Chapter 3: Physical Growth and Aging Across the Life Span

rhythms

repetitive cycles of behavior; sleep, elimination, and eating

REM sleep

rapid eye movement, associated with dreams

Autostimulation

REM sleep gives infants a way to stimulate their brain

Androgen

testosterone and androstenedione

Estrogens

estrone and estradiol

Menarche

onset of menstruation, varies in different parts of word and depending on the SES

Primary sex characteristics

penile and uterine development, relate to reproduction

Secondary sex characteristics

breasts or beards, make us look more male or female.

spermarche

first ejaculation, usually occurs around 13

sensecence

natural physical declines of aging

primary aging

genetically programmed, universal and irreversible changes

secondary aging

changes in physical/cognitive functioning due to illness, habits, individual differences.

osteoporosis

bones become brittle, fragile, and thin; often due to reduction in production of estrogen. Women are susceptible but can be prevented sufficient calcium.

gerontologists

specialists who study aging

young old

healthy and active, 65-74 years old

old old

some health problems and difficulties, 75-84 years old

oldest old

frail and need care, 85 and older

neurons

nerve cells of the nervous system, send and receive messages

dendrites

receive stimulation from other cells

cell body

keeps neuron alive, sends messages to other cells

axon

carries messages from cell body

synapse

area of communication between 2 neurons

neurotransmitters

chemical messengers

synaptic pruning

weakest synapses are removed as an infant experience in the world increases.

myelin

fatty insulation on axons

cerebral cortex

thin layer on the surface of the brain, for thinking

subcortical levels

structures that regulate body activities-breathing, heart rate

sensitive period

particularly sensitive to certain events, the younger we are the more plasticity, making it easier to learn.

corpus callosum

a bundle or nerve fibers that connect the two hemispheres of the brain

Lateralization

some functions carried out more in one hemisphere than the other

extreme male brain

people with autism process world through a male lens, Baron-Cohen

reflexes

innate, involuntary, automatic reactions to specific stimuli

moro reflex

startled or dropped, arms out, back arched, and arms back to centerline of body

babinski reflex

big toe extends upward, and other toes fan out when sole of foot is gently stimulated

Art

teaches planning, restraint, and self-correction

scribbling stage

seems like random scrawls but there are 20 different types

Shape stage

appearance of shapes, such as squares and circles.

Design stage

ability to combine more than one simple shape into a more complex one

Pictorial stage

between 405, drawings begin to approximate recognizable shapes.

norms

average performance of large numbers of people of a given age.

Brazelton Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale

used to determine infants neurological and behavioral response to their environment,

sensation

stimulation of sense organs

perception

sorting out, interpretation, analysis, and integration of stimuli.

Binocular vision

use of both eyes to perceive depth

Sound localization

the ability to determine direction sound is coming from.

Multimodal approach to perception

info from various individual sensory systems is integrated/coordinated together.

affordances

behavioral possibilities any given situation provides

visual impairment

legally defined as difficulties in seeing that may include blindness or partial sightedness.

blindness

acuity below 20/200 after correction

Auditory impairment

loss of hearing or some aspect of learning

Childhood-onset fluency disorder

substantial disruption in rhythm/fluency of speech

visual acuity

ability to see fine detail in both close and distant objects

presbyopia

loss of near vision

glaucoma

increase pressure of fluid in eye

presbycusis

hearing loss for sounds of high frequency

cataracts

clouding or opaque areas of lens

age-related macular degeneration

damage of macula, part of eye that controls sharp and straight-ahead vision.

peripheral slowing hypothesis

overall processing speed declines in peripheral nervous system with increasing age

generalized slowing hypothesis

processing in all parts of nervous system, including brain is less efficient