Brain and Behaviour-Chapter 2

Question 1

Biological Perspective

Answer 1

concerned with the links between biology and behaviour. Includes psychologists working in neuroscience, behaviour genetics, and evolutionary psychology.

Question 2

Neuron

Answer 2

a nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system.

Question 3

Dendrites

Answer 3

a neuron’s bushy, branching extensions that recieve messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body.

Question 4

Axon

Answer 4

the neuron extension that passes messages through its branches to other neurons or to muscles or glands.

Question 5

Myelin Sheath

Answer 5

a fatty tissue layer segmentally encasing the axons of some neurons; enables vastly greater transmission speed as neural impulses hop from one node to the next.

Question 6

Glial cells (glia)

Answer 6

cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons; they may also play a role in learning, thinking and memory.

Question 7

Action potential

Answer 7

a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon.

Question 8

Refractory period

Answer 8

a period of inactivity after a neuron has fired.

Question 9

Threshold

Answer 9

the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse.

Question 10

All-or-none response

Answer 10

a neurones reaction of either firing (with a full-strength response) or not firing.

Question 11

Synapse

Answer 11

the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron. The tiny gap at this junction is called the synaptic gap or synaptic cleft.

Question 12

Neurotransmitters

Answer 12

chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between neurons. When released by the sending neurons, neurotransmitters travel across the synapses and bind to the receptor sites on the receiving neuron, thereby influencing whether that neuron will generate a neural impulse.

Question 13

Reuptake

Answer 13

a neurotransmitter’s reabsorption by the sending neuron

Question 14

Endorphins

Answer 14

“morphine within” - natural, opiate-like neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure.

Question 15

Agonist

Answer 15

a molecule that increases a neurotransmitters action.

Question 16

Antagonist

Answer 16

a molecule that inhibits or blocks a neurotransmitters action.

Question 17

Nervous system

Answer 17

the body’s speedy, electrochemical communication network, consisting if all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous systems.

Question 18

Central nervous system (CNS)

Answer 18

the brain and spinal cord.

Question 19

Peripheral nervous system (PNS)

Answer 19

the sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system (CNS) to the rest of the body.

Question 20

nerves

Answer 20

bundled axons that form neural cables connecting the central nervous system with muscles, glands, and sense organs.

Question 21

Sensory (afferent) neurons

Answer 21

neurons that carry incoming information from the sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord.

Question 22

Motor (efferent) neurons

Answer 22

neurons that carry outgoing information from the brain and spinal cords to the muscles and glands.

Question 23

Interneurons

Answer 23

neurons within the brain and spinal cord; communicate internally and processing information between the sensory inputs and motor outputs.

Question 24

Somatic nervous system

Answer 24

the division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body’s skeletal muscles. Also called the skeletal nervous system.

Question 25

Automatic nervous system (ANS)

Answer 25

the part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs (such as the heart). Its sympathetic division arouses; its parasympathetic division calms.

Question 26

Sympathetic Nervous System

Answer 26

the division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy.

Question 27

Parasympathetic Nervous System

Answer 27

the division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy.

Question 28

Reflex

Answer 28

a simple, automatic response to sensory stimulus, such as the knee-jerk response.

Question 29

Endocrine System

Answer 29

the body’s “slow” chemical communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream.

Question 30

Hormones

Answer 30

chemical messengers that are manufactured by the endocrine glands, travel through the bloodstream, and affect other tissues.

Question 31

Adrenal glands

Answer 31

a pair of endocrine glands that sit just above the kidneys and secrete hormones (epinephrine and norepinephrine) that helps arouse the body in time of stress.

Question 32

Pituitary glands

Answer 32

the endocrine systems most influential gland. Under the influence of the hypothalamus, the pituitary regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands.

Question 33

lesion

Answer 33

tissue destruction. A brain lesion is a naturally or experimentally caused destruction of brain tissue.

Question 34

electroencephalogram (EEG)

Answer 34

an amplified recording of the waves of the electrical activity sweeping across the brain’s surface. These waves are measured by electrodes placed on the scalp.

Question 35

MRI (magnetic resonance imagine)

Answer 35

a technique that uses magnetic fields and radio waves to produce computer-generated images of soft tissue. MRI scans show brain anatomy.

Question 36

fMRI

Answer 36

a technique for revealing bloodflow and, therefore, brain activity by comparing successive MRI scans. fMRI scans show brain function as well as structure.

Question 37

brainstem

Answer 37

the oldest part and central core of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord swells as it enters the skull; the brainstem is responsible for automatic survival functions.

Question 38

medulla

Answer 38

the base of the brainstem; controls heartbeat and breathing.

Question 39

thalamus

Answer 39

the brain’s sensory control centre, located on top if the brainstem; it directs messages to the sensory receiving area in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla.

Question 40

reticular formation

Answer 40

a nerve network that travels through the brainstem into the thalamus and plays an important role in controlling arousal.

Question 41

cerebellum

Answer 41

the “little brain” at the rear of the brainstem; functions include processing sensory input, coordinating movement output and balance, and enabling nonverbal learning and memory.

Question 42

limbic system

Answer 42

neural system (including the hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus) located below the cerebral hemispheres; associated with emotions and drives.

Question 43

hippocampus

Answer 43

a neural center located in the limbic system; helps process explicit memories for storage.

Question 44

amygdala

Answer 44

two lima-bean-sized neural clusters in the limbic system; linked to emotion.

Question 45

hypothalamus

Answer 45

a neural structure lying below (hypo) the thalamus; it directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature), helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland, and is linked to emotion and reward.

Question 46

cerebral cortex

Answer 46

the intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells cover the cerebral hemispheres; the body’s climate control and information-processing centre.

Question 47

frontal lobes (behind the forehead)

Answer 47

portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forehead; involved in speaking and muscle movements and in making plans and judgements.

Question 48

parietal lobes (at the top and to the rear)

Answer 48

portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head and toward the rear; receives sensory input for touch and body position.

Question 49

occipital lobes (at the back of the head)

Answer 49

portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the head; includes areas that receive information from the visual fields.

Question 50

temporal lobes (about your ears)

Answer 50

portion of cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears; includes the auditory areas, each receiving information primarily from the opposite ear.

Question 51

Motor cortex

Answer 51

an area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements.

Question 52

somatosensory cortex

Answer 52

area at the front of the parietal lobes that registers and processes body touch and movement sensations.

Question 53

association areas

Answer 53

area of the cerebral cortex that are not involved in primary motor or sensory functions; rather, they are involved in higher mental functions such as learning, remembering, thinking and speaking.

Question 54

plasticity

Answer 54

the brain’s ability to change especially during childhood, by reorganizing after damage or by building new pathways based on experience.

Question 55

neurogenesis

Answer 55

the formation of new neurons.

Question 56

corpus callosum

Answer 56

the large band of neural fibres connecting the two brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them.

Question 57

split brain

Answer 57

a condition resulting from surgery that isolates the brain’s two hemispheres by cutting the fibres (mainly those of the corpus callosum) connecting them.