Neuroscience Chapter 1

Front 1

Neurons

Back 1

Cells of the nervous system that are specialized for the reception, conduction, and transmission of electrochemical signals.

Front 2

Neuroscience

Back 2

The scientific study of the nervous system.

Front 3

Thinking creatively

Back 3

Thinking in productive, unconventional ways that are consistent with the evidence.

Front 4

Clinical

Back 4

Pertaining to illness or treatment.

Front 5

Evolutionary perspective

Back 5

The approach that focuses on the environmental pressures that likely led to the evolution of the characteristics (e.g., of brain and behavior) of current species

Front 6

Biopsychology

Back 6

The scientific study of the biology of behavior

Front 7

Neuroanatomy

Back 7

The study of the structure of the nervous system

Front 8

Neurochemistry

Back 8

The study of chemical bases of neural activity.

Front 9

Neuroendocrinology

Back 9

The study of the interactions between the nervous system and the endocrine system

Front 10

Neuropathology

Back 10

The study of nervous system disorders

Front 11

Neuropharmacology

Back 11

The study of the effect of drugs on neural activity

Front 12

Neurophysiology

Back 12

The study of the functions and activities of the nervous system

Front 13

Comparative approach

Back 13

The study of biological processes by comparing different species--usually from the evolutionary perspective

Front 14

Between-subjects design

Back 14

An experimental design in which a different group of subjects is tested under each condition.

Front 15

Within-subjects design

Back 15

An experimental design in which the same subjects are tested under each condition.

Front 16

Independent variable

Back 16

The difference between experimental conditions that is arranged by the experimenter

Front 17

Dependent variable

Back 17

The variable measured by the experimenter to assess the effect of the independent variable.

Front 18

Confounded variable

Back 18

An unintended difference between the conditions of an experiment that could have affected the dependent variable.

Front 19

Coolidge effect

Back 19

The fact that a copulating male who becomes incapable of continuing to copulate with one sex partner can often recommence copulating with a new sex partner.

Front 20

Lordosis

Back 20

The arched-back, rump-up, tail-to-the-side posture of female rodent sexual receptivity, which serves to facilitate intromission.

Front 21

Quasiexperimental studies

Back 21

Studies of groups of subjects who have been exposed to the conditions of interest in the real world; such studies have the appearance of experiments but are not true experiments because potential confounded variable have not been controlled.

Front 22

Case studies

Back 22

Studies that focus on a single case, or subject.

Front 23

Generalizability

Back 23

The degree to which the results of a study can be applied to other individuals or situations

Front 24

Pure research

Back 24

Research motivated primarily by the curiosity of the researcher and done solely for the purpose of acquiring knowledge.

Front 25

Applied research

Back 25

Research that is intended to bring about some direct benefit to humankind.

Front 26

Physiological psychology

Back 26

The division of biopsychology that studies that neural mechanisms of behavior through direct manipulation of the brains of nonhuman animal subjects in controlled experiments.

Front 27

Psychopharmacology

Back 27

The division of biopsychology that studies the effect of drugs on the brain and behavior

Front 28

Neuropsychology

Back 28

The division of biopsychology that studies the psychological effects of brain damage in human patients.

Front 29

Cerebral cortex

Back 29

The layer of neural tissue covering the cerebral hemispheres of humans and other mammals.

Front 30

Psychophysiology

Back 30

The division of biopsychology that studies the relation between physiological activity and psychological processes in human subjects by noninvasive methods.

Front 31

Electroencephalogram (EEG)

Back 31

A measure of the gross electrical activity of the brain, commonly recored through scalp electrodes.

Front 32

Autonomic nervous system (ANS)

Back 32

The part of the peripheral nervous system that participates in the regulation of body's internal environment.

Front 33

Cognitive neuroscience

Back 33

A division of biopsychology that focuses on the use of functional brain imaging to study the neural bases of human cognition

Front 34

Cognition

Back 34

Higher intellectual processes such as thought, memory, attention, and complex perceptual processes.

Front 35

Comparative psychology

Back 35

The division of biopsychology that studies the evolution, genetics, and adaptiveness of behavior, often by using the comparative approach.

Front 36

Ethological research

Back 36

The study of animal behavior in its natural environment.

Front 37

Converging operations

Back 37

The use of several research approaches to solve a single problem.

Front 38

Korsakoff's syndrome

Back 38

A neuropsychological disorder that is common in alcoholics whose primary symptom is severe memory loss.

Front 39

Scientific inference

Back 39

The logical process by which observable events are used to infer the properties of unobservable event.

Front 40

Critical thinking

Back 40

Carefully assessing the strength of the evidence presented to support an idea.

Front 41

Morgan's canon

Back 41

The rule that the simplest possible interpretation for a behavioral observation should be given precedence.

Front 42

Prefrontal lobes

Back 42

Ares of cortex, left and right, that are located at the very front of the brain--in the frontal lobes

Front 43

Leucotome

Back 43

Any of the various surgical devices used for performing lobotomies--leucotomy is another word for lobotomy.

Front 44

Transorbital lobotomy

Back 44

A prefrontal lobotomy performed with a cutting instrument instead through the eye socket.

Front 45

Psychosurgery

Back 45

Any brain surgery performed for the treatment of a psychological problem (e.g., prefrontal lobotomy)

Front 46

Behavioral neuroscience

Back 46

Studies the behavior caused by the brain (4 approaches here)

Front 47

Neuro

Back 47

pertaining to the brain

Front 48

interdisciplinary

Back 48

Between or among fields of study; seeking relationships across disciplines

Front 49

Genes

Back 49

Comprised of DNA, a gene is a part of a chromosome that, during the reproductive process, influences the inheritance and development of physical characteristics in the offspring

Front 50

Phylogenetic

Back 50

Pertaining to phyla, or the relationships of all living organisms.
Hereditary precedents of Homosapiens, and the hereditary relationship of humans to other animals

Front 51

Ontogenetic

Back 51

Pertaining to the development of an individual organism within a particular environment
Humans have different environmental histories due to experiences

Front 52

Central State Identity Theorist

Back 52

Normal psychological functioning is also due to normal brain functioning; phycological properties result from changes in brain chemistry, anatomy, and functioning

Front 53

Molecular approach

Back 53

Small units: how changes in molecules, such as chemicals, effect larger changes in structure and function
(Pharmacology, Neurochemistry, Genetics, Neurotransmitters)

Front 54

Molar approach

Back 54

Large units: analysis of behavior as the smallest unit of observation
(Cognitive explanations, behavioral explanations, brain-behavior relationships, behavioral genetics)