neuroscience

Question 1

Distinctive feature of neurons

Answer 1

Ability to communicate with other cells
Transmission of information across relatively long distances

Question 2

Myelin sheath

Answer 2

Improves the efficiency of neural transmissions
Also called the white matter
Only found in nervous system of higher animals
Damage to myelin sheath can be tragic and severe

Question 3

Resting stat

Answer 3

State in which there is a negative electrical charge of about −70 millivolts within a neuron

Question 4

Action potential

Answer 4

Electric nerve impulse that travels through a neuron’s axon when it is set off by a “trigger”
Positive electrical charge of about +40 millivolts within a neuron

Question 5

Speed at which an action potential travels along an axon is determined by the:

Answer 5

Axon’s size
Thickness of the myelin sheath

Question 6

Neurons differ in terms of:

Answer 6

Quickness of an impulse moving along the axon
Potential rate of firing

Question 7

Excitatory message:

Answer 7

a chemical message that makes it more likely that a receiving neuron will fire and an action potential will travel down its axon.

Question 8

Inhibitory message

Answer 8

a chemical message that prevents or decreases the likelihood that a receiving neuron will fire.

Question 9

synthesis:

Answer 9

transmitter molecules are formed inside the neuron

Question 10

storage

Answer 10

transmitter molecules are stored in synaptic vesicles which are chambers within axon terminals.

Question 11

release

Answer 11

When released form presynaptic (sending) neuron, transmitter molecules move from synaptic vesicles across the gap

Question 12

binding

Answer 12

transmitter molecules bind themselves to receptor sites in the postsynaptic (receiving) neuron

Question 13

transmitter molecules bind themselves to receptor sites in the postsynaptic (receiving) neuron

Answer 13

Receiving neurons awash, in a continual chemical bath
Producing constant stimulation or constant inhibition of the receiving neurons
Effective communication across the synapse would no longer be possible

Question 14

Reuptake

Answer 14

Reabsorption of neurotransmitters by a terminal button

Question 15

Spinal cord:

Answer 15

Bundle of neurons that leaves the brain and runs down the length of the back
Main means for transmitting messages between the brain and the body
Controls simple behaviors on its own, without any help from the brain

Question 16

Sensory (afferent) neurons

Answer 16

Transmit information from the perimeter of the body to the central nervous system

Question 17

Motor (efferent) neurons

Answer 17

Communicate information from the nervous system to muscles and glands

Question 18

Somatic division

Answer 18

Specializes in the control of voluntary movements and the communication of information to and from the sense organs

Question 19

Autonomic division

Answer 19

Controls involuntary movement of the heart, glands, lungs, and other organs

Question 20

Controls involuntary movement of the heart, glands, lungs, and other organs

Answer 20

prepares the body for action in stressful situations, engaging all the organism’s resources to respond to a threat.

Question 21

Parasympathetic division

Answer 21

acts to calm the body after an emergency has ended.

Question 22

Hindbrain contains:

Answer 22

Medulla: Controls a critical body functions, such as breathing and heartbeat
Pons: Bridge in the hindbrain
Acts as a transmitter of motor information
Involved in regulating sleep
Cerebellum: Part of the brain that controls bodily balance

Question 23

Cerebellum

Answer 23

Motor-coordination Centre
Concerned with muscular movement coordination, learning, and memory
Regulates complex movements that require precise timing
Cerebellum functions are easily disrupted by alcohol
Intellectual functioning.

Question 24

Reticular formation

Answer 24

A nerve network that extends from the medulla through the pons, passing through the midbrain and the forebrain
The gatekeeper (sleep-wake cycle)
Produces general arousal of the body

Question 25

Thalamus

Answer 25

Part of the brain located in the middle of the central core that acts primarily to relay information about the senses
***schizophrenia

Question 26

Hypothalamus

Answer 26

Maintains homeostasis
Produces and regulates behavior that is critical to the basic survival of the species
Eating, self-protection, sex (pleasure centers), body temperature
Reaction to stress

Question 27

Limbic system

Answer 27

Part of the brain that controls eating, aggression, and reproduction
Includes the amygdala and hippocampus (and hypothalamus)
Plays an important role in emotion, learning, and memory, along with hippocampus

Question 28

Cerebral Cortex

Answer 28

Responsible for the most sophisticated information processing in the brain

Question 29

temporal lobe

Answer 29

Auditory area

Question 30

occipital lobe

Answer 30

visual area

Question 31

Broca’s aphasia areas of cortex

Answer 31

difficulty speaking.

Question 32

Wernicke’s aphasia areas of cortex

Answer 32

difficulty understanding others’ speech and in producing language.

Question 33

Neuroplasticity

Answer 33

the brain’s ability to change throughout the life span through the addition of new neurons, new interconnections between neurons, and the reorganization of information-processing areas.

Question 34

Hemispheres

Answer 34

symmetrical left and right halves of the brain that control the side of the body opposite to their location.
Left hemisphere tends to process information sequentially, particularly in verbal areas.
Right hemisphere tends to process information globally, particularly in nonverbal areas.

Question 35

Lateralization

Answer 35

the dominance of one hemisphere of the brain in specific functions, such as language.
Note that the differences are not great, and the two hemispheres work interdependently.

Question 36

ft hemisphere:

Answer 36

Verbal abilities, speech, mathematical and logical abilities
Aphasia: partial or total loss of the ability to communicate
Results from damage to Broca’s or Wernicke’s
Associated with more positive emotions.
Mode of processing is analytical: processes information bit by bit.

Question 37

right hemisphere

Answer 37

Spatial relations
Face recognition, cognitive maps
Mental imagery
Musical and artistic abilities
Associated with negative emotions
Tends to be more holistic: It processes information with respect to global patterns

Question 38

The split brain:

Answer 38

Gives a chance to study the functions of two hemispheres in isolation (Sperry, 1982).