AP Psych Unit 2 Test

10/8

The neuron

cell that sends and receives information in the nervous system

Dendrite

Receives signals from other neurons/sensory receptors

Cell body/soma

Contains nucleus

Axon

Long fiber that carries electrical signals away from the soma

Action Potential

Electrical signal that travels down the axon

Mylein Sheath

Speeds of transmission

Multiple Scelerosis

When the immune system attacks the myelin, slowing down reactions

Synapse

Gap where one neuron communications with another

Neurotransmitters

Chemical messengers that neurons use to communicate

Myasthenia Gravis

An autoimmune disorder that causes muscle weakness. The immune system mistakenly makes antibodies that interfere with the receptors of AcH

Glial cells

Cells that support, protect, and maintain neurons

Resting Potential

When the neuron isn't being fired

Polarized

Difference between the outside and inside

Threshold

-70 to -55 mV

All or nothing response

The neuron either sends the message or it doesn't

Depolarization

When electrical impulse (action potential) moves down the axon

Reuptake

When the neuron takes the neurontransmitters back up after releasing them into the synaptic cleft

Refractory Period

The short time after a neuron fires an action potential when it cannot immediately fire another one.

AcH

Learning, memory, muscle movement

Serotonin

Natural mood stabilizer, hunger, sleep, and arousal

Norepinephrine

Fight or Flight

Dopamine

Movement, rewards, motivation

GABA

Calming neurotransmitter

Glutamate

Learning, memory, helps make GABA

Substance P

Sends pain, regulates stress

Endorphins

Pain reliever, stress reliever

Excitatory Neurotransmitters

Helps neurotransmitters fire faster

Inhibitory Neurotransmitters

Helps regulate emotions and slows you down

Agonists

Mimics a neurotransmitter and activates the receptor

Antagonists

Binds and blocks the receptor from being activated

Reuptake Inhibitors

Drugs which block the reuptake of neurotransmitters

Nerve

Bundled axons of many neurons, form mental cables

Sensory neurons (afferent)

Take sensory information and sends it toward the spinal cord and brain

Interneurons

Neurons that only go to the brain and spinal cord (Connectors)

Motor neurons

neurons that carry outgoing information from the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands

Reflex Arc

A pathway that includes the sensory neurons, inter neurons, and motor neurons.

Central nervous system

Brain and Spinal Cord

Peripheral Nervous system

Everything but the brain and spinal cord

Somatic Nervous System

Controls skeletal muscles (voluntary)

Autonomic Nervous System

Controls glands and internal organs

Sympathetic

Fight or flight

Parasympathetic

Calming

Endocrine System

Glands and hormones, flows through the bloodstream

Hormones

Chemicals messengers

Oxytocin

Love and bonding hormone (pituitary gland)

Melatonin

Sleeping (pineal gland)

Adrenaline

Fight or flight response (adrenal glands)

Leptin

Decreases hunger (fat cells)

Ghrelin

Increases hunger (empty stomach)

Case studies

Brain injuries and diseases

Lesion

Cut, burn, destroy

EEG

Records electrical waves sleeping across the brain's surface

CAT scan

X-Rays and computers used to generate cross-sections

PET Scan

Involves injecting patients with radioactive glucose to see what parts of the body are working more actively than others

MRI

Magnetic fields and radio waves produce computerized images of the brain

fMRI

Brain scan that shows brain activity and blood flow

Brainstem

Midbrain, Pons, Medulla

Medulla

Heartbeat and breathing

Reticular Activating System (RAS)

Alertness, arousal, and sleep

Cerebellum

Coordinating balance and movement

Limbic system

System of emotions and drives

Corpus Callosum

Bridge between left and right hemispheres

Amygdala

Agression and fear

Hypothalamus

Reward center: Hunger, thirst, sex, fight or flight

Thalamus

Sensory switchboard

Hippocampus

Stores and retrieves explicit memories

Frontal cortex

Pre-frontal cortex, higher order thinking, executive functioning, impulse control motor cortex, broca's area

Parietal

Sensory cortex

Occipital

Vision cortex

Temporal

Auditory cortex

Association Areas

Areas not committed to a specific task

Cerebral Cortex

Higher level brain functions. Includes lobes of the brain, limbic system, and corpus callosum

Reward center

Structures activated when we experience something rewarding

Angular Gyrus

Transforms symbols into sounds

Broca's area

Controls speech

Wernike's Area

Interprets auditory code

Aphasia

When the areas of the brain can't work together

Plasticity

Brain's ability to change by reorganizing after damage or building new pathways due to experience

Heredity

Genetic or genetically predisposed charactersitics

Enviornment

Experiences

Epigenetics

Study of mechanisms which switch genes on and off

Monozygotic Twins

Identical twins

Dizygotic twins

Fraternal twins

Evolutionary psychology

Study of the evolution of behavior and mental processes

Natural selection

Traits that better enable an organism to survive will most likely be passed on

Eugenics

Science of improving the human population by controlled breeding of genetically superior individuals

Theory of mind

The belief that you and others have a mind

Egocentrism

The inability to see a situation from another's perspective

Attention

What the mind focuses on when we have limited control (ADHD, ADD)

Cocktail Party Phenomenon

The ability to focus on one voice among many in a crowded enviornment

Stoop Task

A task demonstrating interference in reaction time when colors and words aren't matching

Selective attention

The ability to focus on one stimulus while ignoring others

Inattentional Blindness

Don't notice, even if starting at it because attention is elsewhere

Change blindness

Don't notice changes even though you sensed them.

Consciousness

Awareness of ourselves and our enviornment

Near Death Expereinces

Altered state of consciousness reported after a close brush with death

Circadian Rhythm

Bodily rhythms that occur on a 24 hour cycle

Suprachiasmatic nucleus

Cells in the hypothalamus

Jet Lag

Flying across time zones difficult due to disruption of the circadian rhythm

Shift work

night shifts impact circadian rhythm and health