PMHS
AP PSYCH
Name_________________________________
AIM: What are the implications of a severed corpus callosum?
To review brain plasticity – choose one of the readings and discuss its implications
Ben Carson’s Take the Risk or Oliver Sack’s Musicophilia (write at least 3 relevent
facts)
Hemispherectomy
Aphasia
1. What is the band of fibers connecting the left and right hemispheres of the brain?
What is its function?
2. Each hemisphere is primarily connected to the opposite side of the body. This
means that a touch on the left hand would be registered in which hemisphere?
Which lobe? Which cortex?
3. When sound waves enter the right ear, which hemisphere receives the primary
information?
Which lobe deals with
hearing?___________________________
The left section of this lobe has ____________________________________ area, which hears
and understands words. The right section may deal more specifically with sounds.
4. How is the visual pathway different from that of the ear or hand? (use 2 colored
markers) and EXPLAIN why the eyes are different from the ears and limbs.
5. What happens when something is shown in the VERY RIGHT FIELD OF VISION
or the VERY LEFT FIELD OF VISION? (use 2 colored markers AGAIN) – Optic chiasm
is where optic nerves partially cross.
6. Briefly explain what was discovered in split-brain research (people who had their
corpus callosum CUT or severed to STOP SEIZURES!!).
7. If a split brain participant is blindfolded and a fork is placed in his or her left
hand, how would you guess that the person would respond? (Draw which brain half
the object would go to? (After writing what happens to a SPLIT BRAIN patient) –
discuss what a neurologically in-tact patient would do/say?)
8. A split brain patient can name an unseen object placed in their ______________ hand,
but cannot name objects placed in their ___________ hand. What does this suggest
about the language abilities of the two hemispheres?
LEFT BRAIN
RIGHT BRAIN
9. In an additional experiment, words are flashed briefly
the left or right visual field of the participant. Try to
predict the results. For example, when the word appears
in the left visual field, will the person be able to read the
word? Will they be able to say it? EXPLAIN.
CAT
to
Now, why is it that those with an intact corpus callosum can name objects placed in
either hand and easily read words flashed to either visual field?
10. In a different task, a split-brain patient has to look at a completed block pattern
and assemble the blocks near his or her right hand to match the pattern, using only
the right hand. Can the patient do it? Explain your thinking.
11. In this experiment, the split brain person was asked to look at the dot, while
different words were flashed briefly into their left visual field and right visual
field.
a) First the patient is asked to pick the object they saw with their left hand only.
What do they pick and why?
b) When the patient is asked to announce or say what they saw, they will say
______
Why?
c) If the patient was asked why they were holding a key, they would say, “I don’t
know” or maybe come up with a logical reason – like the key can be placed on
a ring. Why can’t they explain the real reason why they are holding a key?
12. Make up a problem for a classmate. Draw something - a word or image that is
flashed into the right field of vision and left field of vision.
a) The person will be able to say they saw_________________ Explain
b) The person will draw ______________ with their left hand because
c) The person will draw ______________ with their right hand because
13. A split brain person is asked to look at the dot – a woman is flashed into their
left field of vision and a man is flashed into their right field of vision.
Explain in the drawing what they will be able to say. And what type of doll they
would grab in each hand – explain why.