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Quizzes > Health & Medicine > Human Anatomy & Medicine

Ready to Master Split Brain Concepts? Take the Quiz!

Dive into Brain Lateralization: Take the Split Brain Quiz!

Difficulty: Moderate
2-5mins
Learning OutcomesCheat Sheet
Paper art cutout of split brain hemispheres on teal background for a split brain lateralization quiz

This split brain quiz helps you check how brain lateralization works - how the left and right hemispheres share tasks. You'll see where you're strong and spot gaps before a test. For a quick warm‑up, try the brain structure basics or review with the brain anatomy quiz .

What is the primary role of the corpus callosum?
To control the autonomic nervous system
To process auditory information
To regulate hormonal release
To connect the left and right cerebral hemispheres
The corpus callosum is the largest commissural fiber bundle in the brain, responsible for transferring motor, sensory, and cognitive information between the two hemispheres. Severing it in split-brain surgery isolates the two sides, preventing interhemispheric communication.
Which visual field projects information to the right hemisphere?
Both visual fields equally
Neither visual field directly
Right visual field
Left visual field
Visual information from the left visual field is sent to the right hemisphere via the optic chiasm. In split-brain patients, such information cannot cross back to the left hemisphere for verbal report.
What is the surgical procedure called when the corpus callosum is severed?
Temporal lobectomy
Lobotomy
Hemisphericctomy
Commissurotomy
Commissurotomy refers to cutting the commissural fibers, most notably the corpus callosum, to limit the spread of epileptic seizures. The procedure isolates the two hemispheres.
Which hemisphere is typically dominant for language in right-handed individuals?
Cerebellum
Right hemisphere
Left hemisphere
Both hemispheres equally
In most right-handed people, language areas such as Broca's and Wernicke's regions are located in the left hemisphere, making it dominant for speech production and comprehension.
The right hemisphere is especially adept at processing which type of information?
Fine motor coordination
Arithmetic calculations
Visuospatial and facial recognition tasks
Grammar and syntax
Functional studies show the right hemisphere excels at spatial reasoning, facial recognition, and interpreting emotional tone, while the left is more language-focused. Right hemisphere functions
In split-brain patients, if an object is placed in the left hand without vision, they can typically:
Draw the object with the right hand
Describe the object's color
Verbally name the object
Select a matching object with the left hand
Touch information from the left hand goes to the right hemisphere, which cannot communicate verbally with the left language-dominant hemisphere. However, the right hemisphere can still guide the left hand to match the object.
Which smaller commissure connects the two temporal lobes and may allow limited transfer after callosotomy?
Fornix
Posterior commissure
Hippocampal commissure
Anterior commissure
The anterior commissure is a smaller fiber bundle connecting temporal lobes, including olfactory and emotional information, and can mediate residual interhemispheric transfer after callosotomy.
During a Wada test, anesthetizing the left hemisphere typically results in temporary loss of:
Speech production
Balance and coordination
Visual acuity
Pupillary reflex
The Wada test temporarily disables one hemisphere using anesthetic. Injecting into the left carotid artery suppresses left-hemisphere function, causing aphasia in language-dominant individuals.
What term describes the inability of split-brain patients to verbally identify stimuli in the left visual field?
Anomia
Interhemispheric disconnection
Hemispatial neglect
Agnosia
Interhemispheric disconnection refers to the failure of information transfer between hemispheres. When images are shown to the left visual field, the right hemisphere sees them but cannot relay the information for verbal naming through the severed corpus callosum.
Hemispheric lateralization refers to:
Equal function of both hemispheres
Specialization of certain tasks to one hemisphere
Continuous information flow across the corpus callosum
Complete independence of each hemisphere
Hemispheric lateralization describes how specific functions, like language or spatial processing, are more strongly represented in one hemisphere than the other, optimizing brain efficiency.
A partial severing of the corpus callosum, targeting only the anterior portion, is called:
Partial callosotomy
Laminotomy
Subdural hemorrhage
Total callosotomy
Partial callosotomy involves cutting only the front portion of the corpus callosum, often sparing posterior fibers to reduce complications but still limiting seizure spread.
Which device is used to present visual stimuli to one hemisphere at a time in split-brain experiments?
Functional MRI
Tachistoscope
Electroencephalogram (EEG)
Positron emission tomography
A tachistoscope displays images briefly to one visual field at a time, ensuring stimuli are processed by a single hemisphere before the eyes shift. This technique is foundational in split-brain research.
The chimeric face test assesses hemispheric differences in:
Fine motor control
Facial emotion recognition
Olfactory discrimination
Auditory perception
The chimeric face test shows composite images split between left and right halves. Subjects typically identify emotional expressions processed more strongly by one hemisphere, revealing lateralization patterns.
