Psychology In Modules 4

Front 1

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

Back 1

neuron

Front 2

life support center of the neuron; contains the nucleus which directs the manufacture of substances that the neuron needs for growth and maintenance.

Back 2

cell body

Front 3

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

Back 3

dendrite

Front 4

the extension of a neuron ending in branching terminal fibers, through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles or glands.

Back 4

axon

Front 5

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

Back 5

myelin sheath

Front 6

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

Back 6

action potential

Front 7

the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse.

Back 7

threshold

Front 8

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

Back 8

synapse

Front 9

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

Back 9

neurtransmitters

Front 10

a neurotransmitter that enables learning and memory and also triggers muscle contraction. Neurons producing this neurotransmitter deteriorate with Alzheimer's disease.

Back 10

acetylcholine (ACh)

Front 11

natural, opiatelike neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure.

Back 11

endorphins

Front 12

influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion. excessive- schizophrenia. not enough- Parkinson's disease.

Back 12

dopamine

Front 13

affects mood, hunger, sleep and arousal. undersupply- depression.

Back 13

serotonin

Front 14

helps control alertness and arousal. undersupply can depress mood

Back 14

norepinephrine

Front 15

a major inhibitory neurotransmitter. undersupply- seizures, tremors, and insomnia.

Back 15

GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid)

Front 16

a major excitatory neurotransmitter; involved in memory. oversupply- migraines or seizures.

Back 16

glutamate

Front 17

this kind of molecule may be similar enough to the neurotransmitter to mimic its effect; excites.

Back 17

agonists

Front 18

a drug molecule that inhibits a neurotransmitter's release.

Back 18

antagonists

Front 19

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

Back 19

nervous system

Front 20

the brain and spinal cord

Back 20

central nervous system (CNS)

Front 21

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

Back 21

peripheral nervous system (PNS)

Front 22

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.

Back 22

nerves

Front 23

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

Back 23

sensory neurons

Front 24

neurons that carry outgoing information from the central nervous system to the muscles and glands.

Back 24

motor neurons

Front 25

central nervous system neurons that internally communicate and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs.

Back 25

interneurons

Front 26

the division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the vody's skeletal muscles. Aka skeletal nervous system.

Back 26

somatic nervous system

Front 27

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

Back 27

autonomic nervous system

Front 28

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

Back 28

sympathetic nervous system

Front 29

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

Back 29

parasympathetic nervous system

Front 30

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

Back 30

endocrine system

Front 31

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

Back 31

hormones

Front 32

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

Back 32

adrenal glands

Front 33

the endocrine system's most influential gland. Under the influence of the hypothalamus, it regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands.

Back 33

pituitary gland