Biological Psychology

2 categories in the nervous system

the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system

what is the central nervous system made up of?

the spinal cord and the brain

what is the peripheral nervous system made up of?

somatic nervous system and the autonomic nervous system with consists of the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system.

the brain def

it receives, processes and integrates information from the rest of the body and generates responses to it

the spinal cord def

it connects the brain to the rest of the body via its connection to the peripheral nervous system

what is the spinal cord made out of?

grey matter, white matter, motor neurons and sensory neurons

grey matter

is made up of cell bodies, their axons and their dendrites

white matter

is made up of entirely, myelin coated axons

spinal cord structure

the delicate structure of the spinal cord is protected by a ring of bone known as vertebrae which forms the spinal column

spinal nerves

carry the messages to and from the spinal cord connecting it with the brain and the peripheral nervous system

paraplegia

the lower part of the spinal cord is damaged

quadraplegia

the upper part of the spinal cord is damaged

the peripheral nervous system is the…

nerves outside of the brain and spinal cord

peripheral nervous system function

to communicate information from the body’s organs, glands and muscles to the central nervous system, from both the outside world such as temperature and sensation on the skin, via the sensory neuron and the inside world such as aches and pains.

peripheral nervous system def

to communicate information from the central nervous system to the body’s organs, glands and muscles via motor neurons

afferent/sensory neurons

neurons that transmit information towards the brain

efferent/motor neurons

neurons that transmit information away from the brain

what are the two subdivisions of the peripheral system?

the somatic nervous system and the autonomic nervous system

the somatic nervous system

controls the skeletal muscles attached to bones, enabling voluntary movement

somatic nervous system function

the somatic nervous system receives information from sites around the body, including skin and muscles. The sensory information is carried to the central nervous system by sensory neurons. Motor information is carried from the central nervous system via motor neurons to generate a voluntary response

the autonomic nervous system

controls the activity levels of our internal organ glands, such as our heart, pupils, salivary glands, adrenal glands and stomach and bladder

the sympathetic nervous system (fight-flight response)

the branch of the autonomic nervous system that dominates when we experience heightened emotions or during times of vigorous physical activities.

parasympathetic nervous system

maintains level of homeostasis by maintaining vital functions such as heart rate, breathig rate, blood pressure and digestion at their regular level of operation.

therefore, the parasympathetic nervous system is accompanied by a normal level of arousal/fight-flight response or a more relaxed state.

axon (neuron)

thin fibres that carry messages in the form of an electrical impulse, away from the cell body.

the ends of the axon has terminal buttons that secrete neurontransmitters

cell body (neuron)

that contains a nucleus, the largest part of the neuron and controls metabolism and maintenance of the cell

dendrites (neuron)

are responsible for first receiving the message from the other neurons and transmitting the messages to the soma (cell body).

action potential meaning?

the axon fibres carrying an electrical impulse

motor/efferent neurons

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

sensory/afferent neurons

these are neurons that carry sensory stimuli from the outside world into CNS.

Interneurons

these neurons carry information between the motor and the sensory neurons in the CNS. They are important to transmit impulses between other neurons as a reflex arc.

Process of Neural Transmission

The dendrite receives a message and it transmits this message don the axon via an action potential which is an electrical impulse. This stimulates the release of neurotransmitters from the axon terminal into the synaptic gap. The neurotransmitters cross the synaptic gap and are absorbed by the receptor sites on the dendrite of the post-synaptic neuron (receiving neuron). This triggers a new action potential in this neuron, and the process begins again. Any excess neurotransmitters left in the synaptic gap are re-absorbed by the pre-synaptic neuron (sending neuron) through a process called RE-UPTAKE.

Synaptogenesis def

Synaptogenesis occurs through a healthy person’s lifetime, but occurs rapidly during early brain development.

Synapse def

Electrical signals are translated into chemical signals in order to cross the synapse (gap), once on the other side these signals become electrical again.

Frontol Lobes

are associated with higher mental abilities and control movement. If they are damaged, then a person’s personality may change drastically and they may not be able to problem solve or reason

Temporal Lobes

Located on either side of the cortex. They are associated with speech and hearing. Damage affects a person’s language ability

Occipital Lobes

Are at the back of the brain and are responsible for vision. Damage to this area affects vision.

Parietal Lobes

Parietal are located at the top of the cortex and are responsible for vision. Damage to this area affects vision.

Corpus Collosum

thin bond of neural fibres that connect the hemisphere

Frontal Lobotomy

Prefrontal Cortex

Broca’s Area/Aphasia