Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

Psychology > Chapter 2 - The Biological Perspective > Flashcards

Chapter 2 - The Biological Perspective Flashcards

You may prefer our related Brainscape-certified flashcards:
Psychology 101 flashcards GRE® Psychology flashcards AP® Psychology flashcards
1
Q

What is Wernicke’s aphasia?

A

Can happen if damage occurs in Wernicke’s area. Unable to understand or produce meaningful speech. Words will be pronounced correctly, but used incorrectly, they don’t make sense together (word salad).

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

What is the auditory association area?

A

Transforms basic sounds into recognizable into recognizable information, such as recognizing a knock on a door, or the meaning of a word. Without this nothing has any meaning, it would be like everything said to you was gibberish.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

What is visual agnosia?

A

When an individual fails to recognize some object, person or color yet has the ability to see and describe pieces or parts of some visual stimulus. For example a patient with visual agnosia was asked to recreate a picture they were given of a horse. The patient drew the mane, the legs, the heads, the eyes, etc. but they didn’t know how they fit together. They were all drawn as if they were individual components.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

What are nerves?

A

String-like bundles of axons and dendrites that come from the spinal cord. They carry information about the senses, skin, muscles, and organs to and from the spinal cord. The nerves in the Peripheral Nervous System have the ability to grow or reattach if severed or damaged.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

What are neurons?

A

The basic cells of the nervous system, they send and receive messages within the nervous system.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

What is Kluver-Bucy syndrome?

A

Damage to the amygdala may result in the inability to experience fear. This is demonstrated in the “Goats in the Lion Cage” experiment. Normally a goat would never want to be in the same cage as a lion, but if you cut out the amygdala of a goat it will walk right up to the lion, as it will be unable to recognize the lion as a threat.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

What is the left hemisphere of the brain responsible for?

A
  • Controls the right side of the body.
  • Spoken language
  • Written language
  • Mathematical calculations
  • Logical thought processes
  • Analysis of detail
  • Reading
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

What is the central nervous system?

A

Describes the collection of neurons and glial cells in the brain and the spinal cord. It controls life-sustaining functions and all thought, emotion and behavior. Damage to the CNS is irreversible.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

What is the hypothalamus?

A

Part of the limbic system. The hypothalamus is responsible for many things:

  • Regulation body temperature
  • Monitoring thirst and hunger
  • Sleeping and waking
  • Sexual activity
  • Emotions
  • Autonomic Nervous system and fight-or-flight
  • Pituitary glands
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

What is the limbic system?

A

Primitive or animal brain. Associated with emotions, motivational drives (primitive motivations such as hunger, thirst, sex etc.) memory and learning.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

What parts of the neuron are responsible for sending messages to other cells?

A
  • Synaptic Knob: Rounded areas on the ends of axons
  • Synaptic Vesicles: Sack-like structure inside knob containing neurotransmitters
  • Synapse or Synaptic Gap: Space between axon terminals of one cell & dendrites or surface of next cell
  • Receptor Sites: Holes in surface of dendrites or muscle and gland cells, which are shaped to fit only certain neurotransmitters.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

What is neuroscience?

A

Neuroscience is the study of the structure and function of neurons, nerves and their relationship to behavior and learning.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

What is the hindbrain?

A

Also known as the brainstem, it’s the oldest part of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord enters the skull. Responsible for automatic survival functions. Damage to the hindbrain means death.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

What is the Occipital lobe?

A

Part of the cortex. Primarily responsible for controlling vision.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

What is the peripheral nervous system?

A

Describes the nerves and neurons located throughout the body, minus the brain and the spinal cord. Separate from the central nervous system, damage to the PNS can sometimes be fixed.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

What is the frontal lobe?

A

Part of the cortex, the frontal lobe is responsible for personality, attention, decision making, speech and judgment.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

What is the motor cortex?

A

Part of the frontal lobe, responsible for sending motor commands to the muscles of the somatic nervous system.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

What are the methods for studying the brain?

A

Deep Lesioning - Insertion of thin wire into the brain, sending electrical current to destroy brain cells at the tip of the wire.
Electrical Simulation of Brain (ESB) - Mild electrical current causes neurons to react as if they had received a message.
Human Brain Damage - Stroke, etc.
EEG - Records electrical activity just below the surface
CT Scan - Computer controlled X-rays
MRI - Radio waves and magnetic fields
PET Scan - Injection of a radioactive sugar
fMRI - Realtime video MRI

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

What is the primary visual cortex?

A

Part of the occipital lobe, responsible for changing electrical signals from the eyes into basic visual sensations (lights, lines, colors, textures). Without the primary visual cortex, you’ll be blind.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

What are agonists and antagonists?

A

Agonists are medications that mimic or enhance neurotransmitters effect on the receptor site of the next cell. Morphine is an agonist.
Antagonists are medications that block or reduce cell’s response to action of other chemicals or neurotransmitters. Cocaine is an antagonist.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

What is the temporal lobe?

A

Part of the cortex, responsible for processing hearing and meaningful speech.

22
Q

Describe a reflex response to touching a flame.

A

Information is carried from the skin receptors along a sensory neuron to the spinal cord. From here it is passed via interneurons to motor neurons that lead back to muscles in the hand and arm. Because this reflex involves only the spinal cord, the hand jerks away from the candle flame even before the information about the event has reached the brain, causing the experience of pain.

23
Q

What is the hippocampus?

A

Part of the limbic system. The hippocampus is involved in the formation of long-term memories (declarative). Henry M. was an example of a damaged hippocampus, he was unable to form new declarative memories.

24
Q

What is the corpus callosum?

A

A thick band of neurons that connect the two hemispheres of the cortex.

25
Q

What is the reticular formation?

