AP psych unit 1 notes

Epigenetics

The effect of nurture on nature

Heritability

The measurement of variation among individuals that we can attribute to genetics

Nervous system

• Centra NS (brain and spinal cord)

• Peripheral NS (everything out, carries info to/out the central nervous system)

types of peripheral NS

somatic and autonomic

Somatic NS

• Communicates sensory info (sensory neurons) to the CNS

• Motor neurons take info about what to move or how to move from teh CNS to various muscles

Autonomic NS

Regulates involuntary function (for example, heart rate, blood pressure, breathing, digestion)

types of autonomic NS

sympathetic and parasympathetic

Sympathetic (fight or flight)

• When met with a scary response you

  • Increase heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, secretion of stress hormones (epinephrine, cortisol)

• Dilates pupils

• Decreases: saliva production and digestion (not worried about digesting in this situation)

Parasympathetic

• (rest and digest)

  • After situation has gone away

  • Calms body after flight or fight response

  • Does the opposite of sympathetic

Neurons

Specialized cell in the nervous system that transmits info to other cells through electrical and chemical signals

Gilia cells

• Outnumber neurons cells 10:1

• Supports, protect, and nourish neurons 

• Essential for maintaining the environment in which neurons function

Nucleus

Contains neurons genetic info

Cell body

Provides structural support for the neurons and process information needed to energize the cell

Dendrites

responsible for receiving incoming messages from other neurons

Axon

Sending info to the next neurons

Myelin sheath

Gilia cells wrapping around the axon by doing this the neural messages are able to travel at faster speed

Type of Nerves:

sensory, motor, interneuron

Sensory

responsible for converting external stimuli from the environment into internal electrical impulses

Motor

• Transmit signal from the spinal cord or brain to muscles or glands triggering actions

Interneuron

Connect other neurons with the brains and spinal cord facilitating communication and reflect responses

Reflect arc

a neural pathway controlling rapid, involuntary, and automatic responses to stimuli, designed for protection and survival

steps of a reflex arc

1. Receptor: Detects the stimulus (e.g., pain, heat).

2. Sensory (Afferent) Neuron: Transmits the impulse from the receptor to the CNS (spinal cord).

3. Integration Center (Interneuron): A connector in the spinal cord that processes the signal (absent in simple two-neuron arcs).

4. Motor (Efferent) Neuron: Carries the impulse from the spinal cord to the effector.

5. Effector: Muscle or gland that carries out the final response

Action potential

• A rapid rise and subsequent fall in voltage or membrane potential across cellular membrane as a nerve cell responses to stimulus 

Stimulus threshold

The minimum level of stimulation required to trigger an action potential in a neuron

All or nothing principle

Either neurons fires completely when stimulus threshold is met or does not fire at all due to not enough stimulus

Refractory Period

The time after an action potential when the neurons is resting and can’t send other action potentials

Resting potential

• It recharges and the neurons is prepared to send another message when stimulated 

Reuntake

• The process by which neurotransmitters are taken back into neuro-transmitter releasing neurons after transmitting a neural impulse

• It is used to conserve body resources

Types of messages

Excitatory

inhibitory

Excitatory

Increases likelihood the neurons receiving message will fire an action potential speeding up brain activity

types of neurotransmitter

dopamine

serotonin

norepinephrine

glutamate

gaba

endorphins

substance P

Acetylcholine

Inhibitory

• A neuronal message the decreases the likelihood that the neurons receiving the message will fire an action potential slowing down brain activity

Dopimine

Plays a key role in brains reward system influencing feeling of please and motivation

Serotonin

• Regulates mood, appetite, and sleep associated with feeling of well being and happiness and plays role in memory and learning

Norepinephrine

• Neurotransmitters and hormone that plays crucial role in body's fiight or flight response increasing alertness and arousal also helps regulate mood and attentions

Glutamate

Excitatory neurotransmitters essential for learning and memory and plays role in synaptic plastics

Gaba

Reduced neuronal excitability and promotes relaxation primary for regulation anxiety

Endorphins

• Acts as natural painkillers reducing pain perception and induce feelings of please and euphoria

• Released in response to stress, pain and exercise and referred to feel good chemicals

Substance P

• Transmitting pains signals and response to pain and inflammation

Acetylcholine

Muscle contraction, memory, and learning, plays roles in central and peripheral nervous system

endocrine system

Network of glands throughout the body that secret hormones into bloodstream which regulate physiological processes

