ap psych shi

Interneurons

Neurons in the brain and spinal cord that process information between sensory input and motor output.

Sensory (afferent) neurons

Carry information from sensory receptors to the brain/spinal cord.

Motor (efferent) neurons

Carry instructions from the brain/spinal cord to muscles/glands.

Action potential

Brief electrical impulse traveling down an axon.

Dendrites

Receive messages.

Cell body / soma

Processes information.

Axon

Sends messages.

Myelin sheath

Speeds neural impulses.

Terminal branches/buttons

Release neurotransmitters.

Synapse

Tiny gap between neurons where neurotransmitters cross.

Neurotransmitters

Chemical messengers that cross synapses.

Dopamine

Movement, learning, emotion, reward.

Serotonin

Mood, sleep, hunger.

Acetylcholine / ACh

Muscle action, learning, memory.

Norepinephrine

Alertness, arousal.

GABA

Major inhibitory transmitter.

Glutamate

Major excitatory transmitter; memory.

Agonist

Increases neurotransmitter's action.

Antagonist

Blocks neurotransmitter's action.

Central nervous system (CNS)

Brain + spinal cord; decision-maker.

Peripheral nervous system (PNS)

Connects CNS to rest of body.

Somatic nervous system

Voluntary muscle control.

Autonomic nervous system

Involuntary functions.

Sympathetic nervous system

Fight-or-flight arousal.

Parasympathetic nervous system

Calms body (rest-and-digest).

Endocrine system

Slower chemical communication system; hormones in bloodstream.

Hormones

Affect growth, reproduction, metabolism, mood.

Pituitary gland

"Master gland"; regulates growth and other glands.

Brainstem

Oldest region; automatic survival functions.

Medulla

Controls heartbeat & breathing.

Pons

Coordinates movement & controls sleep.

Reticular formation

Arousal & alertness.

Thalamus

Routes sensory info (except smell).

Cerebellum

Movement, balance, nonverbal learning.

Limbic system

Emotion, drives, memory; includes amygdala, hippocampus, hypothalamus.

Amygdala

Emotion, fear, aggression.

Hippocampus

Memory formation, spatial navigation.

Hypothalamus

Hunger, thirst, body temp, sex, controls pituitary.

Frontal lobe

Planning, judgment, speaking, voluntary movement.

Parietal lobe

Touch, body position.

Occipital lobe

Visual processing.

Temporal lobe

Auditory processing.

Motor cortex

Controls voluntary movement.

Sensory/somatosensory cortex

Touch & body movement sensations.

Auditory cortex

Processes sound.

Visual cortex

Processes sight.

Association areas

Integrate info; link sensory input with memory.

Plasticity

Brain's ability to change and reorganize.

Corpus callosum

Connects hemispheres.

Brain lateralization

Left vs. right hemisphere differences.

Split-brain research

Studies on patients with cut corpus callosum.

Fraternal (dizygotic) twins

From separate eggs; like siblings.

Identical (monozygotic) twins

From one egg; genetically identical.

Heritability

% of variation in traits explained by genes.