Bio Test #2

Front 1

Explain working mechanical structure of the eye.

Back 1

The eye contains a lens behind the opening of the eye (pupil) that is attached to two muscles. The muscles can change the shape of the lens in order to focus light onto the retina. The retina is the lining of the back of the eye that contains the cells that receive light input. The vitreous humor is a gelatinous liquid that fills the eye in order to protect it from pressure or shock.

Front 2

Discuss major functions of the brain.

Back 2

Almost 2/3 of all neurons in the brain are located in the cerebral cortex. Dark matter= thick layer of neurons on the surface of the brain. White matter= inner layers of cortex. Brainstem controls the basic physiological processes, such as breathing. Cerebrum organizes and filters external information to provide meaning and consciousness.

Front 3

Explain image quality that eye perceives and where the visual image that we perceive is actually from.

Back 3

The images that come from the eye are really nothing more than a set of dots of light that the eye gets from scanning an image. Those dots of light are sensed by the cells of the retina and then sent to the brain where a sharp image is created for us to actually perceive.

Front 4

Explain how our visual perception is affected by more than just incoming light impulses gathered by the eye.

Back 4

Many factors influence our visual perception. Damage to particular areas can influence how we perceive our world. Damage to the parietal lobe can affect the incorporation and processing of visual information from a particular field resulting in visual neglect, where input from one eye is completely disregarded or ignored. Emotion can influence our visual perception. What emotional mood we are in when we visualize something can affect our interpretation of that input.

Front 5

What is subliminal perception? Explain blindsight, and why it exists.

Back 5

Subliminal perception is the brain's ability to filter out visual information and onlly allow recognition of that input which is important. Blind sight suggests that some of our visual perception is beyond out conscious awareness. It is a visual pathway that goes through the midbrain and primarily only perceives movement without any fine details as to what is moving.

Front 6

The main avenue that we use to acquire information about the external world is _____.

Back 6

vision

Front 7

Contrary to popular belief, we do not see with our eyes but actually see with our_____.

Back 7

brain

Front 8

90% of all information that enters our eyes is recognized only by our_____.

Back 8

unconsciousness

Front 9

Our ability to focus our vision is dependent on muscles changing the shape of the _____.

Back 9

lens

Front 10

Incoming images are sharply focused on the back suface of the eye known as the _____.

Back 10

retina

Front 11

To cushion it against expernal pressure and shock, the eye is filled with a gelatinous liquid known as the _____.

Back 11

vitreous humor

Front 12

The cells lining the retina that are responsible for sensing mon0chrome vision are known as _____ cells.

Back 12

rod

Front 13

Visual processing is a complex process that involves up to _____ of the human brain.

Back 13

2/3

Front 14

Almost 2/3 of all neurons in the human brain are located in the "mammalian brain," otherwise known as the _____.

Back 14

cerebral cortex

Front 15

Basic physiological processes such as breathing and digestion are controlled by the ______

Back 15

brain stem

Front 16

The human midbrain, which is involved in the fight or flight response, is also known as the _____ brain.

Back 16

reptilian

Front 17

Inof the brain where visual information is processed is known as the _____.

Back 17

visual cortex

Front 18

The visual cortex is located in the ____ lobe of the brain.

Back 18

occipital

Front 19

The left occipital lobe receives visual informatino from the _____ eye.

Back 19

right

Front 20

Blind sight results not from the primary visual pathways involving the visual cortex but through another pathway found in the _____brain.

Back 20

reptilian or midbrain

Front 21

The ability of athletes to sense other players and make passes without looking is a result of exceptional _____ _____.

Back 21

blind sight

Front 22

In Humans, language originates in the _____ side of the brain while motor skills originate in the _____ side .

Back 22

left, right

Front 23

The bundle of nerve cells that carries visual informatin from the eye to the visual cortex is known as the _____ _____.

Back 23

Optic nerve

Front 24

What are the two more primatvie parts of the human brain found below the cortex? Briefly explain their evolutionary history.

Back 24

The two other portions are the reptilian brain and the brainstem. The brainstem is a remmant of the first brain that evolved in fish. The midbrain or reptilian brain is more recent than the brainstem. It first appeared in reptiles such as the dinosaurs and exists today as the human midbrain.

Front 25

Where is the visual cortex and what is its role in perception?

Back 25

The visual cortex is located in the back of the brain, in an area known as the occipital lobe. The visual cortex is the part of teh brain that receives visual input from the eyes via the optic nerve and where that input is initally processed.

Front 26

Explain the structural evidence from our brain that supports the gradual evolution of the human brain rather than a one time evolutionary step.

Back 26

Early fish had a very primitive brain that allowed for the regulation of basic physiologial functions. A similar structure exists in the modern human brain. This structure is the brainstem and it controls basic physiological activities such as breathing and digestion. The next step in brain complexity is clearly seen in reptiles. They had a more complex brain that provided for basic vision detection, such as sensing movement, as well as providing desire to hunt and reproduce. Humans have a compartmentalized brain struture below the cortex. It suggests that evolution has kept adding onto the first brain that developed in fish and the remnants of those early brain structures are still present today in the human brainstem and midbrain.