Adrenaline

• Response to stress preparing for flight or fight reaction

• Increases heart relate, blood pressure, and energy availability

• Plays crucial role in body's stress response enabling quick physical reaction in dangerous situation 

Leptin

• Produced by fat cells that help regulate energy balance by inhibiting hunger signaling the brain when the body has enough stored fate

• Plays role in longer term weight regulation and metabolism 

Ghrelin

• Hunger hormone that is secreted by stomach and tells rain to be hungry

• Rise before meals and lowers after eating 

Melatonin

• Produced by the pineal gland that helps regulate body sleep-wake cycle and circadian rhythm

• Secretion increase in darkness

• promotes sleeping

• Decreases in light making you awake

Oxytocin

• Produced by hypothalamus and released by pituitary glands

• Called love hormone because involved in social bonding and mother stuff

psychoactive drugs

• Substances that alter brain function leading to changed in perception, mood, conscious and behavior

• Can affect neurotransmitter systems and is used for theory

• Can lead to addiction

Drug actions

agonist

antagonist

reuptake inhibitor

Agonist

• Binds to receptor in brain and mimics or enhance action of neurotransmitter leading to increase of its effect

• Can result in heightened neural activity and amplified physiological response depending on the neurotransmitter involved. 

antagonist

• Substance that binds to receptor and blocks ore reduce effect of neurotransmitter inhibiting activity

• Can decrease or neutralize physiological responses

reputake inhibitor

• Substance that blocks reuptake of neurotransmitter back into presynaptic neurons increase concentration of neurotransmitter in synaptic gap

• Prolong presence affects postsynaptic neurons

categories of psychoactive drugs

stimulants

depressants

hallucinogens

opioids

stimulants

• Increases neural activity and elevates dopamine and norepinephrine in brian leading to heightened senses

• Increase heart rate and blood pressure causing to anxiety and addiction

depressants

• Reduce neuronal activity and slow down brain function by enhancing gaba effects leading to relation sedation and impaired cognitive function

• Result in drowsiness and can causes depending and overdose 

hallucinogens

• Alter perception, thought and feeling by affecting serotonin level leading to visual and auditory hallucinations distorted sense of time and changed in consciousness

opioids

• Bind to opioid receptor in brain reducing perception of pain and euphoria

• Impact brains reward system leading to addiction depending and depression in high doses

tolerance

The process by which repeated use of substances leads to less of an affect on you since you have gotten use to it

addiction

you go crazy for it even with bad consequences

withdrawal

Physical and psychological symptoms when someone who is dependent on substances stops

Medula

• Controls life sustaining function

• Serves as critical pathway for neural signals between brain and spinal cord

Cerebellum

• Located at the back of the brain plays a role in coordinating voluntary movements balance and posture

•  also contributes to motor learning and fine-tuning of motor activities

Reticular activating system

• A network of neurons located in the brainstem that plays a key role in regulating arousal alertness and the sleep wake cycle

• it helps filter incoming sensory information and directs attention to important stimuli

The limbic system

• The thalamus

• hypothalamus 

• hippocampus 

• Amygdala 

• pituitary gland

Brain reward system

typically involves several areas of the brain including parts of the limbic system and the frontal lobe crucial for motivation desire

Thalamus

• located at the top of the brainstem the acts as the brain sensory relay station directing sensory information except for the smell from the body to the appropriate areas of the cerebral cortex for processing

hypothalamus

• a small brain structure that regulates the vital functions such as hunger, thirst body temperature and hormone release 

• also influences emotions stress responses and sexual behavior

pituitary gland

• a small pea sized gland located at the base of the brain that is often referred to as a master gland because it controls of release of hormones from other endocrine glands 

• it is a crucial role regarding growth metabolism and reproductive processes through hormone secretion

hippocampus

• Crucial for formation organization and retrieval of memories 

• it plays a key role in converting short-term memories into long-term ones those involved in spatial navigation

Amygdala

• Crucial for the formation of for processing emotions particular fear and aggression

• it plays a key role in emotional memory formation and the body's response to threat

cerebral cortex

• Frontal lobe

• Temporal lobe

• Parietal lobe

• Occipital lobe

Corpus Callosum

• A thick band of nerve fibers that connect the left and right hemispheres of the brain allowing them to communicate and coordinate activities

• it facilitates the integration of sensory motor and cognitive functions between the two sides of the brain 

Frontal Lobe

•  the frontal lobe is the largest region of the brain located at the front of the head responsible for higher cognitive functions such as decision making problem solving planning and voluntary motor control 

