Unit 1 Part 1 (1.1-1.4) Flashcards
selectively breeding humans to promote certain characteristics
eugenics
the principle that inherited traits enabling an organism to survive and reproduce in a particular enviroment will most likely be passed on to succeeding generation
natural selection
the genetic transfer of characteristics from parents to offspring
heredity
the body’s speedy, electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous system
nervous system
arouses and expends energy (fight or flight)
sympathetic nervous system
this consists of the brain and spinal cord; it’s the nervous system’s decision maker
central nervous system
the sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system (CNS) to the rest of the body.
peripheral nervous system
enables voluntary control of our skeletal muscles
somatic nervous system
controls our glands and our internal muscles
autonomic nervous system
calms the body; conserves energy
parasympathetic nervous system
a nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system
nueron
cells in the nervour system that support, nourish, and protect neurons
glial cells
reflex arc
neurons that carry incoming information from the sensory reseptors to the brain and spinal cord
sensory neurons
neurons that carry outgoing information from the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands
motor neurons
neurons within the brain and spinal cord that communicate internally and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs
internuerons
in neural processing, a brief resting pause that occurs after a neuron has fired; subsequent action potentials cannot occur until the axon returns to its resting state
refractory period
a neuron’s reaction of either firing (with a full-strength response) or not firing.
all-or-none principle
the state of the neuron when not firing a neural impulse (postive-outside/negative-inside)
resting potential
The level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse.
threshold
The process leading up to the height of action potential when sodium is rushing into the cell causing the interior to become more positive.
depolarization
A neuromuscular disease in which the muscles cannot contract, resulting in muscle weakness, difficulties with muscle control, or paralysis.
myasthenia gravis
a neurotransmitter’s reabsorption by the sending neuron
reuptake
block chemical messages
inhibitory neurotransmitter
A disease due to the degeneration of the myelin sheath in which communication to muscles and brain regions slow, resulting in diminished muscle control and sometimes impaired cognition.
multiple sclerosis
A neurotransmitter that affects hunger, sleep, arousal, and mood.
serotonin
The function of a neurotransmitter which results in a greater likelihood of an action potential.
excitatory neurotransmitter
A major excitatory neurotransmitter; involved in memory.
glutamate
“morphine within” - natural . opiatelike neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure
endorphins
A neurotransmitter associated with movement, attention and learning and the brain’s pleasure and reward system.
dopamine
A neurotransmitter that enables learning and memory and also triggers muscle contraction.
acetycholine
A neurotransmitter that helps control alterness and arousal. An undersupply can lead to a depressed mood.
norepinephrine
Most abundant inhibitory neurotransmitter; regulates daily sleep-wake cycles.
GABA
A hormone whose major action is to increase heart rate, blood pressure, and blood sugar, providing a surge of energy to power our fight-or-flight respose.
adrenaline
A neurotransmitter involved in pain perception and immune response.
substance p
A hunger-arousing hormone.
ghrelin
chemical messengers that are manufactured by the endocrine glands, travel through the bloodstream, and affect other tissues
hormones
A hormone which enables orgasm, and in a pregnant person, labor contractions and milk flow while nursing.
oxytocin
A hunger-suppressing hormone.
leptin
A hormone produced mainly by the pineal gland that is implicated in the initiation of sleep and in the regulation of the sleep-wake cycle.
melatonin
Any drug that has significant effects on psychological processes, such as thinking, perception, and emotion. They include those deliberately taken to produce an altered state of consciousness and therapeutic agents designed to alleviate a mental condition.
psychoactive drugs
a molecule that increases a neurotransmitter’s action - it mimics the neurotransmitter
agonist
Substance that interferes with the transport of released neurotransmitter molecules back into the presynaptic terminal, boosting the effects of that neurotransmitter.
reuptake inhibitor
Drugs that reduce neural activity and slow body functions
depressants
a molecule that inhibits or blocks a neurotransmitter’s action
antagonist
Drugs that excite neural activity and speed up body functions.
stimulants
A depressant that disrupts memory formation during REM sleep and lowers inhibition.
alcohol
A stimulant which can increase alertness and wakefulness but also produce anxiety, restlessness, and insomnia in high doses.
