Chapter 1 Brain & Behavior: An Introduction to Behavioral Neuroscience Flashcards
An alternate version of a gene; can be dominant or recessive
Allele
The branch of psychology that studies the relationships between behavior and the body, particularly the brain
Behavioral Neuroscience
A double-stranded chain of chemical molecules that looks like a ladder that has been twisted around itself; genes are composed of DNA
Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA)
A term referring to an allele that will produce its effect regardless of which allele it is paired with in the fertilized egg
Dominant
The idea that the mind and the brain are separate
Dualism
An organism in the early prenatal period; in humans, during the first eight weeks
Embryo
The procedure of obtaining information through observation
Empiricism
The idea that the brain functions as a whole; the opposite of localization
Equipotentiality
An organism after the initial prenatal period; in humans, after the first eight weeks
Fetus
The biological unit that directs cellular processes and transmits inherited characteristics
Gene
The translation of a gene’s encoded information into the production of proteins, determining the gene’s functioning
Gene Expression
The entire collection of genes in the chromosomes of a species
Genome
The combination of genes an individual has
Genotype
The percentage of the variation among individuals in a characteristic that can be attributed to heredity
Heritability
Having a pair of alleles for a specific characteristic that are different from each other
Heterozygous
Having a pair of alleles for a specific characteristic that are identical to each other
Homozygous
An international project with the goal of mapping the location of all the genes on the human chromosomes and determining the base sequences of the genes
Human Genome Project
The idea that specific parts of the brain carry out specific functions
Localization
The view that the body and the mind and everything else are physical
Materialistic Monism
The issue of what the mind is and what its relationship is to the brain
Mind-Brain Problem
A proposed mechanism for how something works
Model
The idea that the mind and the body consist of the same substance
Monism
The principle that those whose genes endow them with greater speed, intelligence, or health are more likely to survive and transmit their genes to more offspring
Natural Selection
The issue of the relative importance of heredity and environment
Nature Versus Nurture
In heredity, the characteristic of the individual
Phenotype
The theory in the early 1900s that “faculties” of emotion and intellect were located in precise areas of the brain and could be assessed by feeling bumps on the skull
Phrenology
Determined by several genes rather than a single gene
Polygenic
A term referring to an allele that will have an influence only when it is paired with the same recessive allele on the other chromosome
Recessive
The idea that genes produce susceptibility to a disorder and that environmental challenges may combine with a person’s biological susceptibility to exceed the threshold required to produce the disorder
Vulnerability
In heredity, a condition in which a gene on the X chromosome is not paired with a gene on the shorter Y chromosome, so that a single recessive gene is adequate to produce a characteristic
X-Linked
A fertilized egg
Zygote
