The Brain Game
These are the questions from our in-class review game. To see the answer, highlight the yellow area and change
the text to some dark color.
STRUCTURE-FUNCTION JUNCTION
1. Which area of the brain is affected by alcohol, thus producing jerky, uncoordinated movement?

Cerebellum. In fact, someone with cerebellum damage may seem drunk.
2. A person who is not appropriately hungry or thirsty (too little or too much for what’s good for the
body), might have brain damage to which area?

Hypothalamus – life-sustaining drives/behaviors. 4 Fs: Feeding, fighting, fleeing, mating
3. The star of the soccer team hits his head on the goal post and then has difficulty with language
comprehension and production. Which hemisphere was most likely hit?

Left: specifically, Wernieke’s area (language comprehension, temporal) and/or Broca’s area
(language production, frontal)
4. Damage to which area of the brain is most likely to be fatal?

Brainstem (pons, medulla). Located in the hindbrain.

vital reflexes (breathing, heart rate, swallowing). Caution: not to be confused with basic lifesustaining drives/behaviors (voluntary) connected with the hypothalamus.
5. Which of the five senses goes directly to the brain (do not pass thalamus, do not collect $200)?

Smell. goes to olfactory bulb directly.
LOBE LOGISTICS
6. After young athlete takes a hard fall on the basketball court, she sees stars for several minutes. Which
lobe of her brain was affected?

Occipital
7. A patient walks into your office with a half-shaven face. In which lobe do you expect to find the
damage?

Parietal (hemi-neglect)
8. After hitting her head in a car accident, a woman has difficulty controlling movement in her left hand
and fingers. Which lobe, in which hemisphere, was most likely affected?

Frontal (primary motor cortex) / Right (control over opposite side of body)
9. A person is no longer able to form new memories. Which lobe is the damage most likely in?

Temporal (hippocampus is in the deep temporal lobes)
CORPUS CALLOSUM CONUNDRUM
10. A patient with a severed corpus callosum sees the word TRAIN - WRECK (centered in front of their
visual field) and asked to state the word. What will she most likely say?

Wreck (info in right visual field  left hemisphere  language production)
11. … If given a pen, what will she write with the left hand

Train (info from left visual field  right hemisphere  write with left hand)
12. …If asked verbally, “Is the word Train? Give a thumbs up or thumbs down.” What will she likely do?

right thumb: down (left hemisphere did not see “train”)

left thumb: up (right hemisphere did see “train”)