A

A nerve network in the brainstem. Arouses the cortex so it’s ready to process information. Responsible for selective attention. Damage to the reticular formation can result in a coma.

26
Q

How many neurons are in a typical brain?

A

About 100 billion, however your body does not produce more, the neurons you are born with are the only ones you get.

27
Q

What is the somatic nervous system?

A

A division of the PNS that controls voluntary movements of skeletal muscles. It controls sensory and motor pathways.

28
Q

What are the functions of glial cells?

A
  • Provide support for neurons to grow on and around (kind of like scaffolding)
  • Deliver nutrients
  • Produce myelin
  • Clean up waste products & dead neurons
  • Make up 90% of the cells in your body
  • Your body produces new glial cells, unlike neurons,
29
Q

What is the medulla?

A

Part of the hindbrain. Controls respiration, heart rate, and blood pressure. Large amounts of alcohol, heroin or depressant drugs can suppress function and lead to death.

30
Q

What is the thalamus?

A

Part of the limbic system. The thalamus receives sensory information and relays the information to areas in the cortex. Damage to the thalamus can result in problems with seeing, hearing, touch, or taste (not smell).

31
Q

What is reuptake?

A

Reuptake is when neurotransmitters in synapse are reabsorbed into the sending neuron. This essentially applies the brakes on neurotransmitter action.

32
Q

What is the autonomic nervous system?

A

The ANS regulates organs, glands, and involuntary muscles. Functions without conscious effort. A few of its responses can be controlled voluntarily.

33
Q

What is the cerebellum?

A

Part of the hindbrain. Coordinates motor movements and balance. Involved in performing timed motor responses. Crucial in games and sports.

34
Q

What is a reflex response?

A

Unlearned, involuntary reaction to some stimulus. Neural connections underlying a reflex are pre-wired by genetic instructions. Infants have more reflexes than adults.

35
Q

What is the nervous system?

A

An extensive network of specialized cells that carry info to & from all parts of the body.

36
Q

What is Broca’s Aphasia?

A

Can happen if you get damage (especially a stroke) to Broca’s Area. Person can’t speak fluently, mispronounces words and speaks haltingly.

37
Q

What is the amygdala?

A

Part of the limbic system. The amygdala evaluates emotional significance of stimuli and facial expressions, especially those involving fear, distress, or threat. Determines if someone is threatening or should be feared.

38
Q

Who was John Thomas?

A

He was a man who lost both his arms in a farming accident at 18. Doctors were able to reattach his arms and after 3 years of physical therapy he was able to raise his arms over his head, make fists and grip things with his hands.

39
Q

What is the structure of a neuron?

A
  • Soma: Cell body, contains nucleus, maintains life
  • Dendrites: Branch-like structures that receive messages from other neurons
  • Axon: Long thread-like structure that carries messages away from the cell body to other cells
  • Nerves: Bundles of axons that travel together through the body
  • Myelin: Fatty substance that coats axons to insulate, protect and speed up neural impulses
  • Axon terminals: Branches at end of axon.
40
Q

What is the parietal lobe?

A

Part of the cortex, the parietal lobe processes information from skin and internal body receptors for touch, temperature, taste, body position, and pain. Somatosensory cortex.

41
Q

Who was Phineas Gage?

A

Phineas Gage was a man who had a metal rod go straight through his frontal lobe. He survived, however his personality was changed, he went from a friendly, easy-going person to someone who was quick to anger.

42
Q

What is Broca’s Area?

A

Part of the frontal lobe, usually in the left hemisphere, necessary for combining sounds into words and arranging words into sentences.

43
Q

What is the visual association area?

A

Part of the occipital lobe. Transforms basic sensations into meaningful visual perceptions (objects, people). Without this you’ll have trouble recognizing common things.

44
Q

What are the subdivisions of the autonomic nervous system?

A

The sympathetic nervous system - The SNS arouses the body, mobilizing energy in stressful situations. This is triggered by threatening or challenging physical or psychological events. Known colloquially as the “fight-or-flight” response. The SNS absorbs a lot of energy, and is not designed to be running your body at all times.
The parasympathetic nervous system - The parasympathetic NS restores the body to normal after arousal, conserving its energy. It’s responsible for day-to-day functioning of organs and glands. This is the default mode your body runs in.

45
Q

What is SSRI?

A

Selective Seratonin Reuptake Inhibitor is a medication which slows the reuptake process of Seratonin, which is responsible for your mood. This is the medication most effective in treating depression.

46
Q

What is the primary auditory cortex?

A

Part of the temporal lobe, changes electrical signals from ears into sounds, damage to this PAC will make you deaf.

47
Q

What is the pons?

A

Part of the hindbrain. The bridge responsible for transmitting messages between the spinal cord and the brain. Involved in sleep, dreaming, left-right body coordination and arousal.

48
Q

What is Wernicke’s area?

A

Part of the temporal lobe, usually in the left hemisphere. Necessary for speaking coherently and for understanding speech.

49
Q

What is the right hemisphere of the brain responsible for?

A
  • Controls the left side of the body.
  • Nonverbal communication
  • Visual-spatial perception
  • Music and artistic processing
  • Emotional thought and recognition
  • Processing of the big picture
  • Pattern recognition
  • Facial Recognition
50
Q

What is the cortex?

A

Part of the brain responsible for higher thought processes and interpretation of sensory input. Divided into two cerebral hemispheres, the right and the left. Each brain hemisphere is divided into four lobes, separated by fissures.

51
Q

What is the reward center?

A

The hypothalamus is the reward center of the brain. When you satisfy a motivation, for example eating when you are hungry, you feel good. The hypothalamus has a lot of dopamine, responsible for giving you the feel good sensation. This reward system can be manipulated, for example if you stimulate the hypothalamus with electrodes, you can cause rats to ignore hunger.

Psychology (6 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions