Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

Psychology 1/2 > UNIT 1 - aos 1 - how does the brain function > Flashcards

UNIT 1 - aos 1 - how does the brain function Flashcards

You may prefer our related Brainscape-certified flashcards:
Psychology 101 flashcards GRE® Psychology flashcards AP® Psychology flashcards
1
Q

two main nervous systems?

A
  • central nervous system

- peripheral nervous system

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

what makes up the central nervous system?

A
  • spinal cord

- brain

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

two main parts of the peripheral nervous system?

A
  • somatic nervous system

- autonomic nervous system

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

explain the somatic nervous system

A

part of the PNS that is responsible for the voluntary movement of the skeletal muscles.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

explain motor neurons

A

communicate messages from the CNS to the particular muscles that an organism intends to move

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

explain sensory neurons

A

are responsible for converting external stimuli from the environment into electrical impulses, and sent to the brain

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

explain the autonomic nervous system

A

responsible for the communication of information between the CNS to the body’s non- skeletal muscles. It controls involuntary functions of the body, such as digestion and heartbeat.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

two main parts of the autonomic nervous system?

A
  • sympathetic nervous system

- parasympathetic nervous system

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

explain the sympathetic nervous system

A

is the emergency system of the body, and becomes active when the body perceives danger or stress. This is known as the flight, fight or freeze response.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

explain the parasympathetic nervous system

A

operates in relatively calm situations. It is responsible for maintaining automatic bodily functions, such as digestion, normal heart rate, and normal breathing. This is known as homeostasis.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

what are the components of the brain?

A
  • hindbrain
  • midbrain
  • forebrain
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

what makes up the hindbrain?

A
  • medulla
  • pons
  • cerebellum
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

what is the role of the medulla

A

in the hindbrain, and controls involuntary functions including breathing, heartbeat, and digestion

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

what is the role of the pons

A

in the hindbrain, sits above the medulla and it sorts and relays messages between different sections of the brain.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

what is the role of the cerebellum

A

in the hindbrain, receives information from the pons, and controls voluntary tasks

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

what makes up the midbrain?

A
  • reticular formation
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

what is the role of the reticular formation

A

controls arousal and the ‘sleeping and waking’ cycle

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

what makes up the forebrain?

A
  • cerebral cortex
  • hypothalamus
  • thalamus
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

what is the role of the cerebral cortex

A

responsible for:
- receiving information from the environment
- controlling our responses
- higher order thinking, problem-solving and planning
is very much involved in memory, language, and regulation of emotions

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

what is the role of the hypothalamus

A

is very important in the role of basic survival actions such as:

  • sleep
  • regulation of body temperatures
  • expression of emotions
  • the four F’s; feeding, fighting, fleeing and fornification
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

what is the role of the thalamus

A

receives information from our senses and sends it to the rest of the brain

22
Q

what is contralateral organization?

A

the term used to describe how the left side of the brain is responsible for the right side of the body, and vice versa

23
Q

what are gyri?

A

the bulges in the cerebral cortex

24
Q

what are sulci?

A

the valleys in the cerebral cortex

25
Q

what are the four lobes of the brain?

A
  • frontal
  • parietal
  • temporal
  • occipital
26
Q

what is the role of the frontal lobes?

A

are the biggest and have several functions

  • initiating movement of the body (motor functions)
  • language
  • aspects of personality
27
Q

what is the primary cortex of the frontal lobes and its role?

A

primary motor cortex - responsible for the movement of the skeletal muscles of the body, and operates in contralateral organization

28
Q

damage to the frontal lobes?

A
  • may be unable to learn from experience

- make mistakes in planning because they lack foresight

29
Q

what is the role of the parietal lobes?

A

most of the parietal lobe is taken up by its primary cortex, and it receives
- touch
- pressure
- temperature
- pain from body
Also operates in contralateral organization

30
Q

what is the primary cortex of the parietal lobes?

A

primary somatosensory cortex

31
Q

what is the role of the temporal lobes?

A

processes auditory information, or sensations received by the ears

32
Q

what is the primary cortex of the temporal lobes?

A

primary auditory cortex

33
Q

damage to temporal lobes?

A

likely to experience deafness

34
Q

what is the role of the occipital lobes?

A

responsible for vision. info from the left side of retina processed in the left occipital lobe, and vice versa. info from center of the retina processed in both occipital lobes

35
Q

what is the primary cortex of the occipital lobes and its role?

A

primary visual cortex - process different types of visual stimuli, and the association areas organise these into more complex forms to enable interpretation

36
Q

what is hemispheric specialization?

A

the lobes and primary cortices in each hemisphere receive information from the opposite side of a body, and the primary motor cortices are responsible for movement of the opposite sides of the body

37
Q

explain neuroplasticity

A

the ability of the brain to change as a result of learning and experience

38
Q

what are the two types of plasticity?

A
  • adaptive

- developmental

39
Q

what is adaptive plasticity?

A

the ability of the brain to change, adapt and grow throughout life. this diminishes with age

40
Q

what is developmental plasticity?

A

the development and consolidation of neural pathways in babies, children, and adults

41
Q

what are the five stages of plasticity?

A
  • proliferation
  • migration
  • circuit formation
  • synaptic pruning
  • myelination
42
Q

what is proliferation?

A

is a process where an unborn babies cell that will become neurons, divide and multiply, creating approximately 250 000 cells per minute

43
Q

what is migration?

A

newly formed neurons move outward to their destined location. they move to their final location in the CNS and the locations determine what their function will become

44
Q

what is circuit formation?

A

occurs when the axons of new neurons grow out to target cells and form synapses with them. this is called synaptogenesis

45
Q

what is synaptic pruning?

A

involves the elimination of excess neurons and synapses, that is those that have not established a connection with a neighbouring cell will die

46
Q

what is myelination?

A

a process where the axons of the neurons in the child’s brain become insulted by myelin and is the final stage before the brain becomes fully mature

47
Q

what is synaptogenesis?

A

the process of molding or forming new synapses

48
Q

what are sensitive periods?

A

are the best or optimum times for a developing individual to learn specific things. during these periods the growing brain needs specific types of stimulation to establish neural pathways

49
Q

what is aphasia?

A

is the impairment of language caused by damge to the brain, usually by stroke

50
Q

what is brochas aphasia?

A

is caused by damage to the left frontal lobe. a person with brocas aphasia has difficulty expressing themselves in words or sentences but their ability to comprehend speech is largely unaffected

51
Q

what is wernicke’s aphasia?

A

is caused by damage to the left temporal lobe. a person with wernicke’s aphasia has difficulty understanding written and spoken language, and in producing written and spoken language that makes sense to others. people with wernicke’s amphasia can speak fluently, but what they say is giberish and does not make sense

52
Q

what is spatial neglect?

A

usually occurs after brain injury and a person ignores stimuli on one side of their body. mainly relates to visual stimuli, and they are ‘blind’, but this is not ordinary blindness because the eyes function normally

Psychology 1/2 (8 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions