Griggs Psychology Chapter 2

Glutamate

main excitatory neurotransmitter; it is involved in memory storage, pain perception, and schizophrenia

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

part of the nervous system that links the CNS with the body's sensory receptors, muscles and glands

Sensory neurons

neurons in the PNS that carry info to the CNS from sensory receptors, muscles and glands

Motor neurons

neurons in the PNS that carry movement commands from the CNS out to the rest of the body

Spinal cord

conduit between the brain and the PNS for incoming sensory data and outgoing movement commands to the muscles

Somatic (skeletal) nervous system

part of the PNS that carries sensory input from receptors to the CNS and relays commands from the CNS to skeletal muscles to control their movement

Endocrine glandular system

the body's other major communication system. Communication is achieved through hormones secreted by the endocrine glands and travel through the bloodstream to their target sites

Hormone

chemical messenger that is produced by an endocrine gland and carried by the bloodstream to target tissues throughout the body

Emotion

complex psychological state that involves a state of physiological arousal, an outward behavioral expression, and a cognitive appraisal of the situation to determine the specific emotion and is intensity

James-Lange theory

proposed that an emotion is determined from a cognitive appraisal of the physiological arousal and behavioral responses which occur first

Cannon-Bard theory

proposed that an emotion is determined from simultaneously occurring physiological arousal, behavioral responses and cognitive appraisal

Schachter-Singer two-factor theory

proposed that an emotion is determined by cognitive appraisal of the physiological arousal and the entire environmental situation

Reticular formation

network of neurons running up the center of the brain stem responsible for our different levels of arousal and consciousness

Basal ganglia

part of the brain that is involved in the initiation and execution of movements

Limbic system

group of brain structures (hypothalamus, hippocampus, amygdala) that play an important role in our survival, memory and emotions

Cerebral cortex

The layers of interconnected cells covering the brain's two hemispheres. This is the control and information-processing center for the nervous system; it is where perception, memory, language, decision making, and all other higher-level cognitive processing occur

Corpus callosum

bridge of neurons that connects the two cerebral hemispheres

Frontal lobe

The area in each cerebral hemisphere in front of the central fissure and above the lateral fissure / The motor cortex and Broca's area is in this lobe

Parietal lobe

The area in each cerebral hemisphere in back of the central fissure and above the lateral fissure / The somatosensory cortex is in this lobe

Dendrites

fibers projecting out of the cell body of a neuron whose function is to receive information from other neurons

Dopamine

a neurotransmitter involved in arousal and mood states, thought processes & physical movement

Parkinson's Disease

disease in which a person has movement problems such as muscle tremors, difficulty initiating movements, rigidity of movement, due to scarcity of dopamine in the basal ganglia

Serotonin and Norepinephrine

neurotransmitters involved in levels of arousal and mood, sleep, and eating

GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid)

main inhibitory neurotransmitter; it is involved in lowering arousal and anxiety and regulating movement

Endorphins

group of neurotransmitters that are involved in pain relief and feelings of pleasure

Central Nervous System (CNS)

brain and spinal cord

Interneurons

neurons that integrate info within the CNS through communication with each other and between sensory and motor neurons in the spinal cord

Spinal reflex

simple automatic action of the spinal cord not requiring involvement of the brain, such as the knee-jerk refex

Autonomic nervous system

part of the PNS that regulates the functioning of our internal environment (glands and organs like the heart, lungs and stomach)

Sympathetic nervous system

part of the autonomic nervous system that is in control when we are highly aroused, as in an emergency = fight or flight response

Parasympathetic nervous system

part of the autonomic nervous system that returns the body to its normal resting state after having been highly aroused = rest and digest

Pituitary gland

the most influential gland in the endocrine glandular system; it releases hormones for human growth and hormones that direct other endocrine glands to release their hormones

Medulla

brain stem structure involved in many essential body functions, such as heartbeat, breathing, blood pressure, digestion and swallowing

Pons

brain stem structure that serves as a bridge between the cerebellum and the rest of the brain and is involved in sleep and dreaming

Cerebellum

part of the brain involved in coordination of our movements, sense of balance, and motor learning

Thalamus

part of the brain that serves as a relay station for incoming sensory info

Hypothalamus

part of the brain involved in regulating basic drives such as eating, drinking, sex; it also directs the endocrine system through its control of the pituitary gland and the autonomic nervous system to maintain the body's internal environment

Hippocampus

part of the brain involved in formation of memories

Amygdala

part of the brain involved in emotions influencing aggression, anger, fear and by providing the emotional element of our memories and the interpretation of emotional expressions in others

