Biopsychology Flashcards
What is the CNS responsible for?
controlling important physiological processes as well as information received about the environment
Frontal lobe
- voluntary movement
- Decision Making
- Problem solving
- Planning
Parietal lobe
- Reception and processing of sensory information
Temporal lobe
- Language and speech production
- Memory association and formation
Occipital lobe
Visual processing
Somatic nervous system
- Controls voluntary movement of muscles
- Takes in information from sensory organs
- Transmits sensory information to the CNS and motor information to the CNS
Autonomic Nervous system
- Acts involuntarily/ automatically
- Controls important bodily functions
- Involved in stress response
Sensory neuron
carry information from sensory receptors to CNS
long dendrites, short axons
Relay neuron
Communicate between motor and sensory neurons
short dendrites, short axons
motor neuron
Connect CNS to muscles and glands
short dendrites, long axons
Synaptic transmission
Electrical impulse moves along the axon
Inside the neuron becomes positively charged relative to the outside
Vesicles release neurotransmitter
Neurotransmitter crosses synapse
Neurotransmitter binds to receptors
An electrical impulse is either triggered or prevened from being triggered in the post synaptic neuron
Excitation
- depolarisation - post synaptic neuron is more likely to trigger an electrical impulse
- act as an on switch
Inhibition
hyperpolarisation - post synaptic neuron is less likely to trigger an electrical impulse
- acts as an off switch
Summation
Receptors are stimulated by excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmitters at the same time
The effects are summed
Pituitary gland
- produces ACTH in response to stress
- ACTH travels to adrenal glands where cortisol is released
Localisation of function
the idea that different parts of the brain are responsible for particular skills and abilities
motor cortex
voluntary movements
e.g. walking, writing
somatosensory
detecting and processing inputs from parts of the body
visual centre
receives and processes inputs from the eyes
auditory cortex
deals with detection and processing of sounds
Broca’s area
responsible for production of speech
Wernicke’s area
involved in understanding language
+/- localisation of function
+ supporting evidence
