Chapter Two Flashcards
Action potential
Propagated electrical potential responsible for transmitting neural information and for communication between neurons.
-typically travel down a neuron’s axon
Axon
Part of the neuron that transmits signals from the cell body to the synapse at the end of the axon
Brain imaging
Technique such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) that results in images of the brain that represent brain activity.
-in cognitive psychology, activity is measured in response to specific cognitive tasks
Cell body
Part of a cell that contains mechanisms that keep the cell alive.
In some neurons, the cell body and the dendrites associated with it receive information from other neurons
Cerebral Cortex
The 3-mm-thick outer layer of the brain that contains the mechanisms responsible for higher mental functions such as perception, language, thinking, and problem solving
Cognitive neuroscience
Field concerned with studying the neural basis of cognition
Dendrites
Structures that branch out from the cell body to receive electrical signals from other neurons
Distributed representation
Occurs when a specific cognition activates many area of the brain
Double dissociation
A situation in which a single dissociation can be demonstrated in one person and the opposite type of single dissociation can be demonstrated in another person
Feature detectors
Neurons that respond to specific visual features, such as orientation, size, or the more complex features that make up environmental stimuli
Frontal lobe
The lobe in the front of the brain that serves higher functions such as language, thought, memory, and motor functioning
fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging)
A brain imaging technique that measures how blood flow changes in response to cognitive activity
Hierarchical Processing
Processing that occurs in a progression from lower to higher areas of the brain
Microelectrode
Small wires that are used to record electrical signals from signal neurons
Nerve Impulse
An electrical response that is propagated down the length of an axon (nerve fiber)
**also called an action potential
Neural circuit
Group of neurons or structure that are connected together
Neural network
Groups of neurons or structures that are connected together
Neuron
Cell that is specialized to receive and transmit information in the nervous system
Neuropsychology
The study of the behavioral effects of brain damage in humans
Neurotransmitter
Chemical that is released at the synapse in response to incoming action potentials
Occipital lobe
The lobe at the back of the brain that is devoted primarily to analyzing incoming visual information
Parietal lobe
The lobe at the top of the brain that contains mechanisms responsible for sensations caused by stimulation of the skin and also some aspects of visual information
Resting potential
Difference in charge between the inside and outside of a nerve fiber when the fiber is at rest (no electrical signals are present)
Receptors
Specialized neural structures that respond to environmental stimuli such as light, mechanical stimulation, or chemical stimuli
Sensory Code
How neural firing represents various characteristics of the environment
Sparse coding
Neural coding based on the pattern of activity in small groups of neurons
Specificity Coding
The representation of a specific stimulus by the firing of neurons that respond only to that stimulus.
**an example would be the signaling of a person’s face by the firing of a neuron that responds only to that person
Synapse
Space between the end of an axon and the cell body or dendrite of the next axon
Population coding
Neural representation of a stimulus by the pattern of firing of a large number of neurons
Temporal lobe
The lobe on the side of the brain that contains mechanisms responsible for language,memory, hearing, and vision
