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Psychology in Everyday Life 6th Edition > Chapter 2 > Flashcards

Chapter 2 Flashcards

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1
Q

What is neuroplasticity?

A

The brain’s ability to change, especially during childhood, by reorganizing after damage or by building new pathways based on experience.

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2
Q

What is a neuron?

A

A nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system.

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3
Q

What is a cell body?

A

The part of a neuron that contains the nucleus; the cell’s life-support center.

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4
Q

What is action potential?

A

A nerve impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon.

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5
Q

How do neurons communicate?

A

In a chemistry-to-electricity process, sending action potentials down axons.

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6
Q

What are nerves?

A

Bundled axons that form neural cables connecting the central nervous system with muscles, glands, and sensory organs.

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7
Q

How do neurotransmitters affect our mood and behavior?

A

They affect brain chemistry at synapses

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8
Q

What are the two major divisions of the nervous system, and what are their basic functions?

A

Central nervous system (CNS), brain and spinal cord; peripheral nervous system (PNS), sensory and motor neurons connecting the CNS to the rest of the body.

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9
Q

What are some techniques for studying the brain?

A

EEG, MEG, PET, fMRI, and MRI scans

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10
Q

What are the hindbrain, midbrain, and forebrain?

A

Hindbrain contains the brainstem structures

Midbrain connects the two; controls movement and transmits information enabling seeing and hearing

Forebrain manages complex cognitive activities

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11
Q

What structures make up the brainstem?

A

The medulla and the pons

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12
Q

What is the brainstems function?

A

Controlling automatic survival functions

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13
Q

What is the thalamus function?

A

The brain’s sensory control center

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14
Q

What is the reticular formations function?

A

Controlling arousal

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15
Q

What is the cerebellums function?

A

Processing sensory input, coordinating muscle movement, enabling nonverbal learning and memory

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16
Q

What are the structures and function of the limbic system?

A

Amygdala, hypothalamus, and hippocampus;

Emotions, drive, memory

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17
Q

What is the function of the amygdala?

A

Aggressive and fearful responses

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18
Q

What is the frontal lobe involved in?

A

Speaking, muscle movements, planning, judging

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19
Q

What is the function of the hypothalamus?

A

Monitoring bodily maintenance activities, emotion and reward, triggers pituitary to influence other glands in endocrine system

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20
Q

What is the function of the hippocampus?

A

Processing explicit (conscious) memories

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21
Q

What are the four lobes of the cerebral cortex? Where are they?

A

Frontal lobes (behind the forehead)
Parietal lobes (top-rear of the head)
Occipital lobes (back of the head)
Temporal lobes (above the ears)

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22
Q

What do the parietal lobes do?

A

Receive sensory input for touch and body position

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23
Q

What do the occipital lobes do?

A

Receive input from the visual fields

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24
Q

What do the temporal lobes do?

A

Receive input from the ears

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25
Q

What are the functions of the motor cortex?

A

Controlling voluntary muscle movement

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26
Q

What are the functions of the somatosensory cortex?

A

Registering and processing body touch and movement sensations

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27
Q

What are the functions of the association areas?

A

Higher-level functions such as learning, remembering, thinking, and speaking

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28
Q

Is it true that 90 percent of our brain isn’t really used?

A

No

29
Q

How does the brain modify itself after some kinds of damage?

A

It can adapt to damage by reorganizing existing tissue, but cannot form new neurons.

30
Q

What do we mean by consciousness?

A

Consciousness is our awareness of ourselves and our environment.

31
Q

How does selective attention direct our perceptions?

A

Blocks out much and often shifts the spotlight of our attention from one thing to another.

32
Q

What is the circadian rhythm?

A

Our internal biological clock

33
Q

What are the stages of our nightly sleep cycle?

A

N1 sleep - non-REM sleep stage, irregular brain waves
N2 sleep - bursts of rhythmic waves, half of our sleep time
N3 sleep - deep sleep, large, slow delta waves
REM sleep - internal arousal, external calm

34
Q

How do our sleep patterns differ?

