BIOPSYCHOLOGY Flashcards
1
Q
what is the nervous system
A
a specialised network of cells in the human body
2
Q
what is the nervous system (2)
A
the nervous system is a network a specialised cells in the body that acts as our internal communication system. it consists of the cns and the pns.
3
Q
what is the cns (2)
A
the cns consists of the brain and the spinal cord. its role is to process information and coordinate a response from the body
4
Q
name three functions of the brain (3)
A
coordinating movement, regulating body temperature and language production
5
Q
what is the role of the nervous system generally
A
internal communication system
6
Q
what are the two main functions of the nervous system
A
- to collect, respond and process info in the environment
- to co-oridnate working of dif. cells and organs in the body
7
Q
what are the two divisions of the nervous system
A
cns and pns
8
Q
what are the two elements of the cns
A
brain and spinal cord
9
Q
what is the brain the centre of
A
all conscious awareness
10
Q
what part of the brain is highly developed, setting us apart from animals
A
cerebral cortex
11
Q
how many hemispheres in brain
A
two
12
Q
what is the spinal cord responsible for
A
reflex actions
13
Q
role of the pns
A
connects the cns to the rest of the body including limbs and organs AND it transmits sensory and motor information
14
Q
what are the divisions of the pns
A
autonomic nervous system and somatic nervous system
15
Q
role of autonomic nervous system
A
governs vital functions in body such as breathing, heart rate
16
Q
what essential functions does the brain carry out
A
memory, thinking, learning, problem-solving, consciousness
17
Q
what is the role of the spinal cord
A
ensures that signals from the brain are transmitted to the rest of the body via the pns
18
Q
what are the brain and spinal cord connected through
A
the brainstem
19
Q
role of the sns
A
transmits and receives messages from the senses apart from sight
20
Q
A
21
Q
sns and muscles
A
sns directs muscles to move appropriately
22
Q
sns/ans voluntary/involuntary
A
sns - voluntary
ans - involuntary
23
Q
ex of action sns controls
A
throwing a ball, running across the road
24
Q
what unconscious action does the sns control
A
reflex arc
25
what is the ans further subdivided into
sympathetic, parasympathetic
26
what is the spns associated with
fight-or-flight
27
what is the psns known as
rest-and-digest
28
what is a hormone
a chemical that is secreted by he endocrine glands into the bloodstream which then distributes it around the body
29
what is the master gland
pituitary
30
where is the pituitary gland located
base of hypothalamus in brain
31
what division of nervous system does endocrine work with
autonomic - para/sympathetic
32
what happens when a stressor is percieved
the hypothalamus triggers activity in spns, stimulate the adrenal glands (adrenal medulla) to secrete adrenaline
33
what does adrenaline trigger
physiological changes in the body eg increased heart rate
34
what do the adrenal glands also release when danger is detected
atp, an energy-storing molecule that provides a short-lived, intense surge of power
35
how is adrenaline transported around the body
bloodstream
36
what does adrenaline do to target organs
binds to receptors
37
name some physiological changes brought about by the f/or/f system
increased heart rate, dry mouth, increased sweating, dilated pupils, increased breathing rate
38
how many neurons in human nervous system
100 billion
39
what percent of neurons located in brain
80%
40
what are the three types of neuron
motor, sensory, relay
41
key terms to use when describing structure of neuron
cell body (soma), nucleus, dendrites, axon, myelin sheath, nodes of ranvier, terminal buttons
42
what does the nucleus contain
genetic material of the cell
43
what do dendrites do
carry nerve impulses from neighbouring neurons toward cell body
44
what do neurons do
send electrical and chemical messages around the body to sense organs, glands and other organs
45
what does the axon do
carries the impulses away from the cell body down the length of the neuron
46
what is the axon covered in
fatty myelin sheath
47
what does the myelin sheath do
protects the axon and speeds up electrical transmission of the impulse
48
what ensures that the myelin sheath is effective
nodes of ranvier
49
what are the nodes of ranvier
segmented gaps in myelin sheath
50
how do nodes of ranvier speed up transmission
forcing impulse to 'jump' along gaps of axon
51
where are terminal buttons
end of axon
52
role of terminal buttons
communicate with next neuron in the chain across the synapse
53
