Key Words

Question 1

Nervous system

Answer 1

Consists of the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system. Communicates using electrical signals

Question 2

Central nervous system

Answer 2

Consists of the brain and the spinal cord and is the origin of all complex commands and decisions

Question 3

Peripheral nervous system

Answer 3

Sends information to the CNS from the outside world, and transmits messages from the CNS to muscles and glands in the body

Question 4

Somatic nervous system

Answer 4

Transmits information from receptor cells in the sense organs to the CNS. It also receives information from the CNS that directs muscles to act

Question 5

Autonomic nervous system

Answer 5

Transmits information to and from internal bodily organs. It is ‘autonomic’ as the system operates involuntarily (i.e. automatic). It has two main divisions: the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems

Question 6

Neuron

Answer 6

The basic building blocks of the nervous system, neurons are nerve cells that process and transmit messages through electrical and chemical signals

Question 7

Sensory neurons

Answer 7

These carry messages from the PNS to the CNS. They have long dendrites and short axons

Question 8

Relay neurons

Answer 8

These connect the sensory neurons to the motor or other relay neurons. They have short dendrites and short axons

Question 9

Motor neurons

Answer 9

These connect the CNS to effectors such as muscles and glands. They have short dendrites and long axons

Question 10

Synaptic transmission

Answer 10

The process by which neighbouring neurons communicate with each other by sending chemical messages across the gap (the synapse) that separates them

Question 11

Neurotransmitter

Answer 11

Brain chemicals released from synaptic vesicles that relay signals across the synapse from one neuron to another. Neurotransmitters can be broadly divided into those that perform an excitatory function and those that perform an inhibitory function

Question 12

Excitation

Answer 12

When a neurotransmitter, such as adrenaline, increases the positive charge of the postsynaptic neuron. This increases the likelihood that the postsynaptic neuron will pass on the electrical impulse

Question 13

Inhibition

Answer 13

When a neurotransmitter, such as serotonin, increases the negative charge of the postsynaptic neuron. This decreases the likelihood that the postsynaptic neuron will pass on the electrical impulse

Question 14

Localisation of function

Answer 14

The theory that different areas of the brain are responsible for specific behaviours, processes or activities

Question 15

Motor area

Answer 15

A region of the frontal lobe involved in regulating movement

Question 16

Somatosensory area

Answer 16

An area of the parietal lobe that processes sensory information such as touch

Question 17

Visual area

Answer 17

A part of the occipital lobe that receives and processes visual information

Question 18

Auditory area

Answer 18

Located in the temporal lobe and concerned with the analysis of speech-based information

Question 19

Broca’s area

Answer 19

An area of the frontal lobe in the left hemisphere (in most people), responsible for speech production

Question 20

Wernicke’s area

Answer 20

An area of the temporal lobe (encircling the auditory cortex) in the left hemisphere (in most people), responsible for language comprehension

Question 21

Hemispheric lateralisation

Answer 21

The idea that the two halves (hemispheres) of the brain are functionally different and that certain mental processes and behaviours are mainly controlled by one hemisphere rather than the other, as in the example of language (which is localised as well as lateralised)

Question 22

Split-brain research

Answer 22

A series of studies which began in the 1960s (and are still ongoing) involving people with epilepsy who had experienced a surgical separation of the hemispheres of their brain to reduce the severity of their epilepsy. This enabled researchers to test lateral functions of the brain in isolation

Question 23

Plasticity

Answer 23

This describes the brain’s tendency to change and adapt as a result of experience and new learning. This generally involves the growth of new connections

Question 24

Functional recovery

Answer 24

A form of plasticity. Following damage through trauma, the brain’s ability to redistribute or transfer functions usually performed by a damaged area(s) to other, undamaged area(s)

Question 25

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)

Answer 25

A method used to measure brain activity while a person is performing a task. fMRI detects radio waves from changing magnetic fields. This enables researchers to detect which regions of the brain are rich in oxygen and thus are active

Question 26

Electroencephalogram (EEG)

Answer 26

A record of the tiny electrical impulses produced by the brain’s activity. By measuring characteristic wave patterns, the EEG can help diagnose certain conditions of the brain

Question 27

Event-related potentials (ERPs)

Answer 27

The electrophysiological response of the brain to a specific sensory, cognitive, or motor event that can be isolated through statistical analysis of EEG data

Question 28

Post-mortem examinations

Answer 28

The brain is analysed after death to determine whether certain observed behaviours during the person’s lifetime can be linked to structural abnormalities in the brain