Biology and Behavior Flashcards
Franz Gall (1758-1828)
- earliest theory that behavior, intellect and personality might be linked to the brains anatomy
- Developed doctrine of phrenology
- Thought that you could measure brain power by measuring the size of the skull
Pierre Flourens (1794-1867)
- first to study the major functions of the brain
- Extirpation/ablation done on pigeons and rabbits
Extirpation/ablation
various parts of the brain are surgically removed and the consequences are observed
William James (1842-1910)
- father of American psychology
- Functionalism
Functionalism
system of thought that studied how mental processes help individuals adapt to their environment
John Dewey (1859-1952)
- part of the inception of functionalism
- Believed that psychology should focus on the study of an organism as a whole as it functioned to adapt to the environment
Paul Broca (1824-1880)
- Examined behavioural defects of people with brain damage
- First to demonstrate that specific impairments could be linked to specific brain lesions
Broca’s Area
area of the brain where a lesion causes the person to be unable to talk. Found on the left side of the brain
Hermann von Helmholtz (1821-1894)
- measured the speed of a nerve impulse
- Turned psychology into a natural science field
Sir Charles Sherrington (1857-1952)
- found the existence of a synapse
- Thought it was an electrical process, but it is actually a chemical process
Sensory Neurons (afferent neurons)
transmit sensory information from receptors to the spinal cord and the brain
Motor Neurons (efferent neurons)
transmit motor information from the brain and spinal cord to muscles and glands
Interneurons
- found between the above two neurons and are the most abundant
- Mainly found in the brain and spinal cord and linked to reflexive behavior
Reflex Arc
neural circuits that control this behavior
Central Nervous System
composed of brain and spinal cord
Peripheral Nervous System
-composed of nerve tissue and fibers that are outside of the brain and spinal cord
-into the
somatic and autonomic nervous systems
Somatic Nervous System
sensory and motor neurons that are distributed throughout the skin, joints and muscles
Autonomic Nervous System
- regulates heartbeat, respiration rate, digestion, and glandular secretion
- Manages involuntary muscles that are associated with many internal organs and glands
- Can be subdivided into the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems
Parasympathetic Nervous System
-main goal is to conserve energy
- “rest-and-digest”
-Acetylcholine is the neurotransmitter responsible for parasympathetic
responses in the body
Sympathetic Nervous System
- activated by stress
- “flight-or-fight”
- Epinephrine is released into the bloodstream
Meninges
- thick sheath of protective tissue covering the brain
- three layers: dura mater, arachnoid mater, and pia mater
Cerebrospinal fluid
- aqueous solution where the brain and spinal cord rest
- Produced by cells that line the ventricles
limbic system
group of neural structures that are primarily associated with emotion and memory
Cerebral Cortex
- Outer covering of the cerebral hemispheres
- Associated with many things such as language processing, problem solving, impulse control or long-term planning