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P/S MCAT > Biology and Behavior > Flashcards

Biology and Behavior Flashcards

1
Q

Franz Gall (1758-1828)

A
  • 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
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2
Q

Pierre Flourens (1794-1867)

A
  • first to study the major functions of the brain

- Extirpation/ablation done on pigeons and rabbits

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3
Q

Extirpation/ablation

A

various parts of the brain are surgically removed and the consequences are observed

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4
Q

William James (1842-1910)

A
  • father of American psychology

- Functionalism

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5
Q

Functionalism

A

system of thought that studied how mental processes help individuals adapt to their environment

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6
Q

John Dewey (1859-1952)

A
  • 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
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7
Q

Paul Broca (1824-1880)

A
  • Examined behavioural defects of people with brain damage

- First to demonstrate that specific impairments could be linked to specific brain lesions

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8
Q

Broca’s Area

A

area of the brain where a lesion causes the person to be unable to talk. Found on the left side of the brain

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9
Q

Hermann von Helmholtz (1821-1894)

A
  • measured the speed of a nerve impulse

- Turned psychology into a natural science field

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10
Q

Sir Charles Sherrington (1857-1952)

A
  • found the existence of a synapse

- Thought it was an electrical process, but it is actually a chemical process

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11
Q

Sensory Neurons (afferent neurons)

A

transmit sensory information from receptors to the spinal cord and the brain

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12
Q

Motor Neurons (efferent neurons)

A

transmit motor information from the brain and spinal cord to muscles and glands

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13
Q

Interneurons

A
  • found between the above two neurons and are the most abundant
  • Mainly found in the brain and spinal cord and linked to reflexive behavior
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14
Q

Reflex Arc

A

neural circuits that control this behavior

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15
Q

Central Nervous System

A

composed of brain and spinal cord

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16
Q

Peripheral Nervous System

A

-composed of nerve tissue and fibers that are outside of the brain and spinal cord
-into the
somatic and autonomic nervous systems

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17
Q

Somatic Nervous System

A

sensory and motor neurons that are distributed throughout the skin, joints and muscles

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18
Q

Autonomic Nervous System

A
  • 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
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19
Q

Parasympathetic Nervous System

A

-main goal is to conserve energy
- “rest-and-digest”
-Acetylcholine is the neurotransmitter responsible for parasympathetic
responses in the body

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20
Q

Sympathetic Nervous System

A
  • activated by stress
  • “flight-or-fight”
  • Epinephrine is released into the bloodstream
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21
Q

Meninges

A
  • thick sheath of protective tissue covering the brain

- three layers: dura mater, arachnoid mater, and pia mater

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22
Q

Cerebrospinal fluid

A
  • aqueous solution where the brain and spinal cord rest

- Produced by cells that line the ventricles

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23
Q

limbic system

A

group of neural structures that are primarily associated with emotion and memory

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24
Q

Cerebral Cortex

A
  • Outer covering of the cerebral hemispheres

- Associated with many things such as language processing, problem solving, impulse control or long-term planning

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25
Q

Hindbrain (Rhombencephalon)

A
  • Located where the brain meets the spinal cord
  • Controls balance, motor coordination, breathing, digestion and general arousal (sleep/wake)
  • manages vital functions that are necessary for survival
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26
Q

Myelencephalon

A
  • forms into the medulla oblongata from rhombencephalon

- responsible for regulating vital functions such as breathing, heart rate, and blood pressure

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27
Q

Metencephalon

A
  • forms the pons and the cerebellum from rhombencephalon
  • Pons lie above the medulla and contain the sensory and motor pathways between the cortex and the medulla
  • Cerebellum helps in maintaining posture/balance & coordinates the body’s movements
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28
Q

Midbrain (mesencephalon)

A
  • Receives sensory and motor information from the rest of the body
  • Associated with involuntary reflex responses that are triggered by visual or audio stimuli
  • Location of several prominent nuclei (two called colliculi)
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29
Q

Superior Colliculi

A

receives visual sensory input

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30
Q

Inferior Colliculi

A

receives sensory information from the auditory system

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31
Q

Forebrain (prosencephalon)

A
  • Associated with complex perceptual, cognitive and behavioral processes
  • Associated with emotion and memory
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32
Q