what is the role of sensory neurons
to send info from pns to cns
- keep brain informed about external and internal environment info coming from sense organs
54
direction of sensory neuron
one way- can only transmit messages cannot receive
55
structure of sensory neuron dendrite and axon
dendrite - long
axon - short
56
where is cell body sensory neuron
usually side of cell
57
role of motor neurons
carry signals from cns towards organs, muscles and glands
58
direction of motor neurons
both - can both transmit and receive messages
59
structure dendrites and axons motor neuron
dendrites - short
axon - long
60
role of relay neuron
connect sensory neurons to motor neurons
61
direction of relay neurons
both - messages transmitted and received
62
structure of relay neurons - axons and dendrites
axons - short
dendrites - short
63
what is the junction where two neurons meet known as
synapse
64
what is the space between the axon of one neuron and dendrites of another called
synaptic cleft
65
what is the presynaptic terminal
a swelling at the end of the presynaptic neuron
66
what is the postsynaptic receptor site
membrane that receives a signal from presynaptic neuron
67
what is the process of chemical transmission called
synaptic transmission
68
how does synaptic transmission begin
a signal begins as an electrical impulse within the presynaptic neuron
69
what happens when the electrical impulse arrives at the end of the axon on the pre-synaptic terminal
chemical messengers (neurotransmitters) are released from structures called vesicles at presynaptic membrane
70
what do the neurotransmitters do once released
released into synaptic cleft as a chemical substance from pre-synaptic neuron after action potential has occured, AND diffuse across synaptic cleft and temporarily bind with receptor sites on postsynaptic membrane
71
what is done to prevent repeated impulses to be sent
neurotransmitter molecules are destroyed by enzymes or recycled to prevent continued stimulation of the second neuron
72
explain the full process of synaptic transmission very simply
1 an impulse arrives at the end of the presynaptic neuron
2 vesicles move towards and fuse with the presynaptic membrane. this releases neurotransmitters into the synaptic cleft
3 the neurotransmitters diffuse across the synaptic cleft down a concentration gradient
4 neurotransmitters attach to receptors on the postsynaptic membrane
5 this triggers an impulse which travels along the postsynaptic neuron
6 the neurotransmitters are recycled or destroyed once an impulse is sent
73
what analogy is used for neurotransmitters and post synaptic receptor sites
lock and key
74
ex of neurotransmitters and their functions
serotonin - important role in regulating mood, particularly depression and anxiety
dopamine - role in movement and the experience and anticipation of reward
75
neurotransmitters are either...
excitatory or inhibitory
76
ex of neurotransmitter which causes inhibition
serotonin
77
ex of neurotransmitter which causes excitation
adrenaline
78
what do excitatory neurotransmitters do
stimulate action potential in postsynaptic neuron, increase neurons positive charge WHICH makes it more likely to fire
79
what do inhibitory neurotransmitters do
inhibit an action potential in post-synaptic neuron, increase neurons negative charge, increase neurons negative charge making it less likely to fire
80
what is an example of a reflex arc
knee-jerk reflex
81
what is lof theory
specific functions/processes are localised to or can be found in specific locations in the brain
82
ex of localisation of function (two)
hippocampus - processing of memory
pre-frontal cortex - impulse control and executive functioning
83
opposite to lof
unimodal
84
what type of view is the unimodal view of the brain
holistic
85
what are the brain imaging techniques
mri, fmri, pet
86
what are the two brain hemispheres
left and right
87
what is the brain covered by
cerebral cortex
88
what psychologists began to move away from holistic view of brain and what case study helped this
broca and wernicke and phineas gage
89
what are the 4 lobes
frontal, temporal, parietal, occipital
90
what lobe is broca's area in
frontal
91
what lobe is motor cortex in
frontal
92
what lobe is wernicke's area in
temporal
93
what lobe is auditory area in
temporal
94
what lobe is somatosensory cortex in
parietal
95
what lobe is visual cortex in
occipital lobe
96
what does the motor area control
voluntary movement in the opposite side of the body
97
what could damage to motor cortex result in
loss of control over fine movements
98
how is the somatosensory cortex separated from motor cortex
