Which of the following statements is false? 

a. The suprachiasmatic nucleus is often called the body's 'master clock.' 

b. Melatonin and the ventrolateral preoptic nucleus increase the activity of the reticular formation. 

c. A decrease in the activity of the reticular formation disconnects the thalamus from the cerebral cortex and decreases the level of consciousness. 

d. Orexins are neurotransmitters that stimulate the reticular formation.

Video transcript

Everyone. Let's take a look at this question together. The reticular formation is involved in the following functions except which is it? Answer choice. A alertness, answer choice B autonomic functions, answer choice C long term memory or answer choice D motor control. Let's work this problem out together to try to figure out which of the following answer choices, a function that the reticular formation is not involved in. So in order to solve this question, we have to recall what the reticular formation is and its functions to determine which of the following is not one of them. And we know that the reticular formation is a complex network of nuclei and pathways in the brain stem. And the reticular formation is involved in various functions that are related to arousal, alertness, autonomic functions and motor control. So looking at our answer choices, we can see alertness, autonomic functions and motor control, which are all functions that the reticular formation are involved in. So answer choice A B and D can be eliminated since we are looking for a function that is not included making answer choice C long term memory, the correct answer since long term memory is not a function of the reticular formation and instead is more closely linked to structures within the limbic system such as the hippocampus. So answer choice C is the correct answer. I hope you found this video to be helpful. Thank you and goodbye.