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Biopsychology Flashcards

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1
Q

What is the Central Nervous System?

A

Compromises of the brain and spinal cord and controls the bodies responses to external stimuli.

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2
Q

What is the Peripheral Nervous System?

A

Part of the nervous system outside of the brain and the spinal cord.

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3
Q

What is the Somatic Nervous System?

A

Part of the PNS responsible for carrying sensory and motor information to and from the CNS.

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4
Q

What is the Autonomic Nervous System?

A

Governs the brains involuntary activities and is self-regulating.

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5
Q

What is the Sympathetic Nervous System?

A

Division of the Autonomic Nervous System that deals with the fight or flight response; prepares the body for rapid action when under threat (increasing heartbeat).

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6
Q

What is the Parasympathetic Nervous System?

A

Division of the Autonomic Nervous System that relaxes the body after the fight or flight response by reducing heart beat and turning back on systems such as digestion.

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7
Q

What is a Sensory Neuron?

A

Carry nerve impulses from sensory receptors to the spinal cord and the brain.

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8
Q

What is a Relay Neuron?

A

Allow sensory and motor neurons to communicate with each other.

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9
Q

What are Motor Neurons?

A

Form synapses with muscles and control their contractions.

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10
Q

What is a Synapse?

A

Conjunction at the arson of one neuron and the dendrite of another neuron.

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11
Q

Explain Synaptic Transmission.

A

Once action potential is at the terminal button on the end of the axon, it must cross gap between presynaptic neuron and postsynaptic neuron. At the end of the axon there are synaptic vesicles which contain neurotransmitters. When action potential reaches the vesicles, they release there contents (exocytosis). The neurotransmitter diffuses across the gap where it binds to specialised receptors on the cell, which are activated and produce either an excitatory or inhibitory response.

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12
Q

Difference between Excitatory and Inhibitory Neurotransmitters?

A
  • excitatory = nervous system’s ‘on switches’ and increase the likelihood of an excitatory signal being released to postsynaptic cell, which is then more likely to fire.
  • inhibitory = nervous system’s ‘off switch’ and decrease the likelihood of a neuron firing: usually used in calming mind.
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13
Q

What is the Endocrine System?

A

A network of glands throughout the body that manufacture and secrete chemical messengers known as hormones.

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14
Q

What are Hormones?

A

The body’s chemical messengers.

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15
Q

What are the Major Glands of the Endocrine System?

A
  • pituitary gland, adrenal glands and reproductive organs.
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16
Q

How does the Endocrine System Regulate Hormone Levels?

A

Signal is sent from hypothalamus to pituitary gland in form of ‘releasing hormone.’
Causes pituitary to secrete ‘stimulating hormone’ into bloodstream.
This hormone then signals the target gland to secrete its hormone.
As levels of this hormone increases, hypothalamus shuts down secretion of the releasing hormone, pituitary gland then shuts down secretion of stimulating hormone, slowing down the target glands secretion.

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17
Q

What does the Pituitary Gland do?

A

It’s primary function is to influence the release of hormones from other glands, regulating many of the body’s functions.
It’s controlled by the Hypothalamus.

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18
Q

Where are the Adrenal Glands located?

A

Sit on top of the kidneys.

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19
Q

What are the parts of the Adrenal Glands?

A

Outer part is called Adrenal Cortex.

Inner part is called Adrenal Medulla.

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20
Q

What does the Adrenal Cortex do?

A

Produces cortisol.
It’s production is increased in response to stress.
Low cortisol levels cause low blood pressure, poor immune function and inability to deal with stress.
Also produces aldosterone which maintains blood volume and pressure.

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21
Q

What does the Adrenal Medulla do?

A

Releases adrenaline and noradrenaline.

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22
Q

What does Adrenaline do?

A

Helps the body respond to stressful situations by increasing heart rate and blood flow to muscles and brain and helping with the conversion between glycogen to glucose to provide energy.

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23
Q

What does Noradrenaline do?

A

Constricts the blood vessels, causing blood pressure to increase.

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24
Q

What is the Function of the Endocrine System?

A

To regulate activity of cells or organs within the body.

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25
Q

What is the Fight or Flight Response?

A

A sequence of activity within the body that is triggered when the body prepares itself for defending or attacking (fight) or running away to safety (flight).

26
Q

What is the Amygdala’s involvement in the Fight or Flight Response?

A

When faced with a threat, the amygdala is mobilised.
It associates sensory signals with emotions associated with Fight or Flight.
It then sends a distress signal to the Hypothalamus.

27
Q

What is the Hypothalamus’ Involvement in the Fight or Flight Response?

A

Received distress signal from Amygdala.

Then communicates with rest of body about the stressor.

28
Q

What is Acute Stress?

A

Short-term stressors such as personal attack.

29
Q

What is Chronic Stress?

A

An ongoing stressor like a stressful job.

30
Q

How does the Sympathetic Nervous System React to Acute Stressors?

A

When the Sympathetic Nervous System is triggered it begins the process of preparing the body for the rapid action necessary for fight or flight.
The SNS sends signals to Adrenal Medulla, which responds by releasing adrenaline.

31
Q

What is Adrenaline’s Role in the Fight or Flight Response?

