PSY 102 Biological psychology chapter 3 Flashcards
what is a sensory neuron
takes information from the outside world and sends deeper into the brain and neuron system
what is an inter-neuron
sends information to each other, processing info to do things connected to parts of body to see how or what the body is feeling
what is a Motorneurons
carries info from sensory and interneurons to your muscles to make them move
what is four the function of the glial cells
placeholders: tells neurons where to go and how to
nutrient and oxygen suppliers: takes oxygen from the blood supply and pass them to the neurons so they can work
insulators: the myelin sheath around the axon that speeds up transmission
house-keepers: tidy away dead neurons
what are the basics structure of a neuron
soma- cell body
axon hillock- sums the total excitatory and inhibitory
axon - sends the action potential to the terminal buttons
terminal if there is enough excitatory messages
terminal buttons- “connect” to the dendrites of the next neuron
what is an action potential
the electrical part of the message that one neuron can send along to another neuron if there is enough excitatory messages
what is the role of myelin sheath
a fatty layer around the axon of some neurons. Protects the axon from interference by other neurons. Lets the message jump from one axon to the other( faster)
how and why can a neuron can change their firing rate
if there is more excitatory messages than required for the axon potential to go the speed of the frequency
what is a neurotransmitter
the chemical messenger. when the action potential reaches terminal buttons, it triggers the release of chemicals into the synapse
how do neurotransmitters create an excitation
a neurotransmitter goes into the synapse and connects to a receptor site. The receptor site opens up a specific channel for sodium to go through to the dendrites making it more positive
how do neurotransmitters create inhibition reaction
the neurotransmitters goes into the synapse and connects to a receptor site that opens a channel that allows for chloride to enter. after another neurotransmitter connects to another receptor site that opens a channel for potassium to go back into the synapse making it negative
what is an agonist and how does it work
an agonist acts on the body like an excitation reaction
what are examples of an agonist
nicotine, heroin, morphine
how do antagonists work
they work as an inhibitory reaction by blocking the receptor site
what are examples of an antagonists
caffeine
how do interconnected neurons form networks using the example of a reflex
what does neural plasticity mean
the ability of your brain to change the pattern of connection between your neurons as neural plasticity
how does studying the effects of brain damage inform our understanding of the functions of parts of the brain
if specific region of the brain gets injured and someone loses the ability to do something only after the injury, there is a high likelihood of that function is managed by that part of the brain
describe what we know about Broca’s and Wernicke’s area
Broca’s area is located just above the left temple and injury to it results in slow speech often agrammatical.
Wernickes area is located above and behind the left ear and injury sustained to that area causes jumbled speech and the person often loses focus and jumps from topic to topic
what are the disadvantages of relying on studies of brain damage to tell us about brain function
brain damage is normally widespread which means that multiple areas of the brain are effect so it is hard to identify what part of the brain is affecting what function
describe how methods that stimulate the electrical activity of the brain can tell us about brain functions
If a part of your brain is stimulated and you start moving your arm, that part of the brain controls the function of that arm
what is a less invasive way for stimulating the electrical activity in the brain
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
what is an EEG (electroencephalograph)
enables us to see where the electrical activity is happening in the brain to see which parts of the brain are being used during an activity
what does a fMRI do
used to see where the blood is travelling to in the brain to see which parts of the brain are being used during an activity
describe the different networks of neurons in the PNS and what their functions are
Autonomic system that goes to and from your organs. Motor and sensory neurons.
sympathetic division- prepares for action
parasympathetic division- calms the body down
somatic system- nerves that go to and from you muscles, joints, and skin. Monitors and adjusts the various movements of your body.
describe the major structures of the brain
hindbrain (directly on top of the spinal cord)
Pons and Medulla
Midbrain: sits on top of the hindbrain
forebrain: wraps around and sits on top of both
Hippocampus
cerebral cortex (sitting at the very top of the brain)
corpus callosum
Frontal
Parietal (middle in between frontal and occipital)
Occipital ( back of the brain)
Temporal (underneath all of the three)
what is the function of the hindbrain
functions as basic life support coordinating with your autonomic PNS to regulate heart rate etc
what is the function of the pons and medulla
taking those signals from the autonomic nervous system and unconsciously controlling our heart rate etc and involved in involuntary reflexes involving the throat (coughing and sneezing)
what is the function of the hippocampus
involved in the formation of new memories
what is the function of the cerebral cortex
controls conscious perceptions, thoughts, reasoning, voluntary movements etc
what is the function of the corpus callosum
serves a communication bridge between the two hemispheres
what is the function of frontal lobe
involved in planning, decision-making, inhibiting impulses
what is the function of the Parietal lobe
the sensory cortex. receives signals from the skin of the body to help you tell which part of the body is being touched
what is the function occipital lobe
the sit of most of our visual processing
what is the function of temporal lobe
auditory processing. highly active during language and sound base tasks
