Biological (sensation/perception; physiological) Flashcards
Gall developed Phrenology
trait well developed, that brain area expands, creates bulges in the skull.
Flourens was the first to study…
He used extirpation/ablation, which is…
the functions of the major section of the brains
extirpation/ablation: various parts of the brain surgically removed, behavioral consequences observed
removal of one part weaken whole brain
William James
Functionalism- studying how mental processes help individuals adapt to their environments
John Dewey
criticized the reflex arc, which breaks the process of reacting to stimulus into discrete parts
Said psych should look at whole person
Paul Broca
Behavioral defects of people with brain damage.
First person to demonstrate functional impairment = brain lesion.
Broca area- unable to talk in left hemisphere frontal
Muller’s law of specific nerve energies
Each sensory neuron excited only by one kind of energy and brain interprets any stimulation of the nerve as that kind of energy.
Sensation depends more on part of the brain than on particular stimulus that activates them.
First to measure speed of nerve impulse
Hermann von Helmholtz
First to infer existence of synapses
Sir Charles Sherrington
afferent
Sensory to the brain
What is most popular type of neuron?
interneuron
mostly in brain stem, linked to reflexive behavior controlled by reflexive arcs (allows you to avoid pain)
CNS vs. PNS
CNS- brain/spinal cord
PNS- nerve tissue/fibers outside brain and spinal cord
PNS divisions
Somatic- sensory/motor neurons in skin/muscles
ANS- heartbeat, digestion, glandular. Involuntary functions/body temp
Parasympathetic- conserves energy. Resting/sleeping states, acts to reduce heart/respiration. Uses Acetylcholine.
Sympathetic-fight or flight. adrenaline
Midbrain
mesencephalon, sensorimotor reflexes that also promote survival
Hindbrain Vs. midbrain
hindbrain- balance, motor, breathing, digestion, sleeping, walking
midbrain- sensorimotor reflexes
together they are brainstem
Phylogeny
evolutionary development
Hindbrain: Medulla Oblongata
regulating vital functions like breathing heartbeat, blood pressure
Hindbrain: pons
sensory/motor tracts between cortex and medulla
Hindbrain: cerebellum
structure that helps maintain posture and balance and coordinates body movements
damage= slurred speech, clumsiness, loss of balance
Hindbrain: reticular formation
regulates arousal and alertness
Anesthetics cause unconsciousness by depressing activity of reticular formation
Arousals, Alertness, Attention
Midbrain: Superior Colliculus
receives visual sensory input
Midbrain: inferior colliculus
receives sensory information from auditory system.
Reflexive reaction to sudden noises.
Forebrain: thalamus
structure within forebrain that serves as an important relay station for incoming sensory information, including all sense.
Sensory relay
Hypothalamus:
lateral
Ventromedial
anterior
osmoregulation/homeostasis
arousal, aggression, sex
hunger, thirst, sex
Lateral- hunger
damage: aphagia- spot eating (Lacking hunger)
Also rage/fight behaviors
Ventromedial- satiety center, brain lesions to this area usually lead to obesity (hyperphagia/excessive eating)
very hungry
anterior hypothalamus- increase in aggressive sexual behavior
damage= asexual
Feeding, fighting, fleeing, and f*cking
extrapyramidal motor system
gathers info about body position, carries info to brain/spinal cord, movements smooth, posture steady.
