye
Function of midbrain - ANS>>reception of sensory and motor information; generally
necessary for survival
Forebrain - ANS>>contains the thalamus, hypothalamus, basal ganglia, limbic system,
and cerebral cortex
Function of hindbrain - ANS>>controls balance, motor coordination, breathing, and
general arousal (waking and sleeping); generally necessary for survival
Corpus Callosum - ANS>>bundle of axons that connects the right and left hemispheres
Optic Chiasm - ANS>>point in visual nerve system where nasal fibers (carrying
temporal vision) cross and the temporal fibers (carrying nasal vision) pass directly
though to the optic tract
Bitemporal Hemianopsia: Lesion of Optic Chaism would cause would knock out the
_____ fibers and the person would lose the ______ vision - ANS>>Nasal fibers
Temporal vision
Nasal fibers - ANS>>carry information from the temporal field of vision (Remember:
visual image crosses over and hits opposite side of retina)
Questions and Answers
Cerebral cortex - ANS>>Forebrain, known as the cerebrum; outer covering of the
cerebral hemispheres; contains 4 lobes: frontal, parietal, occipital, and temporal
Frontal Lobe - ANS>>Forebrain; executive function, impulse control, long-term planning
(prefrontal cortex), motor function (primary motor cortex), and speech production
Broca's area - ANS>>Forebrain; important for speech production, found in the frontal
lobe
Parietal Lobe - ANS>>Forebrain; sensation of touch, pressure, temperature and pain
(somatosensory cortex); spatial processing, orientation, and manipulation
somatosensory cortex - ANS>>Forebrain; found in the parietal lobe, important for touch,
pressure, temperature, and pain sensation
Occipital lobe - ANS>>Forebrain; visual processing
temporal lobe - ANS>>Forebrain; sound processing (auditory complex), speech
perception (Wernicke's area), memory, and emotion (limbic system)
Wernicke's area - ANS>>Forebrain; found in the temporal lobe; important for speech
perception
Basal ganglia - ANS>>Forebrain; coordinates muscle movement from cortex to the rest
of the brain and spinal cord; smooth movements and maintain posture stability
limbic system - ANS>>Forebrain; primarily associated with emotion and memory;
includes the septal nuclei, amygdala, hippocampus
Septal nuclei - ANS>>Forebrain; part of the limbic system; feelings of pleasure,
pleasure-seeking behavior, and addiction
Amygdala - ANS>>Forebrain; part of the limbic system, controls fear and aggression
Hippocampus - ANS>>Forebrain; part of the limbic system; consolidates memories and
communicates with other parts of the limbic system through the fornix
Thalamus - ANS>>Forebrain; sensory relay station for all incoming senses EXCEPT
smell; sorts, and transmits to proper areas of the cortex
Hypothalamus - ANS>>Forebrain; active during high-arousal, aggressive behavior, and
sexual behavior; controls endocrine functions and ANS; maintains homeostasis
, hypophyseal portal system - ANS>>connects hypothalamus to anterior pituitary;
maintains coordination of the endocrine system
Hindbrain - ANS>>"brain stem"; contains the cerebellum, medulla oblongata, and
reticular formation
Cerebellum - ANS>>part of the hindbrain; controls motor movement, and balance
medulla oblongata - ANS>>part of the hindbrain; controls breathing, reflex control, and
maintains upright posture
reticular formation - ANS>>part of the hindbrain; controls normal behavior of walking,
sleeping, waking, and other reflexes; degenerative part of this section is related to
Parkinson's Disease
Midbrain - ANS>>contains the inferior and superior colliculli
inferior colliculli - ANS>>important midbrain nucleus that is involved in the auditory
pathway
superior colliculli - ANS>>important midbrain nucleus that is involved in the visual
pathway, receiving information from the eye
Function of midbrain - ANS>>reception of sensory and motor information; generally
necessary for survival
Forebrain - ANS>>contains the thalamus, hypothalamus, basal ganglia, limbic system,
and cerebral cortex
Function of hindbrain - ANS>>controls balance, motor coordination, breathing, and
general arousal (waking and sleeping); generally necessary for survival
Corpus Callosum - ANS>>bundle of axons that connects the right and left hemispheres
Optic Chiasm - ANS>>point in visual nerve system where nasal fibers (carrying
temporal vision) cross and the temporal fibers (carrying nasal vision) pass directly
though to the optic tract
Bitemporal Hemianopsia: Lesion of Optic Chaism would cause would knock out the
_____ fibers and the person would lose the ______ vision - ANS>>Nasal fibers
Temporal vision
Nasal fibers - ANS>>carry information from the temporal field of vision (Remember:
visual image crosses over and hits opposite side of retina)
