Chapter 3 Flashcards
Central nervous system
Brain and spinal cord
Command center
Peripheral nervous system
Nervous that extend outside of CNS
Somatic Nervous System - voluntary behavior
Autonomic Nervous System - automatic behavior
Neurons
Specialized cells in our nervous system: brain’s most basic unit of communication
Cell body
Contains nucleus
Dendrites
Receive chemical signals
Axon and axon terminal
Send electrical and chemical messages to other neurons
Myelin Sheath
Protects axon terminal
Neuron communication
Both electrically and chemically
Electrical signals which travel down axon terminal and trigger the release of chemical signals (neurotransmitters)
Process controlled by difference of electrical charge inside vs outside neuron
Neurotransmitters
Dont know
Resting Membrane Potential
When not active, inside of neuron slighty more negative
Neural plastocity
Adjustments made in brain
Our brain in constantly changing
Cerebral Cortex
The site of complex stuff that makes us distinctly human: thought, detailed perceptions, consciousness and planning
Frontal Lobe
Thought, planning, movement
Motor Cortex/Somatosensory Cortex
Part of frontal lobe and controls different regions of body (body map)
Primary sensory cortex
Organizes where sensation will be felt in brain