Prosody and emotional tone of speech are predominantly processed by the:
Brainstem
Right hemisphere
Left hemisphere
Cerebellum
While the left hemisphere handles the semantic content of language, the right hemisphere modulates prosody, intonation, and emotional context, contributing to the expressive qualities of speech.
In dichotic listening tasks, a right ear advantage suggests:
Auditory cortex damage
Impaired attentional control
Right hemisphere language dominance
Left hemisphere language dominance
Dichotic listening presents different sounds to each ear simultaneously. A stronger performance in the right ear indicates left hemisphere dominance for language, as the right ear projects primarily to the left hemisphere.
Interhemispheric transfer refers to:
Loss of function after commissurotomy
Cross-communication of information between hemispheres
The process of one hemisphere taking over the other's blood supply
Simultaneous bilateral activation
Interhemispheric transfer is the relay of sensory, motor, or cognitive information across the two hemispheres via commissural pathways such as the corpus callosum.
Which neuroimaging technique is commonly used to assess hemispheric functional lateralization in real time?
Functional MRI (fMRI)
X-ray
CT scan
Diffusion tensor imaging
Functional MRI measures blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) signals to map active brain areas during tasks, revealing differential hemispheric activation patterns for language, spatial, or emotional processing.
In a split-brain patient, when the word "KEY" is flashed to the left visual field, the patient:
Will pick up a key with the left hand but cannot say it
Will draw a picture of a key with the right hand
Will say "key" immediately
Will be unable to recognize it in any way
Left visual field input goes to the right hemisphere, which lacks direct language output in split-brain patients. The right hemisphere can guide the left hand to select an actual key but cannot produce the spoken word.
Probst bundles, seen in callosal agenesis, are:
Calcifications in the corpus callosum
Excessive growth of cortical gyri
Aberrant fiber tracts that fail to cross midline
Meningeal adhesions
In agenesis of the corpus callosum, Probst bundles are formed when callosal axons grow but cannot cross the midline, instead running longitudinally along each hemisphere.
Which region of the corpus callosum connects the occipital lobes?
Genu
Rostrum
Splenium
Isthmus
The splenium is the posterior portion of the corpus callosum and contains fibers that interconnect occipital cortices, facilitating visual information transfer.
Which structure is NOT considered a commissure in the brain?
Corpus callosum
Posterior commissure
Fornix
Anterior commissure
The fornix is a major fiber tract of the limbic system connecting hippocampus to mammillary bodies but does not serve as a commissure between hemispheres. Commissures specifically cross the midline to link homologous areas.
Callosal agenesis most commonly leads to deficits in:
Language production
Auditory localization
Basic sensory perception
Bimanual coordination
Without a functional corpus callosum, coordinating complex tasks that require integrated bilateral movements - like tapping different rhythms with each hand - is impaired.
In rhyming judgment tasks with split-brain patients, the hemisphere with phonological processing advantage is the:
Left hemisphere
Brainstem
Cerebellum
Right hemisphere
Phonological analysis and rhyme detection are language-based processes handled primarily by the left hemisphere, giving it an advantage in tasks requiring sound-based judgments.
Alien hand syndrome in split-brain patients is characterized by:
Auditory hallucinations in one hemisphere
Involuntary, purposeful movements of one hand
Complete loss of tactile sensation
Total paralysis of one hand
Alien hand syndrome involves involuntary, seemingly purposeful movements of the disconnected hand, reflecting a lack of conscious control by the functional hemisphere.
Homotopic callosal fibers connect:
Homologous cortical regions across hemispheres
Each hemisphere to the spinal cord
Non-homologous areas between hemispheres
Cortex to subcortical structures
Homotopic fibers run between identical (homologous) cortical regions in each hemisphere and are crucial for coordinating symmetrical functions. Heterotopic fibers connect non-identical areas.
Approximately how many axons constitute the human corpus callosum?
1 billion
20 million
200 million
2 million
Neuroanatomical studies estimate the corpus callosum contains around 200 million myelinated axons, making it the largest white-matter structure in the brain.
Which part of the corpus callosum primarily connects motor cortices of both hemispheres?
Midbody
Rostrum
Genu
Splenium
The midbody of the corpus callosum contains fibers linking bilateral primary motor and some somatosensory areas, facilitating coordinated motor control.
In diffusion tensor imaging studies of the corpus callosum, increased radial diffusivity typically indicates:
Axonal sprouting
Enhanced myelination
Increased fiber density
Demyelination or myelin sheath disruption
Radial diffusivity refers to water diffusion perpendicular to axons. Elevated radial diffusivity is associated with loss or damage of myelin sheaths, as seen in demyelinating conditions.
Mutations in which gene are most commonly linked to X-linked corpus callosum agenesis?
APP
MECP2
LIS1
L1CAM
L1CAM mutations disrupt axonal guidance and are a well-known cause of X-linked hydrocephalus and agenesis of the corpus callosum, impairing midline crossing of fibers.
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Study Outcomes

