AP Psychology - Chapter 2 "The Brain"

The parts of the brain, functions, and the nervous system

Broca’s Area

associated with speech production

Central Nervous System (CNS)

Consisting of the brain and spinal cord

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

Nerves branching out from the brain and spinal cord

Central Nervous System

Combining sensory information

Coordinating both conscious and unconscious activity

Cerebellum

Coordinating muscle activity and fine motor skills

Brain Stem

Regulating vital body functions that you don’t need to think about

Ex: breathing, heart rate, & digestion

Brain Stem Parts

Pons, medulla, midbrain

Midbrain

transmitting information necessary for vision and hearing, important role in motor movement, pain, and sleep/wake cycle.

Hypothalamus

control of the involuntary functions of the body, involved in sleep, appetite, thirst, and sexuality

Pons

lying between the midbrain and the medulla oblongata and is responsible for sleep

Cerebrum

divided into four main lobes and responsible for higher level thinking

Frontal Lobe

responsible for voluntary movement and higher level thinking

Parietal Lobe

sensory perception, manages taste, touch, smell, vision, and smell

Occipital Lobe

responsible for vision, facial recognition, memory formation

Temporal Lobe

managing emotions, processing auditory information, understanding language

Gray Matter

the outer layer of the cerebral cortex

White Matter

inner layer under the gray matter

Two hemispheres connection

Corpus callosum

Corpus Callosum

nerve fibers running through the brain connecting the two hemispheres

Wernick’s Area

understanding speech production

Hippocampus

converts short-term memories into long-term memories

Amygdala

controls sexual and social behavior

Divisions of the peripheral nervous system

Somatic nervous system (SNS) and Autonomic nervous system (ANS)

Dvisions of the ANS

Sympathetic nervous system and parasympathetic nervous system

Somatic Nervous System

voluntary control of body movements

Autonomic Nervous System

regulates involuntary physiological processes such as heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, arousal

Sympathetic Nervous System

responding to dangerous situations (fight or flight)