Exam 2

Question 1

Neurons

Answer 1

Nerve cells specialized for communication (transmitting nerve impulses)

Question 2

Axon

Answer 2

Portion of a neuron that carries nerve impulses away from the cell body

Question 3

Synapse

Answer 3

A junction (meeting) between two neurons (nerve cells) consisting of a gap across which impulses pass by diffusion of a neurotransmitter

Question 4

Neurotransmitters

Answer 4

A chemical substance that is released at the end of a nerve fiber by the arrival of a nerve impulse. Moves across the synapse and causes the impulse to move to another nerve fibre.

Question 5

Post-Synaptic Neurons

Answer 5

Within a neuron that receives the neurotransmitter after it has crossed the synapse and may experience an action potential if the neurotransmitter is strong enough

Question 6

Post-Synaptic Potential (Graded Potential)

Answer 6

A change in the electrical potential on the membrane of an excitable cell in response to a stimulus

Question 7

Excitatory Post-Synaptic Potentials

Answer 7

The change in the membrane voltage of a postsynaptic cell following the influx of positively charged ions into a cell

Question 8

Inhibitory Post-Synaptic Potentials

Answer 8

A kind of synaptic potential that makes a postsynaptic neuron less likely to generate an action potential

Question 9

Psychopharmacology

Answer 9

Scientific study of the effects of drugs on the mind and behavior

Question 10

Psychoactive Drugs

Answer 10

A substance that affects how the brain works and causes changes in mood, awareness, thoughts etc.

Question 11

Cerebral Cortex

Answer 11

Outermost part of the forebrain - responsible for analyzing sensory processing, programming motor movements, and higher brain functions

Question 12

Frontal Lobe

Answer 12

Contains motor and prefrontal cortex - responsible for motor function, language, memory, abstract thinking etc.

Question 13

Motor Cortex

Answer 13

Within the cerebral cortex of the brain that is involved in the planning, control, and execution of voluntary movements

Question 14

Prefrontal Cortex

Answer 14

Within the cerebral cortex of the brain that is implicated in complex behaviors including planning, and largely contributes to personality development

Question 15

Broca’s Area

Answer 15

Located in the left hemisphere and is specialized for speech and language production

Question 16

Parietal Lobe

Answer 16

Specialized for touch and perception

Question 17

Somatosensory Cortex

Answer 17

Registers information from the skin senses, muscles, and joints

Question 18

Broca’s Aphasia

Answer 18

A type of aphasia characterized by a lack of fluency of speech

Question 19

Action Potential

Answer 19

The change in electric potential that propagates along the axon of a neuron during the transmission of a nerve impulse

Question 20

Brain-Mapping

Answer 20

The creation of a visual representation of the brain in which different functions are assigned to different brain regions

Question 21

Neuropsychology

Answer 21

The study of the relationship between behavior, emotion, cognition and then brain function

Question 22

Ablation Lesion

Answer 22

Represents the tissue region that has undergone irreversible injury’s

Question 23

Electroencephalography (EEG)

Answer 23

A test that detects abnormalities in your brain waves, or in the electrical activity of your brain

Question 24

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

Answer 24

A method used for studiying yhr functions of the brain - uses a powerful magnetic field, radio waves, and a computer to produce detailed pictures of the inside of the body

Question 25

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)

Answer 25

Non-invasive method of brain stimulation that relies on electromagnetic induction using an insulated coil placed over the scalp

Question 26

Magnetoencephalography (MEG)

Answer 26

A non-invasive medical test that measures the magnetic fields produced by your brain’s electrical currents

Question 27

Sensation

Answer 27

The detection of physical energy by sense organs which then send information to the brain

Question 28

Perception

Answer 28

The brains interpretation of raw sensory inputs

Question 29

Sensation: bottom-up processing

Answer 29

The input/information of sensory information from the external environment is received by the sensory receptors (ex. light waves - touch the corneas - brain processes information)

Question 30

Perception: top-down processing

Answer 30

Perceptions begin with the most general and move toward the more specific - generally heavily influenced by our expectations and prior knowledge

Question 31

Perceptual Sets

Answer 31

The relations between a stimulus and its context

Question 32

Sense Receptors

Answer 32

Specialized cells responsible for converting external stimuli into neural activity

Question 33

Transduction

Answer 33

The process of converting external energy or a substance into neural activity

Question 34

Absolute Threshold

Answer 34

This is the smallest level of stimulus that can be detected

Question 35

Difference Threshold

Answer 35

This is the minimum level of stimulation that a person can detect 50 percent of the time

Question 36

Semantic Priming

Answer 36

Refers to the observation that a response to a target (dog) is faster when it is preceded by a semantically related prime (cat) then compared to an unrelated prime (car)