Intro to Psychology - Biology and Behavior

nervous system

regulates body’s response to internal and external stimuli

neurons

nerve cells that provide communications through the body

what are the parts of the neurons

cell body, dendrites, axon, myelin, axon terminal

cell body

produces energy for the cell

dendrites

receives impulses and conducts them to the cell body

axon

carries messages away from cell body

myelin

insulates and protects the axon

axon terminal

end of an axon, sends neurotransmitters from one neuron to another

synapse

junction between axon terminals

neurotransmitter

chemical messenger caries impulses across synaptic gap

action potential

electrical charge that travels down it’s axon

reuptake

when the sending neuron reabsorbs excess transmitters

spinal cord

column of nerves within the spine, transmits messages

peripheral nervous system

communicates between central nervous system

somatic system

transmits senses (temp/pressure)

autonomic system

regulates body’s vitals (heartbeat, BP, breathing, digestion)

brain sections

hindbrain, midbrain, forebrain

hindbrain

lower, vitals, respiration, balance (medulas - vitals, pons - movement/attention/sleep, cerebellum - balance/coordination)

midbrain

vision and hearing, reticular activating system (sleep, arousal, alcohol depresses it)

forebrain

contains thalamus, hypothalamus, limbic system, and cerebrum

thalamus

sensor/motor function

hypothalamus

regulates body temp, emotion, hunger/thirst/sex drive, caring for offspring, aggression

limbic system

learning, memory, emotion, contains hippocampus and amygdala (strong emotion center)

cerebrum

largest part, critical thinking, wrinkles = more complex, responsible for movement

frontal lobe

movement/thinking

parietal lobe

touch/sensation

occipital lobe

visual cortex/vision

temporal lobe

process sound/speech

association areas

involved in higher thinking/mental functions

broca’s area

speech, left side of the brain

wernicke’s area

language comprehension

corpus callosum

middle area of the brain

left hemisphere

responsible for right side of body

right hemisphere

imagination, feelings, art, spatial relations

endocrine system

chemical communication system, set of glands that secrete hormones into blood stream

pituitary gland

stimulated by hypothalamus, growth hormone (muscles, bones, glands)

thyroid gland

produces thyroxin, affects metabolism production

hypothyroidism

too little production of thyroid gland hormones

adrenal glands

arouse the body in times of stress

• secretes epinephrine and norepinephrine

testes/ovaries

test./est. + progest. production

electric stimulation

helps in studying as it causes body movement

electroencephalogram (EEG)

a device that records the electrical activity of the brain

computerized axial tomography (CAT/CT)

detects brain damage, measures activity as subject performs a task

magnetic resonance (MRI)

brain imaging technique that produces the most detailed picture of the brain structure, more effective than CT

positron emission tomography (PET)

shows how your tissues and organs function on a cellular level

(f)MRI

shows real-time log of brain activity

Phineas Gage

used CT scan, left frontal lobe damaged, personality went from stable to impulsive

genes

building blocks of hereditary that make up chromosomes

chromosomes

threadlike structure in the nucleus of a cell

DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid)

contains gene info that make up chromosomes

cloning

asexual, genetically identical to parent

natural

sexual, combination of two parents

how much does the average adult brain weigh

3 pounds

how many cells are in our brains

86 billion

what part of the brain is the center of basic life support

the brain stem

what is one psychiatric disorder that brain wave activity can identify

ADHD

endorphins

natural painkillers

what neurotransmitter did researchers block in order to create amnesia in animals

acetylcholine

most common type of amnesia is the inability to form new…

memories after an event

what part of the brain is the machinery that helps to build new memories

hippocampus