Chapter_5_Book

Sensorimotor System

A system that integrates sensory input with motor outputs, allowing organisms to navigate the environment.

Proprioception

The awareness of body position and movement, crucial for coordinated movement.

Nociceptors

Receptors that detect painful stimuli and are responsible for the sensation of pain.

Receptor Cell

A specialized cell that responds to specific stimuli and converts these signals into nerve impulses.

Action Potential

A neural impulse that travels along axons and communicates signals in the nervous system.

Labeled Lines

The concept that each sensory input to the brain reports only a particular type of information.

Sensory Transduction

The conversion of external stimuli into electrical signals in sensory receptors.

Pacinian Corpuscle

A type of mechanoreceptor in the skin that detects vibration and pressure.

Threshold

The minimum stimulus intensity required to elicit a neural response.

Muscle Spindle

Proprioceptive sensory receptor that detects changes in muscle length and rate of change.

Golgi Tendon Organ

Receptors that sense tension in muscles, protecting them from excessive force.

Extrapyramidal System

A motor system that regulates and fine-tunes movements, involving multiple brain regions including the basal ganglia and cerebellum.

Primary Motor Cortex (M1)

The region of the brain responsible for the initiation and regulation of voluntary movements.

Mirror Neurons

Neurons that activate both when an individual performs an action and when they observe another individual perform the same action.

Somatosensory Cortex

The brain area that processes sensory information from the body and is organized based on body maps.

Pain Pathway

The neural pathway that transmits pain information from peripheral nociceptors via the spinal cord to the brain.

Cingulate Cortex

A brain region involved in the emotional aspects of pain and pain perception.

Action Potential Frequency

The rate at which action potentials are generated, signaling the intensity of a stimulus.

Phasic Receptor

A type of receptor that adapts quickly to a stimulus, providing information about changes in intensity.

Tonic Receptor

A receptor that adapts slowly to a stimulus, maintaining a consistent level of response.

Synesthesia

A condition in which stimulation of one sensory pathway leads to involuntary experiences in a second sensory pathway.

Dermatome

An area of skin innervated by a specific spinal nerve, mapped in the sensory cortex.

Apraxia

An impairment in the ability to perform complex movements, despite intact motor function.

Neuromuscular Junction

The synapse between a motor neuron and a skeletal muscle fiber, essential for muscle contraction.

Endorphins

Endogenous opioids that help alleviate pain, often released in response to stress or injury.