caffeine
Psychedelic (“mind-manifesting”) drugs, such as LSD, that distort perceptions and evoke sensory images in the absence of sensory input.
hallucinogens
A powerful and addictive stimulant which produces temporarily increased alertness and euphoria. Blocks dopamine reuptake.
cocaine
A mild hallucinogen that produces a “high” often characterized by feelings of euphoria, a sense of well-being, and swings in mood from gaiety to relaxation; may also cause feelings of anxiety and paranoia.
marijuana
Opium and its derivatives, such as morphine and heroin; they depress neural activity, temporarily lessening pain and anxiety.
opioids
The diminishing effect with regular use of the same dose of a drug, requiring the user to take larger and larger doses before experiencing the drug’s effect.
tolerance
As a nervous system depressant, this opiod can produce a rush of euphoria, confidence, and energy, as well as cardiovascular stress, suspiciousness, and a depressive crash.
heroin
The discomfort and distress that follow discontinuing an addictive drug or behavior.
withdrawal
limbic system
neural system located mostly in the forebrain — below the cerebral hemispheres — that includes the hippocampus, amygdala, thalamus, cerebellum, hypothalamus; associated with emotions and drives.
thalamus and location
the forebrain’s sensory control center, located on top of the brainstem; it directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla. near the center of the brain
hypothalamus and location
a limbic system neural structure lying below (hypo) the thalamus; it directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature), helps govern the endocrine system, and is linked to emotion and reward. above the pituitary gland
Hippocampus and location
a neural center located in the limbic system; helps process for storage (conscious) memories of facts and events
pituitary gland and location
associated with emotions and below hypothalamus
the brain’s ability to change, especially during childhood, by reorganizing after damage or by building new pathways based on experience.
Brain plasticity (nueroplastcitiy)
amygdala and location
two lima-bean–sized neural clusters in the limbic system; linked to emotion. in the temporal lobes of the brain, just above the ear
an amplified recording of the waves of electrical activity sweeping across the brain’s surface. These waves are measured by electrodes placed on the scalp.
EEG (electroencephalogram)
corpus callosum and location
the large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them. located in the middle of the brain between the right and left hemisphere
broca’s area and location
related to producing speech; near frontal lobe
wernicke’s area and location
controls the ability to understand the meaning of words located in left temporal lobe
a technique for revealing blood flow and, therefore, brain activity by comparing successive MRI scans. these scans show brain function as well as structure.
fMRI
tissue destruction
lesion
the crossing over in the brainstem
Contralateral Hemispheric Organization
parts of the brainstem
pons, reticular formation, and medulla
the impairment of language that occurs when either the Broca’s area or Wernicke’s area is damaged
aphasia
occipital lobes and location
the portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the head; it includes areas that receive information from the visual fields. located in the very back of your brain
temporal lobes and location
the portion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears; it includes the auditory areas, each of which receives information primarily from the opposite ear. They also enable language processing. located in behind the ears
medulla oblangata
the bottom-most part of your brain. Its location means it’s where your brain and spinal cord connect, making it a key conduit for nerve signals to and from your body. It also helps control vital processes like your heartbeat, breathing and blood pressure.
parietal lobes and location
the portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head and toward the rear; it receives sensory input for touch and body position.
a nerve network that travels through the brainstem into the thalamus; it filters information and plays an important role in controlling arousal.
Reticular Activating System (Reticular formation)
somatosensory cortex and location
a cerebral cortex area at the front of the parietal lobes that registers and processes body touch and movement sensations.
frontal lobes and location
the portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forehead. They enable linguistic processing, muscle movements, higher- order thinking, and executive functioning (such as making plans and judgments).
cerebellum and location
the hindbrain’s “little brain” at the rear of the brainstem; its functions include processing sensory input, coordinating movement output and balance, and enabling nonverbal learning and memory.
prefrontal cortex and location
located at the very front of the frontal lobe, and it controls executive functions or a set of abilities that are needed to control cognitive behaviors
cerebral cortex and location
the intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells that covers the cerebral hemispheres. It is the body’s ultimate control and information processing center. located on top of cerebrum
motor cortex and location
a cerebral cortex area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements. located in the frontal lobe
Brain lobes
Occipital, parietal, temporal, frontal
The brainstem parts
Pons, reticular formation, and medulla
