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AP Psychology > Chapter 2 > Flashcards

Chapter 2 Flashcards

0
Q

Biological Psychology

A

A branch of psychology concerned with the links between biology and behavior

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1
Q

Phrenology

A

Popular but ill-fated theory that claimed bumps on the skull could reveal our mental abilities and our character traits; invented by Franz Gall

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2
Q

Neuron

A

A nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system consisting of many different parts

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3
Q

Dendrite

A

The bushy, branching extensions of a neuron that receive messages and conduct impulses towards the cell body

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4
Q

Axon

A

The extensions of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers, brought which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles or glands

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5
Q

Myelin Sheath

A

A layer of fatty tissue segmentally encasing the fibers of many neurons; enables vastly greater transmission speed of neural impulses as the hops from one node to the next

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6
Q

Action Potential

A

A neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon; generated by the movement of positively charged atoms in and out of channels in an axon’s membrane (sodium/potassium)

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7
Q

Threshold

A

The level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse

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8
Q

Synapse

A

The junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron; synaptic gap/cleft - tiny gap at the junction

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9
Q

Neurotransmitters

A

Chemical messengers that traverse the synaptic gaps between neurons; released by sending neurons and travel across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron, influencing whether it will generate a neural impulse

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10
Q

Acetylcholine (Ach)

A

A neurotransmitter that enables learning and memory and also triggers muscle contraction

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11
Q

Dopamine

A

Influences movement, learning, attention, emotion

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12
Q

Serotonin

A

Affects mood, hunger, sleep, arousal

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13
Q

Endorphins

A

“Morphine within” - natural opiatelike (painkiller) neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure

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14
Q

Nervous System

A

The body’s speedy, electrochemical communication network; consists of all the nerve cells, it is the body’s speedy, electrochemical communication system

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15
Q

Central Nervous System (CNS)

A

The brain and spinal cord

16
Q

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

A

The sensory and motor neurons that connect the CNS to the rest of the body

17
Q

Nerves

A

Neural “cables” containing many axons; part of he PNS that connects the CNS with muscles, glands, and sense organs

18
Q

Sensory Neurons

A

Neurons that carry incoming information from the sense receptors to the CNS

19
Q

Motor Neurons

A

Neurons that carry outgoing information on from the CNS to the muscles and glands

20
Q

Interneurons

A

CNS neurons that internally communicate and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs

21
Q

Somatic Nervous System

A

The division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body’s skeletal muscles

22
Q

Autonomic Nervous System

A

Part of the PNS that controls the glands and other muscles of the internal organs (ex. Heart)

23
Q

Sympathetic Nervous System

A

Division of the ANS that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations

24
Q

Parasympathetic Nervous System

A

Division of the ANS that calms the body, conserving its energy (paramedics)

25
Q

Reflex

A

A simple, automatic, inborn response to a sensory stimulus, such as the knee-jerk response

26
Q

Lesions

A

Tissue destruction

27
Q

Neural Networks

A

Interconnected neural cells; can learn with experience as feedback strengthens or inhibits connections that produce certain results

28
Q

Endocrine System

A

The body’s “slow” chemical communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream

29
Q

Hormones

A

Chemical messengers, mostly those manufactured by the endocrine glands, that are produced in one tissue and affect another

30
Q

Adrenal Glands

A

A pair of endocrine glands just above the kidneys; secrete hormones epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine (noradrenaline)

31
Q

Pituitary Glands

A

The endocrine systems most influential gland; under the influence of the hypothalamus, the pituitary regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands

32
Q

EEG

A

An amplified recording of the waves of electrical activity that sweep across the brain’s surface; measured by electrodes placed on the scalp

33
Q

PET Scan

A

A visual display of brain activity that detects where a radioactive form of glucose goes while the brain performs a given task

34
Q

MRI

A

A technique that uses magnetic fields and radio waves to produce computer generated images that distinguish among different types of soft tissue allowing us to see structures within the brain (brain anatomy)

35
Q

fMRI

A

A technique for revealing blood flow nod brain activity by comparing successive MRI scans – brain function

AP Psychology (22 decks)

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