Module 4: Physical Growth and Brain Development in Infancy

Question 1

axons

Answer 1

fibers that extend from the neurons and transmit electrochemical impulses from that neuron to the dendrites of other neuron

Question 2

cortex

Answer 2

the outer layers of the brain in humans and other mammals. Most thinking, feeling, and sensing involves the cortex

Question 3

dendrites

Answer 3

fibers that extend from neurons and receive electrochemical impulses transmitted from other neurons via their axons

Question 4

failure to thrive

Answer 4

decelerated or arrested physical growth (height and weight measurements fall below the third or fifth percentile or a downward change in growth across two major growth percentiles) and is associated with abnormal growth and development

Question 5

myelin

Answer 5

a coating of fatty tissues around the axon of the neuron

Question 6

neurons

Answer 6

nerve cells in the central nervous system, especially in the brain

Question 7

neurotransmitters

Answer 7

brain chemicals that carry information from the axon of a sending neuron to the dendrites of a receiving neuron

Question 8

percentile

Answer 8

a point on a ranking scale of 0 to 100. The 50th percentile is the midpoint; half of the infants in the population being studied rank higher and half rank lower

Question 9

prefrontal cortex

Answer 9

the area of the cortex at the very front of the brain that specializes in anticipation, planning, and impulse control

Question 10

pruning

Answer 10

the process by which unused connections in the brain atrophy and die

Question 11

synapses

Answer 11

the intersection between the axon of one neuron to the dendrites of another neuron

Question 12

transient exuberance

Answer 12

the great, but temporary increase in the number of dendrites that develop in an infant’s brain during the first two years of life