• it also plays a key role in regulating emotions personality and behavior 

Temporal Lobe

• A region of the brain located at the sides of the head near the ears that is primarily involved in processing auditory information and Language

• It also plays a key role in memory formation and the recognition of faces and objects

Parietal Lobe

•  A region of the brain located near the top and back of the head that processes sensory information such as touch temperature and pain 

• it also plays a crucial role in spatial awareness and body positioning

Occipital lobe

• The region at the back of the cerebral cortex primarily responsible for processing visual information 

specialized brain areas

prefrontal cortex

motor cortex

somatosensory cortex

broca’s area

wernickes area

• Prefrontal Cortex

• Located at the front of the frontal lobe it is responsible for a complex cognitive functions such as decision making planning reasoning and impulse control also plays a key role in making a motion and personality

motor cortex

• located at the rear part of the frontal lobe it is responsible for planning controlling and Executing voluntary movements it's on signals to specific muscles throughout the body to produce coordinated physical actions

Somatosensory Cortex

 it is located in the parietal lobe a processes sensory information from the body including touch temperature and pain it helps map out the body surface and interpret Sensations from different parts of the body

Broca’s area

Located in the frontal lobe is crucial for speech production and language processing it helps informing coherent speech and typically found in left hemisphere of the brain

Wernicke’s area

located in the temporal lobe is responsible for language comprehension it allows us to understand spoken and written language and is typically found in the left hemisphere of the brain

Aphasia

•  a neurological condition that impairs a person's ability to communicate 

• typically caused by damage in The Language Center of the brain such as Bronca area or Wernicke's area area 

• it affects speech comprehension reading and writing with a specific symptoms depending on the location and the extent of the brain damage

The Split Brain Procedure

• Known as corpses callostomy involves surgically recovering the corpses callosum 

• this procedure is typically done by cutting through the corpses callosum to prevent the two hemispheres from communicating with each other effectively  isolating the left and right side of the brain

The Split Brain Procedure purpose

the purpose is to treat severe epilepsy that cannot be controlled by medication by severing the corpses callosum the procedure prevents seizures from spreading from what hemisphere to the other reducing the frequency and severity of the seizures

Cortex Specialization

different areas of the Cerebral cortex  are responsible for specific functions such as sensory processing meter control and language and higher cognitive functions this allows the brain to efficiently manage complex tasks by assigning them to distinct regions

Contralateral Hemispheric Organization

Each hemisphere of the brain controls the opposite side of the body meaning the left hemisphere governs the right side and the right hemisphere governs the left side this organization applies to meter control sensory processing and other brain functions

Left hemisphere controls

Language, logic

Right hemisphere controls

emotion

Brain Plasticity

• Functional Plasticity

• The brain's ability to shift functions from damage areas to undamaged areas allowing for a compensation after injury or in response to changing demands this type of plasticity enables the brain to maintain or regain lost abilities by reallocating neural resources

Structural Plasticity

• The brain's ability to physically change its structure and response to learning experience or injury this involves the growth of new neurons the formation of new synapses and the reorganization of neural Pathways allowing the brain to adapt to new challenges and recover from damage

new ways to study brain

fMRI

EEG

fMRI

 a Neuro Imaging Technique that measures and Maps brain activity by detecting changes in blood flow allowing researchers to observe which areas of the brain are active during specific tasks or mental processes

EEG

• A method that records electrical activity in the brain using electrodes placed on the scalp providing inside into brainwave patterns and is often used to study sleep epilepsy and other neurological conditions

Old Ways to study brain

case study

lesioning

case study

• In-depth detailed examination of an individual or a small group often used in Brain Research to explore rare or unique conditions and their effects on behavior and cognitive function 

  • this method allows researchers to gain a comprehensive insight into specific brain processes and structures by analyzing real life examples over an extended period

lesioning

• a technique used in Brain Research where specific areas of brain are intentionally damaged or removed to study the effects on behavior and cognitive functions this method helps researchers understand the role of different brain regions by observing the change that occur after the lesion is made 

Consciousness

• The awareness of internal and external stimulus such as thoughts feelings and surroundings with calming samples being sleep and wakefulness

Circadian Rhythm

•  the internal biological clock controlled by the hypothalamus that regulates the 24-hour cycle of biological processes influence sleep and wakefulness

Types of Sleep

• Non-rapid eye movement (NREM)

• Rapid Eye movement (REM)

Stages of sleep

NREM stage one

NREM stage two

NREM stage three

REM sleep