Psych Vocab Chapter 2

Front 1

Biological Psychology

Back 1

A branch of psychology concerned with the links between biology and behavior.

Front 2

Neuron

Back 2

A nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system.

Front 3

Dendrite

Back 3

The bushy, branching extensions of a neuron that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body.

Front 4

Axon

Back 4

The extension of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscls or glands

Front 5

Myelin sheath

Back 5

A layer of fatty tissue segmentally encasing the fibers of many neurons; enables vastly greater transmission speed of neural impulses as the impulse hops from one node to the next.

Front 6

Action Potential

Back 6

A neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon. It is generated by the movement of positively charged atoms in and out of channels in the axon's membrane.

Front 7

Threshold

Back 7

The level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse (all or nothing)

Front 8

Synapse

Back 8

The junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron.

Front 9

Neurotransmitters

Back 9

Chemical messengers that traverse the synaptic gaps between neurons. When released by the sending neuron, they travel across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron, thereby influencing whether that neuron will generate a neural impulse.

Front 10

Acetylcholine

Back 10

A neurotransmitter that enables learning and memory and also triggers muscle contraction (Alzheimer's disease it deteriorates)

Front 11

Dopamine

Back 11

A neurotransmitter that influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion (excessive receptors are related to schizophrenia. Starveed of dopamine then the brain produces the tremors and decreased mobility of parkinson's)

Front 12

Serotonin

Back 12

A neurotransmitter that affects mood, hunger, sleep, and arousal. (Undersupply linked to depression)

Front 13

Norepinephrine

Back 13

A neurotransmitter that helps control alertness and arousal. (Undersupply can depress mood)

Front 14

GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid)

Back 14

A major inhibitory neurotransmitter. (Undersupply linked to seizures, tremors, and insomnia)

Front 15

Glutamate

Back 15

A major excitatory neurotransmitter; involved in memory. (oversupply can overstimulate brain producing migraines or seizures)

Front 16

Endorphins

Back 16

Natural, opiatelike neurotransmitter linked to pain control and pleasure.

Front 17

Nervous System

Back 17

The body's speedy, electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripherial and central nervous systems.

Front 18

Central nervous system

Back 18

The brain and spinal cord

Front 19

Peripheral nervous system

Back 19

The sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system to the rest of the body.

Front 20

Nerves

Back 20

Neural "cables" containing many axons. These bundled axons, which are part of the peripheral nervous system, connect the central nervous system with muscles, glands, and sense organs.

Front 21

Sensory Neurons

Back 21

neurons that carry incoming information from the sense receptors to the central nervous system.

Front 22

Motor neurons

Back 22

Neurons that carry outgoing information from the central nervous system to the muslces and glands.

Front 23

Interneurons

Back 23

Central nervous system neurons that internally communicate and intervene between th e sensory inputs and motor outputs.

Front 24

Somatic Nervous system

Back 24

The division of the peripheral nervous sytem that controls the body's skeletal muscles.

Front 25

Autonomic nervous system

Back 25

The part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs (such as heart).

Front 26

Sympathetic nervous system

Back 26

The division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations.

Front 27

Parasympathetic nervous system

Back 27

The division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy.

Front 28

Reflex

Back 28

A simple, automatic, inborn response to a sensory stimulus, such as the knee-jerk response.

Front 29

Neural Networks

Back 29

Interconnected neural cells. With experience, networks can learn, as feedback strengthens or inhibits connections that produce certain results. Computer simulations of neural networks show analogous learning.

Front 30

Endocrine System

Back 30

The body's "slow" chemical communcation system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream.

Front 31

Hormones

Back 31

Chemical messengers, mostly those manufactured by the endocrine glands, that are produced in one tissue and affect another.

Front 32

Adrenal Glands

Back 32

A pair of endocrine glands just above the kidneys. The adrenals secrete the hormones epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine (noradrenaline), which help to arouse the body in times of stress.

