brain and nervous system Flashcards
nervous system consists:
CNS and PNS
CNS consists of:
brain and spinal cord
PNS consists of:
Somatic and Autonomic
Autonomic consists of:
Sympathetic and parasympathetic
PNS
transmitting information to and from the CNS, everything besides the brain or spine
Somatic nervous system
muscle movements
autonomic nervous system
regulates glands and internal organs, without having to think about it
sympathetic nervous system
mobilizes body for action in preparation of stimulus
parasympathetic nervous system
conserves energy for our body in preparation to move
neurons communicate with each other with:
neurotransmitters (refractory period)
glial cells
support the neuron, helps with nutrient and maintenance of nerve cells
synapses
space in-between neurons to relay signal
serotonin
role in mood, sleep, impulse control
dopamine
movement and fine motor skills
what results from too much dopamine
schizophrenia
what results in too little dopamine
parkinson’s disease
acetylcholine
voluntary movements, learning and memory
what results from too much acetylcholine
depression
what results from too little acetylcholine
dementia
norepinephrine
eating and alertness
too little norepinephrine causes
depression
too much norepinephrine causes
schizophrenia
GABA
inhibitor, alerts CNS
too little GABA causes
mood disorders
too much GABA causes
anxiety
glutamate
memory and over-stimulation
endorphins
pain relief, released when we hurt ourselves or during exercise
what makes up the hindbrain
medulla, pons, cerebellum
medulla
breathing and heart rate, critical to life!
pons
sleeping and dreaming
cerebellum
balance and coordinated muscle movements, where alcohol hits first (hence police test your balance and coordination for sobriety tests)
RAS
Reticular activating system, administrative assistant of the brain, prioritizes messages and stimuli
Thalamus
passes motor and sensory signals on to the cerebral cortex
limbic system includes:
hypothalamus, amygdala, hippocampus
hypothalamus
biological drives, link between endocrine and nervous systems, initial reward center located here
amygdala
fear and aggressive responses
hippocampus
memory transfer function, where short term memory is transferred to long term
corpus callosum
band of tissue connecting right and left hemisphere (split brain surgery severs this)
basal ganglia
voluntary muscle movements
cerebrum
all higher functioning (reasoning, language, thinking)
cerebral cortex
brains control center, primary and non-primary areas
somatosensory cortex
primary area, all senses except smell, registers body touch and movement sensations
motor cortex
primary area, motor functions/voluntary movements
association area/non-primary areas in the cerebral cortex
bigger than primary, studied by observing people with existing lesions in the brain
Apraxia
problems with movements (especially coordinated) (ex. not being able to swiftly pack up and leave for class w/o thinking about it)
agnosia
disorders in sensory stimulation (ex. not being able to recognize faces)
aphasia
language disorders (receiving, understanding, processing information)
expressive aphasia (non-fluent)
damage to broca’s area, disability to express oneself in productive communication
receptive aphasia (fluent)
damage to wernicke’s area, don’t receive/understand language but can talk grammatically correct
lateralization
how both hemispheres of the brain do and receive different information
left hemisphere of the brain
language reception
right hemisphere of the brain
making inferences and facial recognition
everything psychological is also
biological
4 lobes in brain
frontal, pariental, occipital, temporal
frontal lobe
speaking and movements
pariental lobe
sensory
occipital lobe
receive information from visual fields
temporal lobes
receive information from opposite ear
the lower brain structure that governs arousal is the
reticular formation
a cat’s ferocious response to electrical brain stimulation would lead you to suppose the electrode had touched the
amygdala
fMRI
measures function
PET
measures activity
MRI
measures activity
neuroplasticity
brains ability to change and adapt to certain circumstances
