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Psychology 2024 > The Brain SAC > Flashcards

The Brain SAC Flashcards

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1
Q

The Nervous System

A

It receives sensory information, processes information and organises a coordinated response to information.
Is comprised of the CNS and PNS.

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2
Q

Central Nervous System

A

The CNS comprises of the brain and the spinal cord.
It coordinates all incoming sensory info and initiates outgoing motor messages.
The brain is the master controller and the spine acts as a message highway.

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3
Q

PNS

A

Comprised of all the nerves outside of the CNS and carries messages between the CNS and muscles, glands, organs etc.

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4
Q

Autonomic Nervous System

A

Is a subdivision of the PNS.
Enables communication between PNS and CNS regarding involuntary movement.
e.g. basic survival processes like breathing.
Has a major role in stress, fear and anger and contains 2 subdivision.

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5
Q

Somatic Nervous System

A

Is a subdivision of the PNS.
Enables communication between PNS and CNS regarding voluntary movement.
SOMA MEANS BODY

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6
Q

Sympathetic Nervous System

A

Subdivision of the ANS.
Increases our environmental arousal. Dominant in response to perceived threats, stressful situations or psychological or physiological stimuli.
S IS FOR STRESS

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7
Q

Parasympathetic Nervous System

A

Subdivision of the ANS.
It maintains homeostasis by lowering arousal and returning the body to a calm state.
PARA STANDS FOR PARACHUTE

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8
Q

Hindbrain

A
  • Located at the base of the brain.
  • Controls autonomic functions and reflexes e.g. breathing
  • Contains the cerebellum
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9
Q

Cerebellum

A

The cerebellum is the ‘little brain’ on the underside of the brain behind the stem. It plays a role in balance and coordination. It enables ‘muscle memory’ and voluntary muscle movement.
JESS FALLING OVER

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10
Q

Location, Role, What does it contain?

Midbrain

A
  • Located between the Forebrain and the Hindbrain.
  • Plays an important role in relaying information between regions and CNS.
  • Contains the Reticular Formation and the Basal Ganglia
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11
Q

Reticular Formation

A

It controls physiological arousal and filters sensory information coming into the brain.

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12
Q

Basal Ganglia

A

Plays a role in; procedural memory, planning and control of motor skills and encoding implicit (internal) memories related to movement.

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13
Q

Forebrain

A

It is the largest and most complex brain region, it is involved in sophisticated mental processes and complex functions such as emotions, motivations, learning, memory and reasoning.
The forebrain contains the cerebrum, the hippocampus and the amygdala.

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14
Q

Cerebrum and Cerebral Cortex

A

The cerebrum is the largest and most developed part of the brain. It is responsible for most of our actions. It is divided into 2 hemispheres.
The outer layer is called the cerebral cortex which coordinates complex mental functions and processes.

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15
Q

Hippocampus

A

It transfers short-term memories into long-term memories. It doesn’t store anything but plays a role in language memories. If it is damaged a person will have difficulty consolidating explicit (external) memories in long-term memory.
Reduction in hippocampal volume is one of the earliest signs of Alzheimer’s.

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16
Q

What is is? and What happens if it is damaged?

Amygdala

A

Helps to encode and store the emotional component of implicit memories. If it is damaged; Impaired ability to express and interpret emotions and a lack of a fear response.

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17
Q

What was the experiment? Why did they do it? What happened?

The Split Brain

A

2 hemispheres are connected by the corpus callosum. In the 1960s and 70s, doctors severed this to prevent seizures. This led to patients’ brains acting separately and without communication.

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18
Q

Corpus Callosum
What is it? What does it do? What happens when it is cut?

A

The part that connects and enables communication between the two hemispheres.
When severed, it causes divided cognitive systems due to each hemisphere having different abilities and functions.

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19
Q

Frontal Lobe

A
  • Sophisticated mental activities
  • Regulates emotions and personalities
  • Voluntary movement
    Contains the; prefrontal lobe, premotor cortex, primary motor cortex and Broca’s area. PHINEAS GAGE
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20
Q

Prefrontal Cortex

A
  • Coordinates complex mental processes
  • Recognizes and plans motor movement
  • sends info to the premotor cortex
    WHAT TO DO
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21
Q

Premotor Cortex

A
  • Receives info and processes it into motions
  • sends motions to the primary motor cortex
    HOW TO DO IT
22
Q

Primary Motor Cortex

A
  • Receives the motions
  • Initiates voluntary motor movements
  • Signals cerebellum to relay info
    DOING IT
23
Q

Broca’s Area

A
  • Production of speech
  • only in the left frontal lobe
    Damages can cause Broca’s Aphasia (can understand speech but cannot produce it effectively.) SARAH SCOTT
24
Q

Does 3 things

Parietal Lobe

A

The region behind the frontal lobe. It plays a role in spatial awareness, spatial reasoning and processing somatosensory info.