Telencephalon

A

forms the cerebral cortex, basal ganglia, and limbic system from the forebrain

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33
Q

Diencephalon

A

forms the thalamus, hypothalamus. Posterior pituitary gland and pineal gland from the forebrain

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34
Q

Neuropsychology

A

study of functions and behaviors associated with specific regions of the brain

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35
Q

Electroencephalogram (EEG)

A

involves placing electrodes on the scalp and the electrodes are used to record the electrical activity produced by the brain

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36
Q

Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF)

A

detects broad patters of neural activity based on increased blood flow to different parts of the brain

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37
Q

Computed Tomography (CT)

A

multiple X-rays are taken at different angles and processed by a computer to cross-sectional slice images of the tissue

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38
Q

PET (positron emission tomography) scan

A

radioactive sugar is injected and absorbed into the body

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39
Q

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

A

uses a magnetic field to interact with hydrogen and map out hydrogen dense regions of the body

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40
Q

Function magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)

A

Uses same technique as MRI, but measures the changes associated with blood flow

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41
Q

Forebrain: Thalamus

A
  • Serves as an important relay station for incoming sensory information
  • Once information is received, the thalamus sorts and transmits them to the appropriate cerebral cortex
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42
Q

Forebrain: Hypothalamus

A
  • subdivided into three sections
  • serves homeostatic functions
  • involved in emotional experiences during high arousal states
  • helps in the control of some endocrine functions and the autonomic nervous system that is directly tied to its main function of maintaining homeostasis
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43
Q

Lateral Hypothalamus (LH)

A
  • Special receptors that detect when the body needs more food or fluids
  • “The hunger center”
44
Q

Ventromedial Hypothalamus (VMH)

A
  • provides signals to stop eating

- “Satiety Center”

45
Q

Anterior Hypothalamus

A
  • controls sexual behavior. Damage of this leads to permanent inhibition of sexual activity
  • regulates sleep and body temperature
46
Q

Forebrain: Posterior Pituitary

A
  • compromised of axonal projections form the hypothalamus

- site of release for the hypothalamic hormones: antidiuretic hormones (ADH/vasopressin) & oxytocin

47
Q

Forebrain: Pineal Gland

A
  • Secretes melatonin

- receives direct signals from the retina so that it can coordinate with sunlight

48
Q

Basal Ganglia

A
  • muscle movements as they receive information from the cortex
  • Relays information to the brain and the spinal cord after the information is received
49
Q

Extrapyramidal System

A

gathers information about body position and carries the information to the central nervous system

50
Q

Septal Nuclei

A
  • primary pleasure center of the brain

- Associated with addictive behavior

51
Q

Amygdala

A
  • role in defensive and aggressive behaviors
52
Q

Hippocampus

A
  • role in learning and memory processes

- Helps consolidate information to form long-term memories and can redistribute remote memories to the cerebral cortex

53
Q

Anterograde Amnesia

A

not being able to establish new long-term memories

54
Q

Retrograde Amnesia

A

memory loss of events that transpired before a brain injury

55
Q

Cerebral Cortex

A
  • Has numerous bumps (gyri) and folds (sulci)

- four lobes: Frontal, Parietal, Occipital, & Temporal

56
Q

Frontal Lobe

A

Comprised of two basic regions: prefrontal cortex and the motor cortex

57
Q

Prefrontal cortex

A
  • manages executive function by supervising and direction the operations of other brain regions
  • Supervises processes associated with perception, memory, emotion, impulse control, and long-term planning
58
Q

Association Area

A

integrates information from different cortical regions

59
Q

Primary Motor Cortex

A

-initiates voluntary motor movements by sending neural impulses down the spinal cord towards the muscles

60
Q

Projection Area

A

where a specific area only performs a single simple perceptual or motor task

61
Q

motor homunculus

A

depicts the location of how neurons are arranged

62
Q

Parietal Lobe

A
  • contains Somatosensory cortex

- includes a region associated with spatial processing and manipulation

63
Q

Somatosensory cortex

A

destination for all incoming sensory signals for touch, pressure, temperature and pain

