Central Structures & Processes

The correct answer is frontal lobe. The frontal lobe is responsible for reward, attention, short-term memory tasks, planning, and motivation. It is also the part that tells a person if they are making a good decision or not. If the frontal lobe is injured, people may not realize they are behaving socially unacceptably. The other choices are incorrect. The parietal lobe is responsible for processing sensory information from your environment. The occipital lobe is responsible for eyesight processing. The temporal lobe is responsible for hearing and memory input. Last, the anterior lobe does not exist.

The corpus callosum is a wide set of nerve fibers that connects the two hemispheres of the human brain. Agenesis of the corpus callosum, a rare birth defect, results in impaired cognitive abilities (e.g. key processes like face processing and other socially-important skills).

Substantia nigra is named for it's darker appearance relative to its surroundings. It is dark because of high amounts of neuromelanins in its tissues—an apparent byproduct of dopamine production. The substantia nigra is subdivided into two functionally distinct sections: the pars compacta and pars reticulata.

In order to examine brain functions, researchers must examine living individuals, rather than the brains of cadavers. This poses several challenges. Sometimes, animal brains are studied using invasive techniques that would be unethical to perform on human subjects. In order to mitigate these challenges and study brain activities, researchers in psychology have developed several noninvasive techniques including PET scans, MRIs, and electroencephalograms.