  1. Understand Hemispheric Specialization -

    Learn how the left and right brain hemispheres differ in processing language, spatial reasoning, and other cognitive functions.

  2. Explain Corpus Callosum Function -

    Describe the role of the corpus callosum in facilitating interhemispheric communication and how its disruption leads to split brain syndrome.

  3. Identify Split Brain Syndrome Symptoms -

    Recognize hallmark clinical signs and neurological deficits that arise when the two hemispheres cannot effectively communicate.

  4. Apply Knowledge to Quiz Questions -

    Use your understanding of brain lateralization to accurately answer neuroscience trivia and split brain quiz items.

  5. Evaluate Research Implications -

    Assess how findings from split brain studies inform broader theories of cognitive processing and brain organization.

Cheat Sheet

  1. Hemispheric Specialization -

    The left hemisphere primarily processes language, logic, and arithmetic, whereas the right hemisphere handles spatial reasoning, facial recognition, and creativity. A mnemonic like "Logic Left, Art on the Right" can help cement these functions. This concept is central to many brain lateralization quiz questions, as outlined in NIH resources and APA journals.

  2. Corpus Callosum Function -

    The corpus callosum is the brain's largest commissural tract, ferrying neural signals between hemispheres through roughly 200 million axons. For example, intact callosal communication lets you name an object flashed to your left visual field by routing info to Broca's area on the left. Sketching a simple "bridge" diagram can reinforce corpus callosum pathways when prepping for a split brain quiz.

  3. Commissurotomy and Split-Brain Procedure -

    A commissurotomy, or split-brain surgery, severs the corpus callosum to treat intractable epilepsy, offering direct evidence of lateralized functions. In Gazzaniga's classic spoon test, patients' left hands could grab a hidden spoon while their speech centers in the left hemisphere couldn't name it. Remembering this "Gazzaniga spoon trick" is a playful way to recall split brain syndrome test scenarios.

  4. Contralateral Processing -

    Each hemisphere receives sensory input and controls motor output for the opposite side of the body; a flash in the left visual field is processed by the right occipital cortex. In split-brain patients, this leads to striking dissociations, like drawing with the left hand without verbal identification. Use the catchphrase "Left sees right, right sees left" to lock in this principle for your brain lateralization quiz.

  5. Neuroplasticity and Compensation -

    After corpus callosum severing, secondary pathways like the anterior commissure and subcortical routes can partially restore interhemispheric communication. Studies in Neuropsychologia show that some split-brain patients regain subtle cross-hemisphere coordination over months to years. Highlighting this plasticity in your answers underscores the dynamic nature of brain adaptation.

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