Chap. 2 Flashcards
What are the basic elements of the nervous system?
Neurons
Why do psychologist study the brain and nervous system?
They help control behavior and other functions.
How does the nervous system communicate electrical and chemical messages from one part to another?
When the neuron receives a signal it fires an action potential and a signal moves from one side of the axon to the other.
How are the structures of the nervous system linked together?
The peripheral and central nervous system
How does the endocrine system affect behavior?
The endocrine secrets hormones that control emotions and etc. via the bloodstream
How do researchers identify the major parts of the brain?
Brain scans take snapshots of the brain
What are the major parts of the brain?
- Hypothalamus
- Pituitary gland
- Pons
- Reticular formation
- Spinal Cord
- Corpus callosum
- Thalamus
- Cerebellum
- Medulla
Hypothalamus
Responsible for regulating biological needs
Pituitary gland
“Master gland” that regulates other endocrine glands
Pons
Involved in sleep and arousal
Reticular formation
A network of neurons related to sleep arousal and attention
Spinal cord
Responsible for communication of the brain and the rest of the body; involved with simple reflexes
Corpus callosum
Bridge of fibers passing information between the two cerebral hemispheres
Thalamus
Relay center for cortex; handles incoming and outgoing signals
Cerebellum
Controls bodily balance
Medulla
Responsible for regulating largely unconscious functions such as breathing and circulation
Dendrite
A cluster of fibers at one end of a neuron that receive messages from other neurons
How can an understating of the nervous system help us find ways to alleviate disease and pain?
By using biofeed which is the procedure in which a person learns to use there mental processes to control functions which were previously thought to function involuntary
Behavioral neuroscientists
Psychologists who specialize in considering the ways in which the biological structures and functions of the body affect behavior
Terminal buttons
Small bulges at the end of axons that send messages to other neurons
All or none law
The rule that neurons are either on or off
Action potential
An electric nerve impulse that travels through a neuron when it is set off by a trigger changing the neurons from negative to positive
Neurons
Nerve cells; the basic elements of the nervous system
Axon
The part of the neuron that carries messages destined for other neurons
Myelin sheath
A protective coat of fat and protein that wraps around a neuron
Resting state
The stage in which there is a negative electrical charge of about 270 milliwatts within a neuron
Synapse
The space between 2 neurons where the axon of a sending neuron communicates with the dendrites of a receiving neuron
Reuptake
The reabsorption of a neurotransmitter by a terminal button
What is the fundamental part of the nervous system?
The neuron
Neurons receive information through their _____ and send messages through their ____.
Dendrite; axon
Just as electrical wires have an outer coating, axons are insulated by a coating called the _____.
Myelin sheath
The gap between two neurons is bridged by a chemical connection called a ______.
Synapse
Endorphins are one kind of _____; the chemical messengers between neurons.
Neurotransmitter
The central nervous system is composed of the ____ and the _____.
Brain; spinal cord
In the peripheral nervous system, the _____ division control voluntary movements, whereas the _____ division controls organs that keep us alive and functioning without awareness.
Somatic; autonamic
The increasing complexity and hierarchy of the nervous system over millions of years is the subject of study for researchers working in the field of _____.
Evolutionary psychology
Central nervous system
The part of the nervous system that includes the brain and spinal cord
Reflex
Unlearned, involuntary responses that occur automatically in the presence of certain stimuli
The emerging field of _____ studies ways in which our genetic inheritance predisposes us to behave in certain ways.
Behavioral genetics
Motor neurons
Neurons that communicate information from the nervous system to muscles and glands
Somatic division
The part of the peripheral nervous system that specializes in the control of voluntary movements and the communication of information to and from the sense organ
Endocrine system
A central communication network that send messages through out the body via the blood stream
Sensory neurons
Neurons that transmit information from the perimeter of the body to the central nervous system
Interneuron
Neurons that connect sensory and motor neurons, carrying messages between the two
Sympathetic division
Part of the autonomic division of the nervous system that acts to prepare the body for action in stressful situations, engaging all the organism’s resources to respond to the threat
Hormones
Chemicals that circulate through the blood and regulate the functions and growth of the body
Behavioral genetics
The study of the affects of heredity on behavior
Each hemisphere of the brain controls the ______ side of the body.
Opposite
Nonverbal realms, such as emotions and and music, are controlled primarily by the _______ side of the brain whereas the ______ hemisphere is more responsible for speaking and reading.
Light; right
Central core
“Old brain”; controls basic functions such as sleeping and eating and is common to all vertebrates
Lobes
Four major sections of the cerebral cortex: frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital
Motor areas
The part of cortex that is largely responsible for the body’s voluntary movements
Hemispheres
Symmetrical left and right halves of the brain that controls the opposite side of the body to their locations
Association areas
One of the major regions of the cerebral cortex; the sight of higher mental processes such as thought, language, memory, and speech
Neuroplasticity
Changes in the brain that occur through out the life span relating to the addition of new neurons and the reorganization of mental processes
Reticular formation
The part of the brain extending from the medulla through the pons and made up of groups of nerve cells that can immediately activate other parts of the brain to produce general body arousal
Limbic system
The part of the brain that controls eating, aggression, and reproduction
Sensory area
Site in the brain tissue that corresponds to each of the senses and to the degree tissues experience them
Lateralization
Seminar of one hemisphere of the brain in specific functions
Biofeedback
A procedure in which a person learns to control through conscious thought internal processes
