Studied by 10 people
why is the pituitary gland known as the master gland?
regulates other glands in the secretion of the body’s hormones e.g. adrenal gland, thyroid and reproductive glands
list the divisions of the nervous system in order
nervous system
central and peripheral nervous system
somatic and autonomic nervous system
para-sympathetic and sympathetic nervous system
what is the role of the para-sympathetic nervous system
to conserve energy
what is the role of the sympathetic nervous system
to increase the amount of energy in the body
what is the role of the somatic nervous system
control voluntary behaviour
what is the role of the autonomic nervous system
control involuntary behaviour
what is adrenaline
the stress hormone, produced by the adrenal glands, that stimulates the fight or flight response
what is the fight or flight response
the acute stress response that impacts our physiology when we encounter something scary, triggered by the release of hormones
what is the endocrine system
A series of glands in the body that secrete hormones into the bloodstream
what is a hormone
Chemical compounds secreted by glands that are used to send information and messages chemically around the body through the bloodstream
what is the auditory cortex
the part of the temporal lobe that processes auditory information in humans
what is Broca’s area
located in the left hemisphere’s frontal lobe, it is crucial in language production and speech control
what is EEG
electroencephalogram is used to measure electrical currents on the surface of the brain as a means of studying brain activity
what is ERP
Event-related potentials use electrodes placed on the scalp to measure electrical activity in the brain by exposing the participant to the stimuli many times
what is excitation
An act of irritation or stimulation or of responding to a stimulus
what is functional MRI (fMRI)
A technique for measuring changes in brain activity over time using magnetic resonance, using a strong magnetic field to create images
what is a gland
a group of cells or an organ that excretes a chemical substance
what is hemispheric lateralisation
the idea that both hemispheres are functionally different and that certain mental processes and behaviors are mainly controlled by one hemisphere
what is inhibition
decreasing the likelihood of the neuron firing
what is localisation of function
the idea that specific areas of the brain are assigned to specific functions e.g. memory
what is the motor cortex
an area within the brain’s cerebral cortex involved in the planning, control, and carrying out of voluntary movement
what is the function of a motor neuron
to integrate signals from the brain to the muscles, glands, and organs that intend to carry out the required motor function. carry the impulse away from the CNS
what is a neurotransmitter
chemical messengers that facilitate communication between nerve cells, or neurons
what is the peripheral nervous system
nervous tissue that lies outside of the central nervous system, connecting the CNS to the rest of the organism
what is neuroplasticity
the brain’s ability to change and adapt to the environment, both in function and structure
what is post-mortem
a technique used to examine the brain and body after death
what is the function of a relay neuron
connects motor and sensory neurones, relaying their impulses. located in the CNS
what are scanning techniques
ways of studying the brain including fMRI, EEG and ERP
what is the function of sensory neurons
cells that send information to the brain regarding the senses. Carry information towards the CNS
what is the somatosensory cortex
a region of the brain located in the parietal lobe and behind the primary motor cortex of the frontal lobe, responsible for processing sensory information from the body
what is split brain research
involving individuals who have had surgical separation of their brain hemispheres in order to relieve symptoms of epilepsy, this research can reveal to what extent other brain functions are lateralised
what is a synapse
where information is transmitted from one neuron to another. It consists of the axon terminal of the pre-synaptic neuron, the synaptic cleft, and the dendrite or cell body of the post-synaptic neuron
describe synaptic transmission
action potential is present in the pre-synaptic axon, causing the vesicles of neurotransmitter in this axon to move and fuse with the pre-synaptic membrane. the neurotransmitters are released, crossing the synaptic cleft. They attach to the receptors on the post-synaptic membrane, causing excitation in the post-synaptic neuron and, if the threshold is reached, releasing an action potential
what is the visual cortex
the visual cortex is the part of the brain’s occipital lobe responsible for processing visual information received from the eyes
what is Wernicke’s area
a structure of brain that is believed to be involved in language comprehension. It is located within the left cerebral hemisphere, near the back of the temporal lobe
give two pieces of research to support plasticity
Maguire on london taxi drivers, Boyke on 60 year olds juggling
what are the four types of functional recovery
axonal sprouting, unmasking, recruitment, neurogenesis
what did Teuber (1975) investigate? what did he find?
the effect of age on functional recovery. found that 60% soldiers under the age of twenty recovered from brain damage whilst only 20% over the age of 26 recovered
describe research that suggests education is linked to the brains ability to functionally recover
Scheider found that patients with a college education were 7x more likely to recover disability-free from brain damage after 1 year due to cognitive reserve
what is functional recovery
a form of plasticity following brain trauma where the brain redistributes functions
what is a circadian rhythm? give an example
a biological process that occurs around once a day. e.g. the sleep/wake cycle
what are endogenous pacemakers? give an example
internal biological clocks that regulate bodily processes. e.g. the SCN
what are exogenous zeitgebers? give an example
external factors which influence biological rhythms e.g. light
what is an infradian rhythm? give an example
a biological process that occurs less than once a day e.g. menstrual cycle
describe synaptic transmission
an electrical impulse arrives at the end of the axon on the presynaptic neurone. Chemical messengers called neurotransmitters are released from vesicles at the presynaptic membrane. The neurotransmitters diffuse across the synaptic cleft and bind with receptor molecules on the postsynaptic membrane. This stimulates the postsynaptic neurone to generate an electrical impulse that then travels down the axon of the postsynaptic neurone. The neurotransmitters are then destroyed or recycled to prevent continued stimulation of the second neurone, which could cause repeated impulses to be sent
what is an ultradian rhythm? give an example
a biological process that occurs more than once every day e.g. the sleep cycle
describe brain trauma
can affect your brain's emotion networks to make you overreact or under-react to stressful situations. Trauma creates fixed neural networks that are isolated from other parts of your brain and resistant to change
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Flashcard (50)