Biopsychology Key Words Flashcards
Infradian rhythm
A type of biological rhythm with a frequency of less than one cycle in 24 hours, such as the menstrual cycle or SAD
Ultradian rhythm
A biological rhythm with a frequency of more than one cycle in 24 hours, such as the stages of sleep
Circadian rhythm
A type of biological rhythm, subject to a 24 hour cycle, which regulates a number of body processes such as the sleep/wake cycle and changes in core body temperature
Biological rhythms
Distinct patterns of changes in body activity that conform to cyclical time periods. Biological rhythms are influenced by internal body clocks (endogenous pacemakers) as well as external changes to the environment (exogenous zeitgebers)
Shift work
A pattern of working through the whole 24 hours where people change the time which they work
Generalisation
The extent to which findings and conclusions from a particular investigation can be broadly applied to the population. This is made possible if the sample of participants is representative of the population. It also depends on good internal and external valudity
Pheromones
Chemical substances produced by the body and secreted into the air, whence they are transmitted to other animals of the same species and absorbed into their bloodstream. The pheromones then work like hormones and influence the behaviour of the receiver.
Melatonin
A hormone produced by the pineal gland which increases sleepiness. in humans it is produced at night and is regulated by the suprachiasmatic nucleus
Serotonin
A neurotransmitter with widespread inhibitory affects throughout the brain. It has a key role in aggressive behaviour.
Slow wave sleep
Also called deep sleep, a sleep stage during which growth hormone is secreted as well as other restorative activities. It is very difficult to wake someone up during this stage which occurs more at the start of the night than towards morning
Endogenous pacemakers
Internal body clocks that regulate many of our biological rhythms, such as the influence of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) on the sleep/wake cycle
Exogenous zeitgebers
External cues that may affect or entrain our biological rhythms, such as the influence of light on the sleep/wake cycle
Sleep/wake cycle
A daily cycle of biological activity based on a 24 hour period (circadian rhythm) that is influenced by regular variations in the environment, such as the alternation of night and day
Cerebral cortex
The surface layer of the forebrain (the two hemispheres of the brain), It is grey in colour and it is highly folded to make it possible to fit the massive amount of material inside the skull
Visual area/cortex
A part of the occipital lobe that receives and processes visual information
Hypothalamus
A small subcortical brain structure made up of 2 centres; the lateral hypothalamus (LH) and the ventro-medial hypothalamus
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
A method used to measure brain activity while a person is performing a task that uses MRI technology (detecting radio waves from changing magnetic fields). This enables researchers to detect which regions of the brain are rich in oxygen and thus are active
Electroencephalogram (EEG)
A record of the tiny electrical impulses produced by the brain’s activity. By measuring characteristic wave patterns, the EEG can help diagnose certain conditions of the brain
Event-related professionals (ERPs)
The brain’s electrophysiological response to a specific sensory, cognitive, or motor event can isolated through statistical analysis of EEG data
Post-mortem examinations
The brain is analysed after death to determine whether certain observed behaviours during the patient’s lifetime can be linked to abnormalities in the brain
PET scan
Position emission tomography. A brain scanning method used to study activity in the brain. Radioactive glucose is ingested and can be detected in the active areas of brain
Hemispheric lateralisation
The idea that the 2 halves (hemispheres) of the brain are functionally different and that certain mental processes and behaviours are mainly controlled by one hemisphere rather than the other, as in the example of language (which is localised as well as lateralised)
Split-brain research
A series of studies which began in the 1960s (and are still on-going) involving epileptic patients who had experienced a surgical separation of the hemispheres of the brain. This allowed researchers to investigate the extent to which brain function is lateralised
Plasticity
This describes the brain’s tendency to change and adapt (functionally and physically) as a result of experience and new learning
Functional recovery
A form of plasticity. Following damage through trauma, the brain’s ability to redistribute to transfer functions usually performed by a damaged area(s) to other undamaged area(s)
Hippocampus
A structure in the subcortical area of each hemisphere of the forebrain, associated with memory. It is part of the limbic system and is therefore also involved in motivation, emotion and learning
Localisation of function
The theory that different areas of the brain are responsible for different behaviours, processes or activities
Motor Area
A region of the frontal lobe involved in regulating movement
Somatosensory area
An area of the parietal lobe that processes sensory information such as touch
Visua area
A part of the occipital lobe that receives and processes visual information
Auditory area
Located in the temporal lobe and concerned with the analysis of speech-based information
Broca’s area
An area of the frontal lobe in the left hemispehre responsible for speech production
Wernicke’s area
An area of the temporal lobe in the left hemisphere responsible for language comprehension
Lobotomy
A form of psychosurgery in which fibres running from the frontal lobes to other parts of the brain are cut
