Chapter 2 Flashcards
What is biological psychology?
The scientific study of the links between biological (genetic, neural, hormonal) and psychological processes.
What is a neuron?
A nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system
What are dendrites?
They are the bushy, branching extensions that receive messages & conduct impulses toward the cell body
What is the axon of a neuron?
It is the neuron extension that passes messages through its branches to other neurons or to muscles or glands
What is the myelin sheath of a neuron?
It is a fatty tissue layer segmentally encasing the axons of some neurons; enables (helps) vastly greater transmission speed as neural impulses hop from one node to the next
What are the glial cells (glia)?
They are the cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, & protect neurons; they may also play a role in learning & thinking
What is a action potential?
A neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon
What is a threshold
The level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse
Neurons differ, but all are variations on the same theme, explain.
- All have a cell body & its branching fibers
- The bushy dendrite fibers receive info. & conduct it towards cell body, from there the lengthy axon fiber passes the message through its terminal branches to other neurons or to muscles or glands
- Dendrites listen, axons speak
The cells life support center
Cell body
Receive messages from cells
Dendrites
Passes messages away from the cell body to other neurons, muscles, or glands
Axon
Form junctions with other cells
Terminal branches of axon
Covers the axon of some neurons & helps speed neural impulses
Myelin sheath
Action potential, electrical signal traveling down the axon
Neural impulse
As myeline is laid down up to about age 25 what else grows?
Neural efficiency, judgment, and self control grows
What happens if the myeline sheath degenerates?
Multiple sclerosis results: communication to muscles slows down, with eventual loss of muscle control
What did they find in Albert Einsteins brain?
Greater concentration of glial cells
Depending on the type of fiber, a neural impulse travel at speeds ranging from
2 mph to 180 mph
We measure brain activity in?
Milliseconds (thousandths of a second)
What are synapses?
They are the gaps/space between one sending neuron and one receiving neuron. The junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron & the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron. The tiny gap at this junction is called the synaptic gap or synaptic cleft
What are neurotransmitters?
They are chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gap between neurons. When released by the sending neuron, neurotransmitters travel across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron, thereby influencing whether that neuron will generate a neural impulse
What is acetylcholine (ACh)
It plays a role in learning and memory
Function of acetylcholine
Enables muscle action, learning & memory
Malfunction with Alzheimer’s disease and acetylcholine
ACh producing neurons deteriorates
What is the function of the neurotransmitter dopamine?
Influences movement, learning, attention, & motion
What is the function of the neurotransmitter serotonin?
Affects mood, hunger, sleep, & arousal
What is the function of the neurotransmitter norepinephrine?
Helps control alertness and arousal
What is the function of the neurotransmitter GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid)?
A major inhibitory neurotransmitter
What is the function of the neurotransmitter Glutamate?
A major excitatory neurotransmitter; involved in memory
Oversupply and undersupply of dopamine is linked to?
Oversupply linked to schizophrenia
Undersupply is linked to tremors and decreased mobility in Parkinson’s disease
Undersupply of serotonin is linked to?
Depression. Some antidepressant drugs raise serotonin levels
Undersupply of norepinephrine can?
Depress mood
Under supply of GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) is linked to?
Seizures, tremors, and insomnia
Oversupply of glutamate can?
Overstimulate the brain, producing migraines or seizures
What are endorphins?
It’s short for endogenous (produced within) morphine
What is the nervous system?
The body’s speedy, electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous system
What is the CNS?
Central Nervous System consisting of the brain & spinal cord
What is the peripheral nervous system (PNS)?
The sensory & motor neurons that connect the CNS to the rest of the body
What are nerves?
They are bundled axons that form neural “cables” connecting the CNS with muscles, glands, & sense organs
What are the sensory (afferent) neurons?
They are the neurons that carry incoming information from the sensory receptors to the brain & spinal cord
What are the motor (efferent) neurons?
They are the neurons that carry outgoing information from the brain & spinal cord to the muscles & glands
What are interneurons?
They are neurons w/in the brian & spinal cord that communicate internally & intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs
The body’s decision maker
CNS
Responsible for gathering information & for transmitting CNS decisions to other body parts
PNS
Our complexity resides mostly in our?
Interneuron systems
What does autonomic control?
Self-regulated action of internal organs and glands
What does somatic control?
Controls voluntary movements of skeletal muscles
Arousing
Sympathetic
Calming
Parasympathetic
The somatic nervous system is the division of the?
PNS that controls the body’s skeletal muscles. Also called the skeletal nervous system
The autonomic nervous system (ANS) is the part of the PNS that controls the?
Glands & the muscles of the internal organs (such as the heart). Its sympathetic division arouses; its parasympathetic division calms
The sympathetic nervous system is the division
Of the ANS that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations
The parasympathetic nervous system is the division
Of the ANS that calms the body, conserving its energy
What is a reflex?
A simple, automatic response to a sensory stimulus, such as the knee-jerk response
What is the endocrine system?
The body’s “slow” chemical communication system
What are hormones?
They are chemical messengers that are manufactured by the endocrine glands, travel through the blood stream, & affect other tissues
What are the adrenal glands?
They are a pair of endocrine glands that sit just above the kidneys & secrete hormones (epinephrine and norepinephrine) that help arouse the body in times of stress
What are the pituitary glands?
The endocrine system’s most influential gland. Under the influence of the hypothalamus, the pituitary regulates growth & controls the other endocrine glands
What is a lesion?
Tissue destruction. A brain lesion is a naturally or experimentally caused destruction of brain tissue
What is the brainstem?
The oldest part & central core of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord swells as it enters the skull; the brainstem is responsible for automatic survival functions
What is the medulla?
The base of the brainstem; controls heartbeat and breathing
Just above the medulla sits the?
Pons which helps coordinate movements
What is the thalamus?
The brains sensory router, located on top of the brainstem; it directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla
Receives information from all the senses except smell, & it routes that information to higher brain regions that deal with seeing, hearing, tasting, and touching.
Thalamus
Inside the brainstem, between your ears, lies the?
Reticular formation, a finger-shaped network of neurons extending from the spinal cord right up through the thalamus. As the spinal cords sensory input flows up to the thalamus, some of it travels through the reticular formation, which filters incoming stimuli, relays important info. to other brain areas, and controls arousal
A nerve network that travels through the brainstem & plays an important role in controlling arousal
Reticular formation
The brains organ of agility
Hanging at the back of the brain, the cerebellum (little brain) coordinates our voluntary movements
What is the cerebellum?
“the little brain” at the rear of the brainstem; functions include processing sensory input, coordinating movement output & balance, & enabling nonverbal learning and memory. Also helps us judge time, modulate our emotions, & discriminate sounds & textures
In what brain region would damage be most likely to
1) Disrupt your ability to skip rope?
2) Disrupt your ability to hear & taste?
3) Leave you in a coma?
4) Cut off the very breath & heartbeat of life?
1) Cerebellum
2) Thalamus
3) Reticular formation
4) Medulla
This neural system sits between the brain’s older parts & its cerebral hemispheres.
The limbic system
Neural system including the hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus, located below the cerebral hemispheres; associated with emotions and drives
Limbic system
What is the amygdala?
Two lima-bean sized neural clusters in the limbic system; linked to emotion
What is the hypothalamus
A neural structure lying below (hypo) the thalamus; it directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temp.) helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland, and is linked to emotion and reward