valley called central sulcus
99
role of somatosensory cortex
where sensory info from skin is represented
100
what would damage to the left hemisphere mean for visual cortex
could produce blindness in part of right visual field for both eyes
101
role of auditory area
analyses speech-based info
102
what may damage to auditory area cause
partial hearing loss
103
what may damage to wernickes area cause
effect ability to comprehend language
104
what side of the brain is language mostly constricted to
left
105
what does damage to broca's area cause
broca's asphasia
106
what is broca's aphasia characterised by
speech that is slow, laborious and lacking in fluency
107
ex. of brocas patient
tan - named so as this was the only word he was able to say
108
what is wernickes aphasia characterised by
severe difficulty in understanding language so speech they produced was fluent but meaningless
109
key term for nonsense words
neologisms
110
POS AO3 case study support for localisation of function
phineas gage and tan
111
POS AO3 localisation of function - brain scan evidence - two researchers
petersen - brain scans, wernickes area active during listening task and brocas during reading
TULVING - back to memory topic, how dif. parts of the brain are active in relation to types of ltm (episodic and semantic)
can also add onto this point the credibility of brain scans! have it is a scientific, objective method. so replicable and reliable.
112
NEG AO3 - localisation of function animals
lashley - researched rats who had parts of their cortex removed. the rats ability to navigate and memorise routes through a maze did not appear to correspond with any specific brain region AND SO cognitive functions are shared across cortex holistically rather than being localised to one structure/region
113
NEG AO3 - localisation of function - plasticity
when the brain has become damaged, and a particular function has been compromised or lost, the rest of the brain reorganises to account for/resume control of this lost function
lashley described as 'law of equippotentiality' where surviving brain circuits chip in so same neurological action can be achieved
114
what portion of phineas gages brain was destroyed
most of left frontal lobe
115
how did phineas gage change
his personality changed! from calm and reserved to quick-tempered and rude
116
what is neuroplasticity
the brains ability to adapt to change (from illness/injury/changes from learning and experience)
117
what is structural plastcity
changes within brain structures
118
examples of structural plasticity
- increased grey matter build-up in the posterior hippocampus due to learning experience over time
119
what does plasticity mean for nature of brain
it is not a static, concrete mass; it is a flexible organ that responds and adapts to environmental stressors/stimuli
120
when does the brain experience a rapid growth in number of synaptic connections
during infancy
121
at what age do synaptic connections peak and how many
2-3 years and 15,000
122
what happens to synaptic connections as we age
synaptic pruning - rarely used connections are deleted and frequently used ones are strengthened
123
original belief on plasticity vs modern belief
original - plasticity restricted to developing brain and the adult brain moved beyond a critical period and so would remain fixed and static
modern - any time in life, existing neural connections can change or new neural connections can be formed
124
who conducted research into plasticity
maguire
125
ex of plasticity in childhood
a child who had half her brain removed to control her epilepsy - she could function almost completely normally
126
POS AO3 - plasticity and functional recovery - practical application (an element of this can also be considered a limitation)
understanding brains capacity to compensate for loss and being aware of the slowing down phase of functional recovery are key to informing therapy !!!!
field of neurorehabilitation.
techniques may include movement therapy and electrical stimulation of brain to counter deficits in motor and/or cognitive function
ALSO, can add slight limitation in that adult brain, the brain can only fix itself to a point and so the process requires further intervention to be successful
127
NEG AO3 - functional recovery, case study evidence which suggests that this does not always occur
HM, had his hippocampus removed
- he suffered from anterograde amnesia and never recovered any functionality
- and so this casts doubt as to the universality of plasticity as it does not apply in every case
ALSO, add on success and limitations of case studies generally.