A

It causes numerous physiological changes.
Heart beats faster, blood pressure increases, breathing becomes rapid to intake more oxygen and glucose is released to provide energy to the areas of the body associated with the response.

32
Q

What is the Parasympathetic Nervous System’s Role in the Foght or Flight Response?

A

When the threat has passed, it turns of the stress response.
It slows down the heart beat, , reduces blood pressure.
Digestion begins again.

33
Q

Why does the HPA Axis start?

A

If the brain continues to perceive something as threatening, the HPA axis is started.

34
Q

What does HPA Axis mean?

A

Hypothalamus, Pituitary and Adrenal Glands.

Response to continuous stressors.

35
Q

What’s the Hypothalamus’ Role in HPA Axis?

A

Releases a hormone called Corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH).

36
Q

What is the Pituitary Glands’ Role in HPA Axis?

A

CRH causes the pituitary to produce and release adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH), which is then transported to the Adrenal Glands.

37
Q

What is the Adrenal Glands’ Role in HPA Axis?

A

ACTH stimulates the Adrenal cortex to release Corsitol ( responsible for several effects during fight or flight response) some are positive (quick burst of energy/lower sensitivity to pain) and some are negative (impaired cognitive performance/lowered immune response).

38
Q

How do the Hypothalamus and Pituitary Gland regulate Cortisol Levels?

A

High have special receptors that monitor cortisol levels.
If they rise above normal, they both initiate a reduction in CRH and ACTH levels, thus bringing cortisol levels back to normal.

39
Q

Negative Consequences Of Fight or Flight Response?

A
  • stressors of modern day humans rarely need such high levels of physical activity.
  • when the stress response is repeatedly activated, it can lead to physical damage in blood vessels and eventually heart disease.
40
Q

What’s Gray’s (1988) Opinion on Fight or Flight Response?

A

He argues that the first phase of action in the response is not to fight or flee but to avoid confrontations: people freeze before fighting or fleeing to assess the situation to respond correctly.

41
Q

Define Localisation of Function.

A

Belief that specific areas of the brain are associated with specific cognitive processes.

42
Q

What does the Occipital Lobe do?

A

Processes visual information.

43
Q

What does the Temporal Lobe do?

A

Processes auditory information.

44
Q

What does the Parietal Lobe do?

A

Integrates information from the different senses and therefore plays a role in spatial navigation.

45
Q

What does the Frontal Lobe do?

A

Associated with higher-order functions such as decision-making.

46
Q

Where is the Primary Visual Centre located?

A

In the Visual Cortex, in the Occipital Lobe.

47
Q

Explain Visual Processing.

A

Light enters the retina and strikes the photoreceptors.
Nerve impulses from the retina are then transmitted to the brain via the optic nerve.
Majority then terminate in the thalamus, which acts as a Relay station, passing the information to the Visual Cortex.

48
Q

Outline the Visual Cortex.

A

Spans both hemispheres: right hemisphere receiving input from left-hand side of visual field and vice versa.
Contains several areas, each of these processing different types of visual information.

49
Q

Where is the Auditory Centre located?

A

Lie within the temporal lobes on both sides of the brain; auditory cortex is also located here.

50
Q

Explain how a Sound is Heard.

A

Sounds are converted into nerve impulses in the cochlea in the inner ear.
These travel to the auditory cortex via the auditory nerve.
First stop on the journey is in brain stem to decode the duration and intensity of the sound.
Next it stops in the thalamus which acts a Relay station between the brain but also completes further processing on the sound.
Sound reaches auditory cortex and then assigns an appropriate response.

51
Q

Define a Motor Cortex.

A

A region of the brain responsible for the generation of voluntary motor movements.

52
Q

Where is the Motor Cortex Located?

A

In the frontal lobe, along the precentral gyrus.

53
Q

Explain the Motor Cortex.

A

Both hemispheres have a Motor Cortex, one side controlling the muscles on the opposite side of the body and vice versa.
Different parts control different parts of the area and these areas are arranged logically next to one another.

54
Q

Define the Somatosensory Cortex.

A

Detects Sensory events arising from different regions of the body.

55
Q

Where is the Somatosensory Cortex located?

A

In the parietal Lobe along the postcentral gyrus.

56
Q

What is the Postcentral Gyrus?

A

Area of the somatosensory cortex dedicated to processing information related to touch.

57
Q

How does Touch work?

A

Somatosensory cortex uses sensory information to produce sensations of touch, pressure, pain and temperature, which are then localised to specific body regions.

58
Q

Outline the Somatosensory Cortex.

A

Both hemispheres have one, with one Cortex receiving sensory information from the opposite side of the body and vice versa.

59
Q

Define Broca’s Area.

A

Area in frontal lobe, usually the left hemisphere, related to speech production.

60
Q

Research support for Broca’s Area?

A

Paul Broca treated a patient called “Tan,” this was the only syllable he could produce but could perfectly understand spoken language.
He investigated 8 other patients with similar defects and those who had damage to the right hemisphere didn’t have the same language problems.

61
Q

Define Wernicke’s Area.

A

An area in the temporal lobe of the brain important in the comprehension of language.

62
Q

What did Wernicke propose about the Wernicke’s Area?

A

Language involves separate motor and sensory regions located cortical regions.

Psychology (21 decks)

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