64
Q

Occipital Lobe

A
  • contains the visual cortex

- involved in learning and motor control

65
Q

Temporal Lobe

A
  • Location of the auditory cortex and Wernicke’s area

- functions in memory processing, emotion and language

66
Q

Auditory Cortex

A

primary site of most sound processing

67
Q

Wernicke’s area

A

associated with language reception and comprehension

68
Q

contralaterally

A

opposite sides

69
Q

ipsilaterally

A

same sides

70
Q

Dominant Hemisphere

A
  • primarily analytical in function which makes it well-suited for managing details
  • Language, logic and math skills
71
Q

Non-dominant Hemisphere

A

-associated with intuition, creativity, music cognition, and spatial processing

72
Q

Acetylcholine

A
  • In PNS: used to transmit nerve impulses to the muscles

- In the CNS: linked to attention and arousal

73
Q

Epinephrine & Norepinephrine

A
  • in the control of alertness and wakefulness

- Primary transmitter of the sympathetic nervous system, it promotes the flight-or-fight response

74
Q

Dopamine

A
  • role in movement and posture

- high concentrations in the basal ganglia

75
Q

Dopamine hypothesis of schizophrenia

A

argues that delusion. Hallucinations and agitation associated with schizophrenia arise from either too much dopamine or from an oversensitivity to dopamine

76
Q

Serotonin

A
  • role in regulating mood, eating, sleeping, and dreaming

- oversupply produces mania; Undersupply produces depression

77
Q

y-aminobutyric acid (GABA)

A
  • produces inhibitory postsynaptic potentials

- role in stabilizing neural activity in the brain

78
Q

Glycine

A

Serves as an inhibitory neurotransmitter in the CNS

79
Q

Glutamate

A

Excitatory transmitter in the CNS

80
Q

Endorphins

A

body’s natural painkillers that are produced by the brain

81
Q

Endocrine System

A

uses chemical messengers called hormones

82
Q

Endocrine System: Pituitary Gland

A
  • located at the base of the brain and is divided into two parts
  • secretes many hormones into the bloodstream that are able to travel to other endocrine glands
83
Q

Endocrine System: Anterior Pituitary

A
  • master since it releases hormones that regulate activities of endocrine glands
  • controlled by the hypothalamus
84
Q

Endocrine System: Adrenal Glands

A

located at the top of the kidneys and divided into two parts: adrenal medulla and adrenal cortex

85
Q

Endocrine System: Adrenal Medulla

A

releases epinephrine and norepinephrine as part of the sympathetic nervous system

86
Q

Endocrine System: Adrenal Cortex

A

produces many corticosteroids: hormones like cortisol (stress hormone), Testosterone/Estrogen (sex hormones

87
Q

Innate Behavior

A

genetically programmed as a result of evolution and is seen in all individuals regardless of their environment or experience

88
Q

Learned Behaviors

A

not based on heredity but on experience and environment instead

89
Q

Adaptive Value

A

degree to which a trait or behavior positively benefits a species by influencing the evolutionary fitness of the species

90
Q

Family Studies

A

rely on assumption that genetically related individuals are similar genotypically than unrelated individuals

91
Q

Twin Studies

A

Compares the concordance rates for a trait between monozygotic and dizygotic twins

92
Q

Concordance Rate

A

the likelihood that twins exhibit the same trait

93
Q

Adoption Studies

A

Compare the similarity between biological relatives and the adopted child to similarities between adoptive relatives and the adopted child

94
Q

Neurulation

A

occurs when the ectoderm overlying the notochord begins to furrow

95
Q

Reflex

A

behavior that occurs in response to a given stimulus without higher cognitive input

96
Q

Rooting reflex

A

automatic turning of the head in the direction of a stimulus that touches the cheek

97
Q

primitive reflexes

A

disappear as infants age

98
Q

Moro Reflex

A

abrupt movement of infant’s head makes them fling up their arms

99
Q

Babinski Reflex

A

causes the toes to spread apart automatically when the sole of the foot is stimulated

100
Q

Grasping Reflex

A

infants close his or her fingers around an object placed in hand

101
Q

Gross Motor Skills

A

movement of large muscle groups and whole body motion

102
Q

Fine Motor Skills

A

smaller muscles of the fingers, toes and eyes

103
Q

Stranger Anxiety

A

fear of unfamiliar individuals begins at seven months

104
Q

Separation Anxiety

A

fear of being separated from parental figure begins at one year

105
Q

Parallel Play

A

children will play alongside one another but won’t influence the others behavior

P/S MCAT (12 decks)

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