Brain and Behavior - Course Review Flashcards

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Flashcards of key vocabulary and concepts from the lecture notes on brain and behavior.

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139 Terms

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Nervous System

Consists of central and peripheral divisions, incorporating motor nerves (CNS outputs) and sensory nerves (CNS inputs).

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Peripheral Nervous System

Divides into the somatic nervous system and the autonomic nervous system, both of which utilize cranial and spinal nerves.

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Autonomic Nervous System

Divided into the sympathetic (action), parasympathetic (relaxation), and enteric (independent gastrointestinal) branches.

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Central Nervous System

Consists of the brain (cerebrum, cerebellum, brainstem) and spinal cord.

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Cerebrum

Divided into left and right hemispheres, containing the cerebral cortex and subcortical structures.

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Frontal Lobe

Executive functions

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Parietal Lobe

Spatial cognition.

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Temporal Lobe

Learning, memory, and auditory processing.

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Occipital Lobe

Visual processing.

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Precentral Gyrus

Important for motor control; found in the frontal lobe.

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Postcentral Gyrus

Important for mediating sensory information; found in the parietal lobe.

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Brainstem Regions

Involved in less conscious processing, including life-sustaining functions.

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Cerebellum

Coordinating voluntary movements, balance, and posture.

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Subcortical Structures

Basal ganglia and the limbic system.

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Neurons

Primary information processors and transmitters in the nervous system.

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Soma

Cell body.

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Dendrites

Input zone.

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Axon Hillock

Integration zone.

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Axon

Conduction zone.

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Axon Terminals

Output zone.

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Neurons

Communicate via neurotransmitters released across synapses.

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Anterograde Transport

Moves materials towards axon terminals.

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Retrograde Transport

Moves materials towards the cell body.

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Glial Cells

Support neuronal function by providing physical, nutritional, and functional support.

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Types of Glial Cells

Oligodendrocytes, Schwann cells, astrocytes, and microglia.

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Oligodendrocytes and Schwann Cells

Responsible for myelinating axons to enhance the speed of electrical impulses.

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Neural Communication

Electrical signals of action potentials and chemical signals of neurotransmitters.

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Resting Membrane Potential

State of readiness with the neuron more negative inside compared to outside.

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Action Potentials

Occur at the integration zone and are propagated along axons.

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Postsynaptic Potentials

Membrane potential shifts caused by neurotransmitters, either excitatory (EPSPs) or inhibitory (IPSPs).

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EPSPs

Triggered by sodium influx, leading to depolarization.

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IPSPs

Caused by chloride influx, resulting in hyperpolarization.

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Spatial Summation

Integration of postsynaptic potentials from different locations on the dendritic tree.

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Temporal Summation

Integration of postsynaptic potentials occurring close in time at the same location.

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Neurotransmitter Receptors

Receptors can be ionotropic (ligand-gated ion channels) or metabotropic (G-protein coupled receptors).

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Ionotropic Receptors

Enable rapid, direct responses.

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Metabotropic Receptors

Provide slower, longer lasting modulation of cellular activities.

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Neurotransmitter Criteria

Synthesized in a neuron, released from the presynaptic terminal, produces a specific response, is reabsorbed and metabolized.

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Key Neurotransmitters

GABA- Major inhibitory neurotransmitter and Glutamate-Main excitatory neurotransmitter.

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Dopamine

Involved in reward, cognition, emotions, behavior, and motivation.

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Norepinephrine (Noradrenaline)

Modulates arousal, mood, and sexual behavior.

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Serotonin

Implicated in sleep states, mood, sexual behavior, and anxiety.

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Drugs

Chemicals that change the normal functioning of neurotransmitters at the synapse.

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Affinity

Attraction of a drug for a specific receptor type.

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Efficacy

Ability of a drug to induce a response once bound to the receptor site.

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Agonists

Occupy and activate receptors, mimicking a neurotransmitter.

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Antagonists

Occupy and block receptors, preventing activation.

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Reuptake Inhibitors

Block the reuptake of neurotransmitters from the synapse.

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Sensory Systems

Mechanical, visual, thermal, chemical, electrical, or magnetic.

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Receptor Cells

Convert electrical energy from a stimulus into a change in membrane potential in a receptor cell.

