AP Psychology Unit 3 Review: Biological Bases of Behavior

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the nervous system, neuron anatomy, neural transmission, neurotransmitters, brain structures, lobes, cortices, and key figures from AP Psychology Unit 3.

Biological psychology

A branch of psychology concerned with the links between biology and behavior.

Nervous system

The body’s speedy electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous systems.

Central nervous system (CNS)

The division of the nervous system consisting of the brain and spinal cord.

Peripheral nervous system (PNS)

The division that connects the central nervous system to the limbs and organs, essentially serving as a communication relay going back and forth between the brain and the extremities.

Somatic nervous system

The division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body’s skeletal muscles; also known as the skeletal nervous system.

Autonomic nervous system

The part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs; regulates the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems.

Sympathetic nervous system

The division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body and mobilizes its energy in stressful situations ("fight or flight").

Parasympathetic nervous system

The division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body and conserves its energy ("calming").

Reflex

A simple, automatic response to a sensory stimulus, such as the knee-jerk response.

Neuron

A nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system.

Sensory neurons

Neurons that carry incoming information from sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord.

Interneurons

Neurons within the brain and spinal cord that communicate internally and intervene between sensory inputs and motor outputs.

Motor neurons

Neurons that carry outgoing information from the brain and spinal cord to muscles and glands.

Soma (cell body)

The neuron’s life support center that also produces neurotransmitters.

Dendrite

The bushy, branching extensions of a neuron that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body.

Axon

The extension of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers, through which messages pass to other neurons, muscles, or glands.

Myelin sheath

A layer of fatty tissue that covers the axon and aids in the speed of neural impulses; degeneration can lead to multiple sclerosis.

Schwann cell

A specialized cell that produces myelin.

Action potential

A neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon.

Refractory period

The resting state after firing in which the neuron goes back to its polarized resting state.

Threshold

The level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse.

Synapse

The junction between the terminal branch of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron.

Neurotransmitters

Chemical messengers that cross synaptic gaps between neurons, binding to receptor sites on the receiving neuron.

Reuptake

A neurotransmitter’s reabsorption by the sending neuron.

Endorphins

Natural, opiate-like neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure.

Acetylcholine (ACh)

A neurotransmitter that enables muscle action, learning, and memory; ACh-producing neurons deteriorate with Alzheimer's disease.

Dopamine

A neurotransmitter that influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion; excess receptor activity is linked to schizophrenia, while an undersupply produces tremors and decreased mobility in Parkinson's disease.

Serotonin

A neurotransmitter that affects mood, hunger, sleep, and arousal; an undersupply is linked to depression.

Norepinephrine

A neurotransmitter that helps control alertness and arousal; an undersupply can depress mood.

GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid)

A major inhibitory neurotransmitter; an undersupply is linked to seizures, tremors, and insomnia.

Glutamate

A major excitatory neurotransmitter involved in memory; an oversupply can overstimulate the brain, producing migraines or seizures.

Endocrine system

The body’s "slow" chemical communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream.

Hormones

Chemical messengers manufactured by endocrine glands that travel through the bloodstream and affect other tissues.

Adrenal glands

A pair of endocrine glands that sit just above the kidneys and secrete hormones (epinephrine/adrenaline and norepinephrine/noradrenaline) to arouse the body in times of stress.

Pituitary gland

The endocrine system's most influential "master" gland; located in the limbic system, it regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands under the influence of the hypothalamus.

Plasticity

The brain’s ability to modify itself after tissue damage.

EEG (electroencephalogram)

An amplified recording of the waves of electrical activity that sweep across the brain’s surface.

CT/CAT (computed tomography)

A series of X-ray photographs of the brain taken from different angles and combined by computer to create an image representing a slice through the brain.

PET (positron emission tomography)

A technique that measures levels of brain activity by detecting where a radioactive form of glucose goes while performing a task.

MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)

A technique that uses magnetic fields and radio waves to produce computer-generated images of different structures within the brain.

fMRI (functional MRI)

A technique for revealing bloodflow and brain activity by comparing successive MRI scans to show brain function.

Brainstem

The oldest and innermost region of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord swells and enters the skull; responsible for automatic survival functions.

Thalamus

The brain’s sensory switchboard on top of the brainstem that directs messages to sensory receiving areas in the cortex (except olfaction/smell) and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla.

Medulla

The base of the brainstem that controls heartbeat and breathing.

Reticular Formation

A nerve network in the brainstem that plays an important role in controlling arousal.

Cerebellum

The "little brain" attached to the rear of the brainstem that assists in balance and voluntary movements.

Limbic System

A doughnut-shaped system of neural structures at the border of the brainstem and cerebral hemispheres, associated with emotions (fear, aggression) and drives (food, sex).

Amygdala

Two almond-shaped neural clusters in the limbic system linked to emotions, especially fear, rage, and aggression.

Hypothalamus

A limbic structure lying below the thalamus that directs maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature) and helps govern the endocrine system.

Hippocampus

A limbic system structure responsible for memory and learning.

Glial cells

"Glue cells" in the cortex that guide neural connections, provide nutrients and insulating myelin, and mop up ions and neurotransmitters.

Frontal lobes

The portion of the cerebral cortex lying behind the forehead involved in speaking, muscle movements, and making plans and judgments; includes the motor cortex.

Motor cortex

An area at the back of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements.

Parietal lobes

The portion of the cerebral cortex between the frontal and occipital lobes that processes body sensations; includes the sensory cortex.

(Somato)sensory cortex

The area at the front of the parietal lobe that registers and processes body sensations.

Occipital lobes

The portion of the cerebral cortex at the back of the head that includes areas receiving information from the visual fields.

Visual cortex

The area in the occipital lobe that receives written words and visual information from the eyes.

Temporal lobes

The portion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears that includes auditory areas, each receiving information primarily from the opposite ear.

Auditory cortex

The area of the temporal lobe that receives auditory information from the ears.

Association areas

Areas of the cerebral cortex involved in higher mental functions such as learning, remembering, thinking, and speaking rather than primary motor or sensory functions.

Broca’s Area

An area of the left frontal lobe that controls speech muscles via the motor cortex; damage impairs speaking.

Wernicke’s Area

An area of the left temporal lobe involved in language comprehension and interpretation of auditory code; damage impairs understanding.

Angular gyrus

A brain structure involved in reading aloud by transforming visual representations into an auditory code.

Corpus callosum

The large band of neural fibers connecting the left and right brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them.

Split brain

A condition resulting from surgery that severs the corpus callosum, isolating the two brain hemispheres and preventing them from communicating.

Split-brain HE-ART experiment

A demonstration where a patient with a severed corpus callosum verbally reports seeing "ART" (transmitted to the verbal left hemisphere) but points with their left hand to "HE" (transmitted to the nonverbal right hemisphere).

Franz Gall

The early 19th-century German physician who invented phrenology, claiming that bumps on the skull reveal mental abilities and character traits.

Phineas Gage

An 1800s railroad worker whose frontal lobes were severely damaged when a tamping iron shot through his skull; his personality shifted from calm to irritable, providing early evidence of frontal lobe functions.