AP Psychology Unit 3A Terms Flashcards
A branch of psychology concerned with the links between biology and behavior. (Some biological psychologists call themselves neuroscientists, neuropsychologists, behavior geneticists, physiological psychologists, or biopsychologists)
Biological Psychology
A nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system
Neuron
Neurons that carry incoming information from the sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord
Sensory Neurons
Neurons that carry outgoing information form the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands
Motor Neurons
Neurons within the brain and spinal cord that communicate internally and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs
Interneurons
The bushy, branching extensions of a neuron that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body
Dendrite
The extension of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers, through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles or glands
Axon
A layer of fatty tissue segmentally encasting the fibers of many neuron; enables vastly greater transmission speed of neural impulse as the impulse hops from one node to the next
Myelin Sheath
A neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon
Action Potential
The level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse
Threshold
The junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron. The tiny gap at this junction is called the synaptic gap or synaptic cleft
Synapse
Chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between neurons. When released by the sending neuron, they travel across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron, thereby influencing whether that neuron will generate a neural impulse
Neurotransmitters
A neurotransmitter’s reabsorption by the sending neuron
Reuptake
“Morphine within;” natural, opiatelike neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure
Endorphins
The body’s speedy, electrochemical communication network consisting of the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous systems
Nervous System
The brain and the spinal cord
Central Nervous System (CNS)
The sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system to the rest of the body.
Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)
Bundled axons that form neural cables connecting the central nervous system with muscles, glands, and sense organs
Nerves
The division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body’s skeletal muscles. Also called the skeletal nervous system
Somatic Nervous System
The part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs (such as the heart). Its sympathetic division arouses; its parasympathetic division calms
Autonomic Nervous System
The division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations
Sympathetic Nervous System
The division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy
Parasympathetic Nervous System
A simple, autonomic response to a sensory stimulus, such as the knee-jerk response
Reflex
The body’s “slow” chemical communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream
Endocrine System
Chemical messengers that are manufactured by the endocrine glands, travel through the bloodstream and affect other tissues
Hormones
A pair of endocrine glands that sit just above the kidneys and secrete hormones that help arouse the body in times of stress
Adrenal Glands
The endocrine system’s most influential gland. Under the influence of the hypothalamus, it regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands
Pituitary Gland
