The Nervous System Study Guide
 A cell that carries information through your nervous system is a(n) neuron
 A synapse is the junction between a structure such as a dendrite, a muscle, or a gland and a(n) axon
tip
 The cochlea is a snail-shaped tube in the inner ear
 The part of the central nervous system responsible for creative thinking is the cerebrum
 The brain stem regulates breathing
 A concussion is a type of injury to the brain
 A bundle of nerve fibers is called a(n) nerve
 The semicircular canals help you to maintain balance
 When you have a cold, food may not taste as good because your nose is blocked
 Alcohol is not a stimulant, where as caffeine, nicotine, and cocaine are
 Interneurons carry nerve impulses between neurons – for example, from sensory neurons to motor
neurons
 The period of adjustment that occurs when a person who is addicted to a drug stops taking the drug
is called withdrawal
 Rods and cones are in the part of the eye called the retina
 The type of drug that slows down the central nervous system is called a(n) depressant
 A person who needs larger and larger amounts of a drug to achieve the same effect has developed
a(n) tolerance
 Any change or signal in the environment that can make an organism react is a response (F; stimulus)
 A neuron contains more than one axon (F; one)
 The central nervous system includes the brain and spinal cord (T)
 Nerves of the autonomic nervous system control voluntary actions (F; somatic)
 A nearsighted person has difficulty seeing distant objects clearly (T)
 Compare and contrast a voluntary response with a reflex
o In a voluntary response, the brain must interpret the stimulus for the body to react
voluntarily. In the reflex, the body reacts automatically and without conscious control. In
some reflex actions, skeletal muscles contract with the involvement of only the spinal cord,
not the brain
 What overall function do the senses perform
o Each of the major senses pick up a specific type of information about the environment. The
sense organs change that information into nerve impulses and send the impulses to the
brain
 What are some of the problems associated with repeated, long-term use of alcohol
o Repeated use of alcohol can lead to addiction. Long-term use can lead to damage of the liver
and brain, and to malnutrition. Alcoholics who stop drinking may experience withdrawal
 What are the two parts of the peripheral nervous system? Compare and contrast their functions
o The two parts of the peripheral nervous system are the somatic nervous system and the
autonomic nervous system. The somatic nervous system controls voluntary responses. The
autonomic nervous system controls involuntary responses
 What role does the brain play in vision
o Nerve impulses travel to the cerebrum through the optic nerve. The cerebrum turns the
reversed images produced by the lenses of the eyes right-side up. It also combines the
images from each eye to produce a single image
Use the diagram to answer the questions
 Look at neurons A, B, C, and D. For each, indicate whether it is a sensory neuron, a motor neuron,
or an interneuron
o A is a sensory neuron, B & C are interneurons. D is a motor neuron
 Explain the origin and transmission of a nerve impulse from a taste bud to the brain
o Taste is a sensitivity to chemicals. A chemical triggers a response in receptors in taste buds in
the tongue. The receptors trigger nerve impulses in sensory neurons. These impulses travel
to the brain, where they are interpreted as tastes
 What role does the brain play in the sense of taste
o The brain interprets the nerve impulses from the taste buds as the taste of something
Use the diagram to answer the questions
 What is the stimulus in part A that leads to the two responses shown in part B & C? What are these
responses
o The stimulus is the cold temperature of the air. The first response is the person shivering.
The second response is the person putting on warmer clothes
 How are the two responses similar? How are they different? (HINT: Shivering is involuntary)
o The responses are similar because both help to maintain homeostasis by warming the
person up. Both involve information picked up by temperature receptors in the skin.
However, the first response is involuntary, and the second response is voluntary. The first
response involves the autonomic nervous system, and the second response involves the
somatic nervous system