A

It depends on age, genetics, and social-cultural factors

35
Q

What are the five theories that describe our need to sleep?

A

Sleep protects
Sleep helps us recover
Sleep helps restore and rebuild
Sleep feeds creativity
Sleep supports growth

36
Q

How does sleep loss affect us?

A

Causes fatigue, irritability, lack of concentration, productivity, and memory consolidation

37
Q

What are the major sleep disorders?

A

Insomnia, narcolepsy, sleep apnea, sleepwalking/talking, and night terrors.

38
Q

What do we dream about?

A

Mostly bad things, but generally ordinary events and everyday experiences with bizarre flavor.

39
Q

What are the five explanations of why we dream?

A

Satisfy wishes,
File away memories,
Develop and preserve neural pathways,
Make sense of neural static,
Reflect cognitive development

40
Q

What is an axon?

A

the segmented neuron extension that sends messages to other neurons or to muscles and glands.

41
Q

What are dendrites?

A

neuron extensions that receive and integrate messages from axons, and conduct them toward the cell body.

42
Q

What are glial cells?

A

cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons; they also play a role in learning, thinking, and memory.

43
Q

What is a synapse?

A

the junction between the axon tip of a sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of a receiving neuron.

44
Q

What is a refractory period in neural processing?

A

A brief resting pause that occurs after a neuron has fired; subsequent action potentials cannot occur until the axon returns to its resting state.

45
Q

What are neurotransmitters?

A

neuron-produced chemicals that cross the synaptic gap to carry messages to other neurons or to muscles and glands.

46
Q

What are endorphins?

A

“morphine within”—natural, opioid-like neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure.

47
Q

What is the tiny space between the axon of one neuron and the dendrite or cell body of another called?

A

synaptic gap.

48
Q

What does the intensity of stimulus determine?

A

whether or not an impulse is generated.

49
Q

The release of endorphins into the brain is a response to what?

A

pain or vigorous exercise.

50
Q

What part of the brainstem controls the heartbeat and breathing?

A

medulla

51
Q

What is the most influential endocrine gland, or master gland?

A

Pituitary

52
Q

What does the thalamus function as?

A

sensory control center

53
Q

What is the lower brain structure that governs arousal?

A

Reticular formation

54
Q

What is the part of the brain that coordinates voluntary movement and enables nonverbal learning and memory?

A

Cerebellum

55
Q

If one of the parts of the limbic system is the amygdala, what is the other part?

A

hippocampus

56
Q

A cat’s ferocious response to electrical brain stimulation would lead you to suppose the electrode had touched the ____.

A

Amygdala

57
Q

What neural structure most directly regulates eating, drinking, and body temperature?

A

hypothalamus

58
Q

What are the uncommitted areas that make up three-fourths of the cerebral cortex?

A

Association areas

59
Q

What lobe enables judging and planning?

A

Frontal

60
Q

Based on studies of people with split brains, what does the left hemisphere excel in?

A

processing language

61
Q

What ability would damage to the brain’s right hemisphere most reduce in a person?

A

make inferences

62
Q

What is a person most likely to experience in the N1 sleep stage?

A

Hallucinations

63
Q

What is the difference between narcolepsy and sleep apnea?

A

Narcolepsy means the person has uncontrollable sleep attacks; sleep apnea is when the person repeatedly stops breathing while asleep.

64
Q

What are neurotransmitters?

A

Neurons release neurotransmitters, which affect behaviors and emotions.

65
Q

What is a threshold?

A

The level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse.

66
Q

What is the all-or-none response?

A

A neuron’s reaction of either firing (with full-strength) or not firing.

67
Q

What is reuptake?

A

A neurotransmitter’s reabsorption by the sending neuron.

68
Q

What is opiate?

A

Opium and its derivatives, such as morphine and heroin; depress neural activity, temporarily lessening pain and anxiety.

69
Q

What is the nervous system?

A

The body’s speedy, electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the central and peripheral nervous systems.

Psychology in Everyday Life 6th Edition (4 decks)

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