brain and nervous system Flashcards
What is Psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of
behaviour and mental processes.
Mental Process
Mental process is defined as an
experience that occurs within an
individual, that cannot be directly
observed.
what is Biology
Biology is the study of life and living organisms.
What is the nervous system
The nervous system is a complex system of nerves and cells that carries messages around the body. It is essentially the body’s communication system.
What is the The central nervous system made up of
brain and spinal cord
Central Nervous System
The brain is the control center
of the body. It is the central
hub of the nervous system, the spinal cord allows the brain to communicate with the rest of your body
What is the peripheral nervous system made up of
any nerve outside of the brain and spinal cord.
what are the The peripheral nervous systems two functions
to communicate information from the body’s organs, glands and muscles to the brain. AND to communicate information from the brain to the body’s organs, glands and
muscles
what are the peripheral nervous systems 2 subdivisions.
somatic and autonomic nervous systems,
The somatic nervous systems
responsible for Carrying messages from the brain to skeletal muscles (voluntary movement). AND Carrying messages from the senses to the
brain to be processed.
what nerves communicate messages from cns to particular muscles
Motor neurons (nerves) communicate messages from the CNS to the particular muscles that an organism
intends to move.
sensory neurons
Sensory neurons carry messages from the senses to the
CNS so our brain can interact with the environment.
what does the autonomic nervous system control.
The autonomic nervous system controls the body’s non-skeletal muscles (visceral muscles) eg. the heart. does everything we dont think about
What are the Autonomic Nervous
System: subdivisions
Sympathetic nervous system AND Parasympathetic nervous system
Sympathetic nervous system
prepares us for action, including
the fight or flight response.
Parasympathetic nervous system
calms our body down and returns
us to baseline/normal.
Fight-Flight-Freeze
The fight-flight-freeze response is your
body’s natural reaction to danger. It’s a
type of stress response that helps you
react to perceived threats,
The brain 3 parts
cerebrum, cerebellum and pons.
The brain protection (3 parts)
bony skull, meninges, and cerebral fluid.
Cerebellum
Located at the base of the brain,Responsible for muscle coordination and balance.
Pons
The pons is the largest part of the brain stem.It is a group of nerves that function as a connection between the cerebrum and cerebellum,It has a role in regulating breathing and the sleep cycles
Cerebrum
Location: Above the cerebellum.The outer layer of the cerebrum is called the cerebral cortex. The cerebrum is
divided into two hemispheres. Each hemisphere is divided into 4 lobes.Function: In the outer cerebral cortex is where all conscious thought and higher order thinking occurs
4 Brain lobes
frontal, parietal, occipital, and temporal.
Frontal lobe
Largest of the 4 lobes, *The frontal lobe has many functions
including: problem solving, planning, decision making, expression of emotion
personality, production of speech (Broca’s area). The frontal lobe also contains the Primary motor cortex which initiates voluntary movement
Parietal Lobe
Found in the upper back half of the
brain. Functions include: processing sensory information, spatial awareness, direction. Contains the Primary somatosensory cortex:
Occipital Lobe
Almost all this area of the brain is dedicated to vision.Contains the primary visual cortex. Left lobe receives information from the right visual field
AND Right lobe receives information from the left visual field
Temporal lobe
Located next to the ears.Contains areas responsible for hearing and language comprehension (Wernicke’s area). Contains the Primary Auditory Cortex.Has a role in recognizing: faces
AND places
Thalamus
sensory data arrives here and is then relayed to specific areas of the somatosensory cortex.
Hypothalamus
responsible for regulating body temperature, appetite, thirst and hormones (including growth hormones)
Hippocampus
responsible for making new memories; is also our direction finder or navigator
Pineal gland
controls our internal body clock; regulates our sleep-wake cycles and releases our ‘sleep’ hormone,melatonin
Amygdala
associated with the emotions of fear and anger; plays a key role in our emotional responses.
How many hemispheres in the brain.
2 (left and right)
Left hemisphere
speech and language comprehension, motor control of the right side of the body.
Right hemisphere
creativity, motor control of the left side of the body.
Left Hemisphere specialty areas
broca and wernickes.
Brocas area
Found in the Left Frontal Lobe.Responsible for coordinating
the movements of the muscles required for production of speech. Crucial role in the production of
fluent speech
Wernicke’s area
Found in the Left Temporal Lobe, Responsible for the comprehension of
speech. Crucial for making our speech coherent
