The Nervous System Flashcards
What is the nervous system?
complex network of nerve cells that carry messages from the brain and spinal cord to different parts of the body
What are the functions of the nervous system?
- collects, processes and responds to information from the environement (stimuli)
- co-ordinate the working of different organs and cells
What is the nervous system divided into?
- Central Nervous System
- Peripheral Nervous System
What is the CNS made up of?
- the spinal cord
- brain
What are the functions of the CNS?
- controls behaviour
- regulates the physiological processes
What is the spinal cord?
a collection of nerve cells that extend from the brain
What is the spinal cord’s function?
- it relays information between the brain and the body
- thus allowing the brain to monitor and regulate body processes (breathing, digestion, movement ect)
- allows us to perform simple reflexes and connects to PNS too
What is the purpose of the brain?
- involved in pschological processes
- maintains life
What are the main areas of the brain?
- cerebrum
- cerebellum
- diencephalon
- brain stem
Describe the cerebrum.
- largest part of the brain
- made up of frontal, parietal, temporal and occipital lobe
What are the cerebral hemispheres?
the two halfs of the cerebrum
How do the cerebral hemisphere communicate?
Through the corpus callosum
What is the function of the frontal lobe?
- involved in thought and speech production
- intergates thoughts and memory into action
What is the function of the pariatle lobe?
integrates sensory information and spacial awareness
What are the function of the occipital lobe?
involved in processing visual images
What is the function of temporal lobe?
integrates sensory information and language into memory
Where is the cerebellum?
under the cerebrum
What is the function of the cerebellum?
controls a person’s motor skills, balance and allows them to coordinate muscles for precise movement
What are the consequences to damages to the cerebellum?
- speech and motor problems
- epilepsy
What makes up the diencephalon?
- thalamus
- hypothalamus
Where is the diencephalon?
ontop of the brain stem and beneath the cerebrum
What is the function of the thalamus?
relay station for nerve impulses by routing them to the right part of the brain for them to be processed
What is the function of the hypothalamus?
- regulates body temperature, hunger and thirst
- links the endocrine and nervous system by controlling the release of hormones from the pituitary glands
What is the function of the brain stem?
- regulates essential automatic functions (breathing and heartbeat for example)#
- motor and sensory neurons travel through these to pass between the brain and spinal cord
What is the function of the peripheral nervous system
- it transmits messages via millions of neurons to and from the CNS
What is the PNS?
all the nervses outside of the CNS
What makes up the peripheral nervous system?
- somatic nervous system
- autonomic nervous system
What is the function of the somatic nervous system?
- it controls muscle movement
- transmits and recieves information from sensory receptors
- they are also involved in relex actions without the involvement of the CNS,allowing it to occur quickly
What is the purpose of the autonomic nervous system?
- transmits and recieves information from organs and glands
- involuntarily governs vital functions in the body (breathing, heart rate, digestion, sexual arousal and responses)
What is the peripheral nervous system split into?
- sympathetic nervous system
- parasympathetic nervous system
Describe the sympathetic nervous system.
- controls fight or flight response by preparing body for strenuous physical activity
- does this using the noradrenaline and releasing stored energy
What are the ways that the sympathetic nervous system can respond to danger?
- dialtes broncus to increase breathing abilities
- increases glucose production for respiration
- dialtes eyes to increase eyesight
- and slows unimportant processes (like digestion)
Describe the parasympathetic nervous system.
- they are a netwrok of nerves that relaxes your body after danger/stress
- has inhibiting effects and does this using acetylcholine
- helps with digestion and conserves energy
What are the ways that the parasympathetic nervous system can respond after danger?
- stimulates salivary glands and stimulates activity in the intestines (for digestion)
- slows heartbeat
- slows respiration by inhibiting release of glucose