128
who did maguire study
london taxi drivers
129
what did london taxi drivers have more of
volume of grey matter in posterior hippocampus
130
what is the posterior hippocampus associated with
spatial and navigational skills
131
london taxi drivers positive correlation
the longer in profession, more pronounced structural difference
132
what are the two brain hemispheres connected by
corpus callosum
133
what does the corpus callosum allow for the brain to do
send messages and work together
134
who conducted split brain experiments
sperry
135
what does contralateral mean
the right hemisphere controls the left side of the body and the left hemisphere controls the rights side of the body
136
if a stroke occurs in the left hemisphere, what will happen
physically evident in right side of body! likely to result in impaired speech as this is where the language centre is
137
what two areas are found in the left hemisphere
brocas and wernickes area
138
what is the right hemisphere generally lateralised to
the processing of visual information, imagination and creativity
139
what procedure had sperry's patients undergone
corpus callosum and other tissues that connect the two brain hemispheres were cut down the middle to control frequent and severe epileptic seizures
140
what was sperry's procedure
image or word projected to a patients right visual field (processed by left hemisphere) and same or dif. image projected to left visual field (processed by right hemisphere)
- in normal brain corpus callosum would immediately share information between both hemispheres giving a complete picture of the visual world
- to a split brain patient, info not conveyed from one hemisphere to other
141
4 key findings of sperry research
- describing what you see
- recognition by touch
- composite words
- matching faces
142
how many patients did sperry study
11
143
describe sperry - describe what you see
when an image was shown to the ppts right visual field they could easily describe what was seen (info had gone to left hemisphere), when an image shown to left visual field they could not describe it in words often reporting that there was nothing there (info had gone to right hemisphere)
144
describe sperry - recognise by touch
ppts hands covered and they could not see the objects that were then presented to them, sperry placed series of objects in ppts hands, when object placed in right hand ppts could describe it using speech or writing, when object placed in left hand ppts wild guesses to what it was an often seemed unaware they were holding anything but they could select a matching object from grab bag using left hand
145
describe sperry - composite words
when two words presented simultaneously (eg key and ring, one word to each visual field), ppts would write word 'key' with left hand and say word 'ring'
146
describe perry - matching faces
right hemisphere dominant in terms of recognising faces, when asked to match face from series of other faces, picture processed by right hemisphere/left visual field consistently selected whilst picture presented to left hemisphere consistently ignored
147
what are the 4 ways of studying the bran
fmri, eegs, ergs, post-mortem examinations
148
what does fmri stand for
functional magnetic resonance imaging
149
what does eeg stand for
electroencephalogram
150
what does erp stand for
event related potentials
151
what does fmri measure
oxygenated blood flow in the brain ie brain activity
152
how does measuring oxygenated blood work
oxygenated blood has a different resonance than deoxygenated blood and so more active areas of the brain that receive more oxygenated blood are seen in the scan
153
what thing does fmri use to detect oxygenated haemoglobin blood flow
large magnets
154
how is an fmri viewed/scanned/seen
computer transforms info into brightly coloured 3d image which is mapped using voxels
155
how is an eeg performed
placing electrodes on scalp which record brain activity
156
how many electrodes eeg
22-34 usually but can be 2-100 depending on age and size of ppts and aim of research
157
more electrodes, more...