Neurons

Cells that transmit information within the nervous system

Glial cells (glia)

cells in the nervous system that comprise the support system for the neurons

Cell body

part of the neuron that contains its nucleus and the other biological machinery to keep the cell alive - it decides whether or not to generate a neural impulse in order to pass incoming info on to other neurons

Axon

the long, singular fiber leaving the cell body of a neuron; it conducts the neural impulse from the cell body to the axon terminals triggering chemical communication with other neurons

Myelin sheath

an insulating layer covering an axon - allows for faster neural impulses

Neurotransmitter

naturally occurring chemical in the nervous system that specializes in transmitting info between neurons

Synaptic gap (synapse)

microscopic gap between neurons across which neurotransmitters travel to carry messages to other neurons

Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scan

visual display of the activity levels in various areas in the brain. Harmless dose of radioactive glucose introduced into the bloodstream moves to more active areas of brain and, when metabolized by the neurons, emits positrons detected & measured by a computer

Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)

computerized image of the activity levels of various areas of the brain which focuses on the amount of oxygen brought to each area

Agonist

drug or poison that increases the activity of one or more neurotransmitters

Antagonist

drug or poison that decreases the activity of one or more neurotransmitters

Acetylcholine (ACh)

a neurotransmitter involved in learning, memory and muscle movement

Blood-brain barrier

protective mechanism by which the blood capillaries supplying the brain create a barrier that prevents dangerous substances access to the brain

L-Dopa

drug for Parkinson's that contains the precursors to dopamine so that once its in the brain, it will be converted to dopamine

Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs)

drugs that achieve their agonistic effect on serotonin by selectively blocking its reuptake

Temporal lobe

The area in each cerebral hemisphere located beneath the lateral fissure / The primary auditory cortex and Wernicke's area is in this lobe

Occipital lobe

The area located in the lower back of each cerebral hemisphere / The primary visual cortex is in this lobe

Motor cortex

the strip of cortex in each cerebral hemisphere in the frontal lobe directly in front of the central fissure, which allows us to move different parts of our body

Somatosensory cortex

the strip of cortex in each cerebral hemisphere in the parietal lobe directly in back of the central fissure, which allows us to sense pressure, temperature, and pain in different parts of our body as well as the position of our body parts

Association cortex

all the areas of the cerebral cortex except those areas devoted to to primary sensory processing or motor processing. This is where all the higher-level cognitive processing that requires the association of information, such as perception and language, occurs

Broca's area

area in cerebral cortex responsible for speech/language. It is in the left frontal lobe of the majority of people, regardless of handedness

Wernicke's area

an area in the cerebral cortex responsible for comprehension of speech and text. inside the left temporal lobe

consciousness

an individual's subjective awareness of their inner thinking and feeling and their external environment

REM (rapid eye movement) sleep

The stage of sleep that is characterized by rapid eye movements and brain wave patterns that resemble those for an awake state and in which most dreaming occurs. REM sleep is sometimes referred to as paradoxical sleep because the bodily muscles are immobilized but much of the brain is highly active.

the main function of the _____ is to receive information from other neurons?

dendrites

which of the following is an angonist?

amphetamine

an SSRI works by blocking the reuptake of?

serotonin

which kind of neuron carries information from the CNS to the PNS?

motor neurons

which of the following is an action of the parasympathetic nervous system?

stimulation of digestion

the actions of the pituitary gland are controlled by the?

hypothalamus

the limbic system consists of the?

amygdala, hypothalamus, and hippocampus

in the majority of people, brocas area is located in the___ hemisphere and wernickes area is located in the ___ hemisphere

left, left

information in a persons left visual field goes to the ____ half of each eye and then to the ___ hemisphere

right, right

which of the following stages of sleep is refereed to as paradoxical sleep?

REM sleep

the ____ theory of emotion propose that the physiological arousal and behavioral responses and the emotional feeling all occur simultaneously but independently?

cannon-bard

at dinner when john picks up his fork, his ___nervous system controls the movement of his fingers. his ___nervous system regulates his stomach and controls the sigestion of food?

somatic; autonomic

damage to thr right hemisphere will most likely disrupt a persons ability to?

recongnize faces

botulinum poisoning (food poisoning causes paralysis by blocking the release of ___ and curare paralyzes by occupying the receptors sites for ___?

acetylcholine; acetylcholine

the amount of space devoted to each part of the body in the motor cortex is?

proportional to the complexity and precision of motor movement of which that part of the body is capable