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Sensory Pathways

Pass through regions of the thalamus and terminate in the cerebral cortex.

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Homunculus

Map of the body in the primary somatosensory cortex.

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Visual Pathway

From the retina to the optic nerve, to the optic chiasm, to the lateral geniculate nucleus of the thalamus, to the primary visual cortex.

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Tonotopic Map

Pitch-based map that starts in the cochlea and is maintained throughout the auditory pathways.

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Bottom Level of Motor System Hierarchy

Skeletal system and muscles.

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Spinal Cord

Manages skeletal muscles in response to sensory information.

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Brainstem

Integrates motor commands from higher cortical areas.

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Primary Motor Cortex

Initiates main commands for actions.

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Non-Primary Motor Cortices

Additional source of motor commands.

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Cranial Motor Nuclei

Located in the brainstem; responsible for movements of the face and neck.

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Pyramidal System

Network of neurons in the cerebral cortex and their axons, which form the pyramidal tract to the spinal cord.

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Modulatory Control of Motor Functions

Premotor cortex, Supplementary motor area, Cerebellum, and Basal ganglia.

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Premotor Cortex

Movements in response to external influences.

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Supplementary Motor Area

Planning movements that are internally generated.

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Cerebellum

Monitor ongoing activity to produce smooth movements.

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Basal Ganglia

Works with the motor cortex to initiate and terminate movements.

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Types of Learning

Classical (Pavlovian) and Instrumental (Operant) Conditioning.

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Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS)

Stimulus that naturally causes a behavior (UCR).

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Unconditioned Response (UCR)

Reflexive behavior to the stimulus.

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Conditioned Stimulus (CS)

Normally a neutral stimulus that causes a response after conditioning.

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Conditioned Response (CR)

Response elicited by the conditioned stimulus.

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Engram

Neural concept connecting novel sensory information to existing pathways.

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Memory Types

Short-term memory (including working memory) and long-term memory.

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Baddeley's Working Memory Model

Visual spatial sketchpad, episodic buffer, phonological loop, and central executive.

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Working Memory

Ability to process and transform information in memory.

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Long-Term Memory

Capacity to retain information for adaptive purposes; declarative and non-declarative.

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Declarative Memory

Explicit knowledge; divided into semantic and episodic memory.

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Semantic Memory

Knowledge of facts.

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Episodic Memory

Memory for personally experienced events.

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Non-Declarative (Procedural) Memory

Implicit memory associated with knowing how to do something.

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Neuroplasticity

The brain's ability to change as a result of experience.

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Simplest Form of Neuroplasticity

Change to synaptic transmission.

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Synaptogenesis

Formation of new synapses.

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Synaptic Pruning

Loss of synapses that are not frequently activated.

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Long-Term Potentiation (LTP)

Cells that fire together, wire together.

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Neurochemical Cascade in LTP

LTP leads to the activation of cyclic AMP response element-binding protein (or CREB).

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Neuroplasticity

Capacity of the brain to change in response to experience, greatest early in life.

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Schachter's Cognitive Attribution Theory

Proposes that our emotional experience results from the cognitive analysis of the context around us.

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Six Basic Emotions

Anger, sadness, happiness, fear, disgust, and surprise.

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Cortex Involvement in Emotion

Inhibition of emotional responses, particularly aggression.

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Klüver–Bucy Syndrome

Loss of fear, hypersexuality, and putting non-food items in mouth.

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Stress

Any circumstance that upsets homeostatic balance.

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Homeostatic Balance

Maintaining constant temperature, stable blood sugar levels, and mental alertness.

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Stress Response

Hypothalamus activates the sympathetic nervous system, releasing adrenaline, noradrenaline, and cortisol.

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Effects of Stress Hormones

Increasing heart rate, breathing, and releasing energy stores.

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Divisions of the Autonomic Nervous System

Hormonal system, parasympathetic system and sympathetic system.

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Repeated Stressful Experience

Military recruits doing parachute jumps; the body learns to anticipate and adjust for predictable stress.

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Homeostasis

All animals have mechanisms to keep physical systems in a steady, optimal state.

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Set Point

Energy-efficient state for a homeostatic system.

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Negative Feedback

Regulatory mechanism in which a change triggers a response that counteracts the initial change.