detailed information and a comprehensive picture of the brain can be derived
158
how is brain activity seen/viewed/presented
brain waves - series of line with distinct patterns
159
what are eegs used to investigate
sleep disorders, seizures, memory problems
160
what apparatus and technique do ergs use
same as eegs
161
what do erps do
record when there is activity in response to a stimulus
162
what are erps
tiny voltages generated in brain structures in response to specific events or stimuli
163
aim of eegs
to teasing out and isolating responses
164
what is the role of pme and what can't it do
goal is to investigate structure of brain, i cannot detect brain activity
165
ex of something that can only be determined by pme
alzheimers
166
ex of famous case study who underwent pme
HM
167
what did pme of hm brain allow to determine
link between hippocampus and formation of new memories
168
how many slices of hm brain
2401
169
what cycle do circadian rhythms operate on
24 hour
170
what detects level of light present
suprachiasmatic nuclei
171
who investigated sleep/wake cycle
siffre
172
what has siffre done to investigate sleep/wake cycle
spent several extended periods underground to study the effects of his own biological rhythms
173
what can the desynchronisation of circadian rhythms lead to
memory lapse, poor concentration, issues with fertility, increased risk of cancer/heart disease/diabetes
174
how long did siffre spend in a cave
2 months
175
what was siffres circadian rhythm when he emerged from the cave
24-25 hours
176
how long do infradian rhythms last
MORE than 24 hours
177
example of infradian rhythms in women
menstrual cycle
178
how often does the menstrual cycle occur
every 28 days
179
what causes an egg to be released from an ovary
rising oestrogen levels
180
why does menstruation occur
if the egg is not fertilised
181
ex of another infradian rhythm
seasonal affective disorder
182
when does SAD occur
during winter months when days are darker and longer
183
why does SAD occur at this time
during winter months more melatonin is secreted which may result in higher levels of depression or a generalised low mood
184
who conducted research into infradian rhythms
mcclintock and stern
185
how many women in mcclintock and stern study
29
186
procedure of mcclintock and stern study
each of 29 women in the study was given samples of phermones from the armpits of women in the study to inhale, samples taken throughout usual menstrual cycle
187
mcclintock and stern findings
68% ppts found menstrual cycle had aligned with their pad donor
188
why do periods synch
evolutionary advantages - if all women in one tribe/clan fell preg at same time, lots of hands on deck to help with childcare
189
how long do ultraradian rhythms last
under 24 hours
190
ex of ultradian rhythms
stages of sleep
191
how long do the stages of sleep last all together
90 minutes
192
what are stage 1 and 2 called
sleep escalator, light sleep
193
describe brain waves in stage 1 and 2
start to become slower and more rhythmic (alpha waves), that become ever slower and deeper (theta waves)
194
what waves do stage 3 and 4 involve
delta waves
195
describe delta waves
slower and have a greater amplitude than earlier wave patterns
196
what kind of sleep is stage 3 and 4
deep sleep
197
when is it easiest and hardest to wake someone
easiest - stage 1 and 2
hardest - stage 3 and 4
198
what is stage 5 aka
REM
199
what stage of sleep do dreams occur in
stage 5, REM
200
what is 'cut off' in rem
the cns
201
what indicates that dreaming occurs during REM
rapid eye movement! the eyeballs are active and brain activity speeds up showing similar energy levels to awake brain
202
what is nrem
non-rem
203
what % of time sleeping is spent in nrem
75-80%
204
who studied stages of sleep
dement and kleitman
205
what did dement and kleitman make a link between
rem sleep and dreams
206
sample size of dement and kleitman study
9 ppts
207
what was monitored in dement and kelitman study
sleep patterns
208
how were ppts brainwaves tracked during dement and kleitman exp.
eeg
209
what did researchers control - dement and kleitman
alcohol and caffeine - none!!!!
210
dement and kleitman procedure
ppts woken at specific intervals during their sleep and asked if they were dreaming and if so, what was the dream about
211
findings of dement and kleitman
positive correlation between rem sleep and dreaming
212
describe this: nature of dreams matched by their eye movements - dement and kleitman exp.
vertical eye movement - occured with dreams of climbing ladders, watching climbers and throwing basketballs in air
- horizontal eye movements - occured with dreams of watching people throw tomatoes at each other
213
what factors are biorhythms regulated by
endogenous pacemakers and exogenous zeitgebers
214
what are endogenous pacemakers
the internal mechanisms which determine the biological rhythms of the body
215
where is the scn
anterior hypothalamus
216
who conducted research into endogenous pacemakers
morgan - hamster study
217
what did morgan breed hamsters circadian rhythm to be
20 hours rather than 24 hours
218
what is an exogenous zeitgeber
any factors in the sleep-wake cycle which act as external cue to either wakefulness or sleepiness
219
ex of exogenous zeitgebers
light, device, alarm clock, social cues (timing of meals, work schedules, exercise sessions)
220
what is the most important exogenous zeitgeber
light
221
dual role of exogenous zeitgebers and endogenous pacemakers
interact and work alongside each other to set circadian rhythms
222