Front 33

Pituitary gland

Back 33

The endocrine system's most influencial gland. Under the influence of the hypothalamus, this regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands.

Front 34

Lesion

Back 34

Tissue destruction. A brain one is a naturally or experimentally caused destruction of brain tissue.

Front 35

Electroencephalogram (EEG)

Back 35

An amplified recording of the waves of electrical activity that sweep across the brain's surface. These waves are measured by electrodes placed on the scalp

Front 36

PET (positron emission tomography) scan

Back 36

a visual display of brain activity that detects where a radioactive form of glucose goes while the brain performs a givent ask.

Front 37

MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)

Back 37

A technique that sues magnetic fields and radio waves to produce computer-generated images that distinguish among different types of soft tissue; allows us to see structures within the brain.

Front 38

fMRI (funcitonal magnetic resonance imaging)

Back 38

A technique for revealing blood flow, and therefore, brain activity by comparing successive MRI scans. Show brain function.

Front 39

Brainstem

Back 39

The oldest part and central core of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord swells as it enters the skull; it is responsible for automatic survival functions.

Front 40

Medulla

Back 40

The base of the brainstem; controls heartbeat and breathing.

Front 41

Reticular Formation

Back 41

A nerve network int he brainstem that plays an important role in controlling arousal.

Front 42

Thalamus

Back 42

The brain's sensory switchboard, 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.

Front 43

Cerebellum

Back 43

The "little brain" attached tot he rear of the brainstem; its functions include processing ensory input and coordinatingmovement output balance.

Front 44

Limbic System

Back 44

a doughnut-shaped system of neural structures at the border of the brainstem and cerebral hemispheres; associated with emotions such as fear and aggression and drives such as those for food and sex. Includes the hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus.

Front 45

Amygdala

Back 45

Two lima bean-sized neural clusters that are componenets of the limbic system and are linked to emotion

Front 46

Hypothalamus

Back 46

A neural structure lying below the thalamus; it directs several maintenance activites (eating, drinking, body temp), helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland, and is linked to emotion.

Front 47

Cerebral Cortex

Back 47

The intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells taht covers the cerebral hemispheres; the body's ultimate control and information processing center.

Front 48

Glial Cells

Back 48

Cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons.

Front 49

Frontal lobes

Back 49

The portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forhead; involved in speaking and muscle movements and in making plans and judgements.

Front 50

Parietal lobes

Back 50

The portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head and twoard the rear; it receives sensory input for touch and body position.

Front 51

Occipital lobes

Back 51

The portion of the cerebral corrtex lying at the back of the head; indluces the visual areas which receive visual information from the opposite visual field.

Front 52

Temporal lobes

Back 52

The portion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears; includes teh auditory areas, each of which receives auditory information primarily from the opposite ear.

Front 53

Mortor Cortex

Back 53

An area at the rear of the frontal lobes taht controls volunatary movements.

Front 54

Sensory cortex

Back 54

The area at the front of the parietal lobes taht registers and processes body touch and movemnet sensations.

Front 55

Association areas

Back 55

Areas of the cerebral cortex that are not involved in primary motor or sensory functions; rather, tey are involved in higher mental functions such as learning, remembering, thinking, and speaking.

Front 56

Aphasia

Back 56

Impairment of language, usually cuased by left hemisphere damage either to Broca's area or to Wernicke's area

Front 57

Broca's area

Back 57

Controls language expression--an area of the frontal lobe, usually in the left hemisfere, that directs the muscle movements involved in speech.

Front 58

Wernicke's area

Back 58

Controls language reception--a brain area involved in language comprehension and expression; usually in the left temporal lobe.

Front 59

Plasticity

Back 59

The brain's capcaity for modification, as evident in brain reorganization following damage and in experiement son the effects of experience on brain development.

Front 60

Corpus Callosum

Back 60

The large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them.

Front 61

Split brain

Back 61

A condition in which the two hemispheres of the brain are isolated by cutting the fibers between them.