25
Q

It does two things, info and ALFIE

Primary Somatosensory Cortex

A

Located in the parietal lobe.
It receives and processes somatic(bodily)sensory info.
e.g. pain, temperature and touch.
Helps us understand our body’s position in space to coordinate our senses and movement.
ALFIE

26
Q

Occipital Lobe

A

Located at the rear of the brain and plays a major role in vision.
Contains the primary visual cortex.

27
Q

Primary Visual Cortex

A
  • Located in the Occipital Lobe
  • Enables interpretation of visual info.
    Damage causes chronic blindness
28
Q

Temporal Lobe

A

At the bottom of the brain.
Receives and processes sounds and the responses to sounds.
Plays a critical role in understanding sounds of speech.
Contains the primary auditory cortex and Wernicke’s Area.

29
Q

Primary Auditory Cortex

A

Located in the temporal lobe.
The left PAC processes verbal sounds (language).
The right PAC processes non-verbal sounds (music)
Damage causes the patient to be deaf with no damage to the ears.

30
Q

Wernicke’s Area

A

Located in the temporal lobe.
Responsible for the comprehension of speech and enables meaningful and coherent speech.
Damage causes Wernicke’s Aphasia or the inability to produce or interpret meaningful speech.

31
Q

Synaptic Plasticity: LTP

A

Long-term potentiation is where connections are strengthened relatively permanently through repeating activation.

32
Q

Synaptic Plasticity: LTD

A

Long-term Depression is where connections are weakened relatively permanently through repeated low-level activation.

33
Q

Developmental Plasticity

A

Occurs in response to aging and maturing.

34
Q

Synaptogenesis

A

Where more synapses form between axon terminal and dendrites of neurons.

35
Q

Synaptic Pruning

A

The elimination of underused synapses.

36
Q

Adaptive Plasticity

A

Occurs due to a need to adapt to best suit an environment.

37
Q

Sprouting

A

The formation of new branches in a neuron.

38
Q

Rerouting

A

The formation of new connections to avoid damaged neurons.

39
Q

How do psycho-social impacts relate to the site of injury with an ABI?

A

Different regions of the brain are responsible for various functions, so damage to particular areas can result in distinct psychological, emotional, and social consequences.

40
Q

Define it and examples

TBI

A

Damage to the brain is caused by an external force. e.g. car accident, physical assault, shaken-baby syndrome or sporting knocks.

41
Q

(Pyscho, social and bio)

Phineas Gage

A

An iron rod passed through Gage’s frontal lobe. His personality was affected (PYSCHO) and his friends said that ‘he was no longer Gage.’ (SOCIAL)
He began having seizures afterwards and died from one twelve years after the accident. (BIO)

42
Q

Case study

A

An in-depth investigation into one person’s experience.

43
Q

Definition and Examples

NTBI

A

Damage to the brain is caused over time by internal factors. e.g. near-drowning, Alzheimer’s, stroke or substance abuse.

44
Q

Alzheimer’s Disease

A
  • Is a degenerative NTBI
  • It progressively destroys neurons in the brain.
45
Q

Cognitive, Emotional, Behavioural

Effects of Alzheimer’s

A

Cognitive:
- Understanding, thinking, remembering and communicating
Emotional:
- Withdrawn, General apathy, restless, and violent outbursts
Behavioural:
- Physical decline, failure to; eat, shower and dress themselves.

46
Q

Signs of Alzheimer’s

A

Amyloid Plaques:
- Can’t break it down, so it collects and blocks neuron signals
Neurofibrillary Tangles:
- Twisted strands of the tau protein (found in dead/dying nerve cells) clump together.
- It blocks substances from moving around causing the death of brain cells.

47
Q

CTE

A

A progressive and fatal brain disease associated with repeated TBIs.
AARON HERNANDEZ

48
Q

Effects of CTE

A

Memory loss, Depression, Anxiety, Paranoia, Mood impairments (aggression) and impairments in executive functioning (e.g. reasoning and decision-making)
- It causes parts of the brain to waste away (atrophy)

49
Q

CTE VS Alzheimer’s

A

Both contain the presence of p-tau and neurofibrillary tangles and similar outward responses but CTE doesn’t get amyloid plaque build-ups.

50
Q

Diagnosing CTEs

A
  • Can only be diagnosed post-mortem
  • Confirmed with the presence of p-tau and lack of amyloid plaque.
  • Researchers try to use CT scans to look for structural problems in areas of the brain where damage is possible if a CTE is suspected.

Psychology 2024 (7 decks)

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