LT1 - Biology in Behaviour

Question 1

What does CNS stand for?

Answer 1

Central Nervous System

Question 2

what is the CNS made up of?

Answer 2

The Brain and the Spinal cord.

Question 3

what do the nerves in our body do?

Answer 3

send information to via the spinal cord (a pathway within the vertebrae) to the brain.

Question 4

what does the brain do?

Answer 4

processes this information and sends a message to the body through the spinal cord.

Question 5

what is the hippocampus responsible for?

Answer 5

it is responsible for short term memory.

Question 6

which part of the brain is responsible for regulating eating behaviours?

Answer 6

Hypothalamus.

Question 7

how do neurones in the brain pass messages?

Answer 7

through electrical impulses/neurotransmitters.

Question 8

what do neurotransmitters cross to be picked up by a receptor site?

Answer 8

Synaptic gap

Question 9

what is a gene?

Answer 9

a carrier of information that contributes to a persons characteristic.

Question 10

how do you get your genes?

Answer 10

they are inherited from parents. 50% for each parent.

Question 11

what are genes made up of?

Answer 11

DNA (DeoxyriboNucleic Acid)

Question 12

what do DNA do?

Answer 12

Control gene activity.

Question 13

where are our genes found?

Answer 13

in our chromosomes. which is a long double chain of DNA found within the nuclei of each human cell.

Question 14

how many chromosomes do we inherit from each parent?

Answer 14

23 chromosomes. which is thought to account for shared behaviour traits between family members. e.g. eye colour, hair colour, height, personality.

Question 15

what is a neurone?

Answer 15

nerve cells (with a cell body with a nucleus) and receive and transmit messages.

Question 16

what are neurotransmitters?

Answer 16

chemical messengers responsible for passing messages from one neurone to the next. e.g. dopamine and serotonin.

Question 17

what do electric impulses do?

Answer 17

travel down axon (nerve fibres) and release neurotransmitters from terminal buttons on each neurone,

Question 18

where are receptors located?

Answer 18

on the dendrite (finger-like structures) of a receiving neutron.

Question 19

how are receptors shaped?

Answer 19

so only 1 type of neurotransmitter can fit into them (works like a jigsaw). e.g. a dopamine specific receptor only accepts dopamine neurotransmitters.

Question 20

what happens if the neurotransmitter is not taken by a nearby cell?

Answer 20

the message is stopped.

Question 21

what does the nature approach say our characteristics are determined by?

Answer 21

our biological make up. e.g. genes we inherit from our parents.

Question 22

how is our behaviour determined?

Answer 22

by our genotype. this is our genetic blueprint which is innate and beyond our control.

Question 23

what affects our brains and nervous system?

Answer 23

Genes.

Question 24

Since genes affect our nervous system what does that mean?

Answer 24

it affects or physical and psychological characteristics which in turn control behaviour.

Question 25

how is our sex determined?

Answer 25

whether we have a Y chromosome or not.

Question 26

what is it called when our behaviour is the influence of environment and upbringing?

Answer 26

Nurture

Question 27

how is our behaviour determine in the NuRture approach?

Answer 27

Through our learned experiences and interactions after birth such as our relationship with our parents.

Question 28

what do social learning theorists believe about children exposed to violent media?

Answer 28

they are more likely to be more aggressive.

Question 29

what us the Nature & Nurture interaction?

Answer 29

This idea that we develop our phenotype through genetic inheritance interacting with the same environments we encounter. This leads us to develop into unique individuals with particular characteristics.

Question 30

what does research into illnesses like schizophrenia suggest?

Answer 30

That faulty genes may be triggered by environment factors such as a major life event (e.g. death of a relative).