Midterm Two Flashcards
What are the meninges?
The meninges are a three-layered membrane encasing the brain and spinal cord.
What is the Cerebro-Spinal Fluid?
Cerebro-Spinal Fluid (or CSF for short) is a colourless, odourless, nutritive “soup”, that surrounds the brain and spinal cord.
What is included in the forebrain?
The forebrain includes the central cortex, limbic system, basal ganglia, thalamus, and hypothalamus.
What is the function of the limbic system?
The limbic system is the network of structures within the brain involved in the regulation of motivated behaviours, emotions, and memory.
What is the function of the axon?
Axons, also called the nerve fibre, carry messages (called “action potentials”) away from the Soma toward other cells.
What is a Node of Ranvier?
Gap in the myelin sheath
What is included in the midbrain?
Several sections, including superior and inferior colliculi (colliculus), substantia nigra, mescenphalon
What is the role of the cerebellum?
The cerebellum coordinates information about “intended movements”, with current sensorimotor feedback to control movement.
Definition of homoeostasis
The term homeostasis refers to the regulation of the body’s internal processes to maintain a stable internal environment.
What is the cerebral cortex involved in?
The cerebral cortex is the grey matter- which is involved in perception, memory, and thoughts.
How does the cerebral cortex of humans differ from the cerebral cortex of mammals?
Most mammals possess a smooth cerebral cortex. However, humans possess a deeply convoluted (furrowed) cerebral cortex; full of bulges and grooves. These bulges and grooves allow for us to engage in more complex cognitive activity.
Definition of lateralization.
The central hemispheres are referred to in the plural; as the cerebrum is divided into two halves, called the right and left hemispheres respectively. While some functions are not shared equally (that is to say, located primarily on one side), both halves communicate via the corpus callosum.
What area of the cerebral cortex translates physical sensory input into impulses and sends those nerve impulses to the brain?
The primary somatosensory cortex.
What is the role of afferent nerves in the Autonomic Nervous System?
Afferent nerves in the Autonomic Nervous System carry signals to the Central Nervous System
The nervous system is divided into:
The Peripheral and Central Nervous System
The Central Nervous System is divided into:
The Brain and Spinal Cord
The Peripheral Nervous System is divided into:
The Somatic and Autonomic Nervous System.
What do myelin sheaths do?
The myelin (The fatty white substance which encircles axons), creates a myelin sheath, which is insulating material derived from specialized glial cells. In case of deterioration, signals may not be well-transmitted (for example, loss of muscle control in Multiple Sclerosis). Myelin sheaths stabilize axon structure and patterns of connectivity within neural network. They speed up transmission of signals in axons and are generally very efficient.
What is Hebbin’s learning rule?
When a neuron stimulates another neuron repeatedly, this produces changes in the synapse (ie: learning!).
What are dendrites?
Dendrites serve to receive most of the synaptic contacts from other neurons and then send this information to the soma.
The basal ganglia is involved in the performance of what?
Voluntary motor responses
The gland that is called the “master gland”, which releases tropic hormones whose primary purpose is to influence the release of hormones from other glands.
The pituitary gland.
What are terminal buttons?
Terminal buttons are the button-like endings of axon branches, which release chemicals (neurotransmitters) into the synapses.
Function of the hypothalamus
The hypothalamus monitors and regulates the internal functioning of the body.
The Autonomic Nervous System is the part of the Peripheral Nervous System that participates in…
…the regulation of the internal environment (controlling the internal organs and glands).
Definition of Sensation
The detection of simple properties of stimuli without making sense of them
Distal Stimulus
The stimulus in the environment
Proximal stimulus
The stimulus as it is stimulating our sense receptors
Perception
The detection of more complex properties of stimuli- this involves learning. Perception is a rapid, automatic, unconscious process where we recognize what is provided by our sense organs.
Bottom-up processing
Examining each of the components of the environmental stimulus first, then synesthizing the whole.
Top-down processing
Using our existing cognitive structures (memories, thoughts) to influence our processing of the environmental stimulus.
Transduction
The conversion of one form of energy to another form of energy.
Receptor Cells
Specialized neurons that receive the incoming environmental stimulus and turn this into an action potential (which is carried toward the Central Nervous System)
Anatomical Coding
Different types of environmental energy are coded by different neurons. The brain interprets the location and type of sensory stimulus according to which incoming nerve fibres are active.
Temporal Coding
Another way that the nervous system represents information. Some features are coded by the pattern of neural activity.
Psychophysics
“The physics of the mind”- ergo, the study of the relationship between the physical characteristics (distal stimulus) and the sensations they produce (proximal stimulus). The goal of psychophysics is to chart the relationships between a person’s responses (proximal stimulus) and characteristics of the stimulus (distal stimulus). These can vary based on the situation and person.
Signal Detection Theory
Every stimulus event requires discrimination between the signal and noise. Emphasizes that sensation involves factors other than just the activity of the sensory systems- factors such as motivation and prior experience.
Signal
The stimulus (which may or may not be detected).
Noise
The background stimuli and any random activity in our nervous system
Just-Noticeable Difference
The smallest change in the magnitude of the stimulus that a person can detect (also called the difference threshold).
Threshold
The line between not perceiving and perceiving and perceiving. This can refer to perceiving/not perceiving the change in the stimulus.
Weber’s law
In order to detect a difference between two stimuli, they must differ by some minimum percentage (not by a set value).
Response Bias
Subject’s tendency to indicate detection (a yes or a no) when they are unsure whether they actually have a stimulus. A subject’s natural response bias can influence a psychologist’s natural understanding of the threshold of detection.
ROC Curve
Receiver Operating Characteristic Curve.
Cones
More sensitive in dim light, thus useful for night vision. Because
these aren’t in the fovea, rods are also largely responsible for peripheral
vision (but there will be some cones outside of the fovea). Not good for
detecting colour. Have three types of photopigment.
Fovea
A small area in the retina that contains only cones. Directly in our “line of sight.” Responsible for our most acute vision.
Rods
More sensitive in dim light, thus useful for night vision. Because
these aren’t in the fovea, rods are also largely responsible for peripheral
vision (but there will be some cones outside of the fovea). Not good for
detecting colour.
Rhodopsin
The photopigment of the Rods
Pheromones
Odors that are released by
an animal and elicit specific patterns of
behaviour in members of the same species
Absolute threshold
Refers to the minimum value of a stimulus that can be detected.
Four possibilities in judging the presence or absence of a stimulus
Hit, Miss, False Alarm, Correct Negative
Stroop Effect
Motivation, emotion, & prior experience play a role in our perceptual
processes.We can not easily “turn off” these automatic processes.
Retina
Thin layer of neurons that consist of the rod and cone receptors (as well as other types of neurons)
