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Psychology > The Nervous System > Flashcards

The Nervous System Flashcards

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1
Q

What are the divisions of the nervous system?

A

The Central Nervous System and the peripheral nervous system

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2
Q

What are the divisions of the central nervous system?

A

The brain and the spinal cord

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3
Q

What is the function of the brain?

A

Controls thoughts, feelings and actions

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4
Q

What is the function of the spinal cord?

A

Connects the brain and the PNS

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5
Q

What are the divisions of the peripheral nervous system?

A

The autonomic nervous system and the somatic nervous system

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6
Q

What is the function of the somatic nervous system?

A

Communicates messages from the PNS to the skeletal muscles

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7
Q

What are the divisions of the autonomic nervous system?

A

Sympathetic and Parasympathetic nervous systems

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8
Q

What is the function of the sympathetic nervous system?

A

Prepares the body for action (activates FFF)

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9
Q

What is the function of the parasympathetic nervous system?

A

Calms body after action and returns it to and maintains homeostasis

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10
Q

What is the nervous system?

A

A complex and highly organised network that enables the brain to receive stimuli from both inside and outside the body

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11
Q

How does the nervous system work?

A

It serves as a communication system between internal cells and organs to the outside world.

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12
Q

What are the main functions of the nervous system?

A
  • Receive information
  • processes information
  • coordinate a response
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13
Q

How is information transmitted between the CNS and PNS?

A
  • afferent neurons detect external stimuli
  • information travels along the afferent tracks to the spinal cord
  • information is passed through the interneurons in the spinal cord
  • brain receives information and formulates a response
  • information passes back down to the interneuron
  • response travels down the efferent tracks to the motor neurons
  • muscles respond to external stimuli
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14
Q

Which hormone is released during FFF?

A

Adrenaline

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15
Q

What does adrenaline do during FFF?

A
  • increases heart rate and blood pressure to allow more blood to larger muscle groups
  • increases breathing rate to help oxygen levels
  • releases sugar and fat from storage for energy
  • dilates pupils to increase vision in low light
  • increases production of sweat glands to cool the body
  • slows digestion
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16
Q

What is a neuron?

A

An individual cell involved in the reception and transmission of information across the synapse

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17
Q

What is a dendrite and what is its function?

A
  • an extension of a neuron

- detects and receives information from other neurons

18
Q

What is the soma and what is its function?

A
  • cell body

- integrates information from dendrites

19
Q

What is an axon and what is its function?

A
  • extension of the soma

- transmits received neural information down the neuron

20
Q

What is the myelin sheath and what is its function?

A
  • a fatty substance that surrounds and insulates the axon

- prevents interference from the activity of other surrounding axons

21
Q

What is a terminal button and what is its function?

A
  • the end of an axon

- secretes neurotransmitters into the synapse

22
Q

What is the synaptic gap and what is its function?

A
  • the space between one neuron and another

- where communication occurs

23
Q

How does information travel through a neuron?

A
  • an electrical signal is received by the dendrite on the presynaptic neuron and sent to the soma
  • the action potential travels down the axon and to axon terminals
  • this stimulates the release of the neurotransmitter into the synapse where they bind to the dendrite of the postsynaptic neuron
24
Q

What is a conscious response?

A

A voluntary response that involves the awareness of the brain

25
Q

What is an unconscious response?

A

An involuntary response that doesn’t involve the awareness of the brain

26
Q

What is a spinal reflex?

A

An unconscious response to certain stimuli without any involvement of the brain

27
Q

How does a spinal reflex occur?

A

-the signal from the sensory neuron reaches the internueron and bypasses the brain, moving straight back down the motor neuron

28
Q

What is the purpose of a spinal reflex?

A

An adaptive response which enables a faster response time

29
Q

What is a neurotransmitter?

A

a chemical substance produced by a neuron that carries messages to the other neurons in the body

30
Q

What is the primary excitatory nuerotransmitter?

A

Glutamate

31
Q

What does glutamate do?

A

enhances information transmission by making postsynaptic neurons more likely to fire

32
Q

What is the primarry inhibitory neurotransmitter?

A

GABA

33
Q

What does GABA do?

A

makes post synaptic neurons less likely to fire

34
Q

What is the lock and key process?

A
  • each type of neurotransmitter has a chemically distinct shape
  • when released by the presynaptic neuron, the neurotransmitter (key) searches for the correctly shapded receptor site (lock) on the postynaptic neuron where it then binds
  • this binding unlocks the postsynaptic neuron’s response
35
Q

What happens to neurotransmitter which cannot bind to a receptor site?

A

They are reabsorbed into the presynaptic neuron by a process called reuptake

36
Q

What is Parkinson’s disease?

A

a neurodigenerative disorder characterised by both motor and non-motor symptoms caused by a lack of dopamine in the substantia nigra

37
Q

What is the role of dopamine?

A

Inhibitory neuron that coordinates fine muscle movement of the skeletal muscles

38
Q

What are the main motor symptoms of Parkinson’s?

A

Tremors, muscle rigiditiy, slowness of voluntary movement and postural instability

39
Q

What are some of the non-motor symptoms of Parkinson’s?

A

Increased sensitivity to temperature, fatigue, depression, anxiety, slowness of thinking and impaired decision making

40
Q

What are some of the functions of medications used to treat Parkinson’s?

A

Can be converted into dopamine by neurons or mimic dopamine

Psychology (13 decks)

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