limbic system: septal nuclei
primary pleasure centers
stimuli is intensely pleasurable/sexually arousing. if damaged, aggressive behavior unchecked
Inhibits aggression, if damaged, septal rage
lesion of amygdala
aggression/fear reduced
docility and hypersexual states
studied by kluver/bucy, identified changes as Kluver-Bucy syndrome
anterograde amnesia
not being able to establish new long term memories
Retrograde amnesia
memory loss of pervious events
bumps and folds on cortex called
convolutions
Frontal lobe
prefrontal lobes/motor cortex
directs operations of other brain regions, perception, memory, emotion, impulse control, long term planning. The prefrontal cortex thus governs and integrates numerous cognitive and behavioral process
association area
areas that combines input from diverse brain regions
ex: prefrontal cortex
projection areas
receive incoming sensory information or send out motor-impulse commands
visual cortex-receives visual input from retina
motor cortex- sends out motor commands
in humans, association areas larger than projection areas, however
opposite in animals
Parietal Lobes
somatosensory cortex- projection area, destination of sensory signals
spatial processing
temporal lobes
auditory Wernike's area- understand speech memory emotional control language
Contra vs. ipsilaterally
conta-opposite side
ipsilaterally-same side
Who did split brain studies
Sperry and Gazzaniga
Left (dominant) hemisphere
letters, words, language sounds, speech, the 3 R’s, analytical, complex voluntary movement
Right hemisphere
faces, music, emotions, creativity, sense of direction
Axons vs. dendrites
axons myelinated
dendrite branching changes a lot and can regenerate when damaged
dendrites = information
axons=communicate of nerve cell
Resting Potential
Depolarization
Action potential
Hyperpolarization
RP (~-70 mv, more - inside cell)
depolarize: -50 mV
AP: after threshold +40-70
HP: -80-100
Dendrites
intensity = external stimulation
EPSP increase AP
IPSP decrease AP
Axon
all or nothing
maintained by Na/K pump
trigger AP spike
absolute, then relative refractory periods
habituation
Kandel: snail backs away, until it gets used to the touch
acetylcholine
muscles, Alzheimer’s, memory
phenothiazines
reduce dopamine receptor sensitivity
Parkinson cure
L-dopa, gets through BBB
GABA
stabilizer
Sedative-hypnotic drugs (depressants)
synergistic-additive in effect
benzodiazepine/barbiturates- enhance GABA
Alcohol- Korsakoff’s, B1/thiamin deficiency
Behavioral stimulants
amphetamines
antidepressants - tricyclics (block reuptake)/MAO inhibitors (block enzyme)
SSRIs- no serotonin reuptake
Antipsychotic drugs
schizophrenia- block dopamine
lithium-bipolar, manic symptoms break the cycle
Narotics
opium, heroin, morphine.
Pain-relief
What controls release of pituitary hormones?
hypothalamus
What is master gland?
pituitary
Gland: metabolism, growth, development
thyroid
Gland: adrenaline, increases liver’s sugar output, heart rate, fight/flight
adrenal medulla
Estrogen vs. Progesterone
E: stimulates female sex characteristics
P: prepares uterus for implantation of embryo
Gonadotropins
pituitary; increased produced of hormones by ovaries/testes
Follicle stimulating hormone
Development of ovarian follical
Luteinizing hormone
ovulation
Lesions/ablations
brain damage/surgery used to study functions of specific areas
Stereotaxic instrument
used to locate brain areas when implanting electrodes in order to make lesions/stimulate record nerve cell activity
Electrical stimulation
used for individual cells
CAT scans
structures in brain of living person
Aphasia
impaired language
Amnesia
memory problems
Agnosia
impaired perceptual recognition of objects
Apraxia
impaired motor movement
Beta waves
awake/alert, fast EEG
Alpha Waves
awake/relaxed eyes closed
Stage 1
theta
wake –> sleep
muscles may twitch
hypnagogic hallucinations may occur
Stage 2
theta
light sleep
EEG shows sleep spindles
K complexes appear
Stage 3
Delta
more deeply asleep
slower EEG
steeper sleep spindles
Stage 4
Delta
deepest sleep
slow EEG
sleep spindles, relax muscles
REM
fast/irregular EEG, similar to alpha, relaxed muscle, dreaming
James-Lange Theory
we recognize emotions based on how our body reacts
“afraid because I tremble”
Cannon-Bard theory
emotions reflect physiological arousal of ANS and specific neural circuits (sensory –> specific emotion)
Schachter-singer
unspecified physiological arousal is labeled as different emotions depending on mental response to environmental stimulation (Depends)
