Chapter 10 - Vocabulary Flashcards
Axon
Microscopic finer that carries the nervous impulse along a nerve cell
Central nervous system (CNS)
Brain and the spinal cord
Cerebellum
Posterior part of the brain that coordinates muscle movements and maintains balance
Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)
Circulated throughout the brain and spinal cord
Cerebrum
Largest part of brain; responsible for voluntary muscular activity, vision, speech, taste, hearing, thought, and memory
Dendrite
Microscopic branching fiber of a nerve cell that is first part to receive nervous impulse
Ganglion
Collection of nerve cell bodies in peripheral nervous system
Medulla oblongata
Part of brain just above spinal cord; controls breathing, heartbeat, and size of blood vessels; nerve divers cross over here
Meninges
Three protective membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord
Myelin sheath
Covering of white fatty tissue that surrounds and insulated the axon of a nerve cell. Myelin speeds impulse conduction along axons
Nerve
Microscopic cord-like collection of fibers (axons and dendrites) that carry electrical impulses
Neuron
Nerve cell that carries impulses throughout the body; parenchyma of the nervous system
Peripheral nervous system (PNS)
Nerves outside the brain and spinal cord: cranial, spinal, and autonomic nerves
Synapse
Space through which a nervous impulse travels between nerve cells or between nerve and muscle or glandular cells
Absence seizure
Form of seizure consisting of momentary clouding if consciousness and loss of awareness of surroundings
