unit 1 - ap psych (2025)

nature vs. nurture

nature = genetics

nurture = environment (family, culture, ect)

*** natural selection, evolution, epigenetics, environment v hereditary

neurotransmitter

chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between neurons

dopamine (neurotransmitter)

pleasure and reward system (excite, satisfy, ect)

too much = addiction & schizophrenia

too little = parkinson's, depression, & adhd

serotonin (neurotransmitter)

regulates mood, happiness and feeling good

too much = hallucinations, mania

too little = depression, mood disorders, and over obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety

norepinephrine (neurotransmitter)

excitatory neurotransmitter (message passed to next cell)

fight or flight response (increases arousal)

too much = anxiety, high blood pressure

too little = depression and mood disorders

glutamate (neurotransmitter)

excitatory neurotransmitter (message passed to next cell)

important for memory, cognition, and mood regulation

too much = overstimulate brain (migraines and seizures)

too little = insomnia, concentration problems, and mental exhaustion

GABA (neurotransmitter)

calms and relaxes (increases sleepiness and decreases anxiety)

too much = overly sleepy and sedates so normal function is impaired

too little = anxiety and insomnia/sleep disorders

endorphins (neurotransmitter)

alleviates pain (decreases stress and improves mood)

too much = body ignores signals of pain and risk injury

too little = feel significant pain, addiction

***adrenaline and endorphins are different

acetylcholine/ACH (neurotransmitter)

controls muscle contractions, memory, and attention

too much = severe muscle spasms

too little = alzheimers and dementia

substance p (neurotransmitter)

transmits pain signals to brain

too much = chronic pain

too little = reduced pain sensitivity to pain

peripheral nervous system

controls everything outside the brain and spinal cord

somatic nervous system

controls voluntary muscle movement and senses (skeletal system)

autonomic nervous system

controls glands and internal organ muscles

sympathetic nervous system

arouses the body and mobilizes energy (fight or flight)

parasympathetic nervous system

calms the body and conserves energy ("paralyzer")

dendrites

branchlike parts of a neuron that are specialized to receive and integrate messages- impulsing towards cell body

nucleus

helps with growth, protein synthesis, and stress responses

cell body

the part of a neuron that contains the nucleus; the cell's life-support center

myelin sheath

fatty tissue layer encasing axons- creates greater transmission speed

node of ranvier

a gap between successive segments of the myelin sheath where the axon membrane is exposed- speed up communication

axon

neuron extension passes messages through other neurons or muscles/glands

synaptic terminal

at the end of a neuron & forms junctions with other cells

neural impulse

electrical signal traveling down the axon

resting potential of a neuron

when inside of axon is negatively (potassium) charged and the outside is positively charged (sodium) = -salty +banana

stimulis threshold

the minimum level of stimulation required to activate a particular neuron (before stimulation = polarized, when activated = depolarized)

**polarized = different electrical charge between inside and outside of axon

action potential

a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon (all or none law)

refractory period

neuron is unable to fire

reuptake

neurotransmitters are vacuumed back up by presynaptic (sending) neuron

synaptic gap

space between the axon terminal of one neuron and the receptors of the next neuron

presynaptic neuron

neuron that sends the signal

postsynaptic neuron

neuron that receives the signal

synaptic transmission

the process of transferring information from one cell to another at a synapse

depressant (drug)

slows down the central nervous system (brain and nerve function)

*alcohol

opiate (drug)

bind to opioid receptors & reduce perceptions of pain

*heroin

stimulant (drug)

speeds up brain activity

*cocaine

agonist

mimics neurotransmitter

antagonist

blocks neurotransmitters

cereberal cortex (including lobes)

control and info processing center

medula

controls heartbeat and breathing

reticular formation

maintains consciousness/alertness, sleep, and arousal from sleep

limbic system

includes the hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus = basic drives, emotion, and memory

hippocampus

memory process (located near pituitary gland)

thalamus

receives all sensory messages (except smell) and delivers them

hypothalamus

responsible for hunger/thirst, body temperature, pleasure, pituitary glands (hormones)

amygdala

responsible for emotion (especially aggression (fight) and fear (flight) )

broca's area

responsible for speech production (located in left frontal lobe)

wernicke's area

responsible fore speech comprehension (located in left temporal lobe)

aphasia

difficulty with processing/comprehending spoken and written word

functional plasticity

shifting functions from damaged to undamaged brain areas (ie. relearning to walk or talk)

structural plasticity

ability to physically chance physical structure of the brain (learning something new)

**use it or lose it

frontal lobe

Responsible for planning, personality, judgement, voluntary movement (motor cortex = back of frontal lobe)- includes prefrontal cortex = personality

central sulcus

separates frontal and parietal lobes

parietal lobe

responsible for sensations such as pain, temperature, and touch; associated with mathematical and spatial reasoning

**sensory & includes somatosensory cortex = process info

** sensory cortex = registers and processes body touch and movement sensations

occipital lobe

responsible for visual processing

**visual areas = receive visual info from opposite visual fields

***left side of eye = right hemisphere & right side of eye = left hemisphere

pre-occipital notch

the notch that serves as the bottom point of the imaginary dividing line between the temporal and occipital lobes; the top of the parieto-occipital sulcus is the top point

temporal lobe

responsible for hearing and language

**auditory areas and receiving info. primarily from the opposite ear

pituitary gland

endocrine gland at the base of the brain- responsible for hormones

corpus callosum

the bundle of nerve fibers connecting the two cerebral hemispheres

split brain function

a surgical procedure that involves cutting the corpus callosum & isolating the hemispheres

**roger sperry

EEG

electroencephalogram- detects brainwaves (external)

fMRI

functional MRI- detailed picture of brain activity

consciousness

personal awareness of mental activities, internal sensations, and the external environment

circadian rhythm

24 hour cycle- daily fluctuations in biological and psychological processes

sleep theories

identify why we sleep (inactive, energy conservation, restoration, and brain plasticity theory)

recouperation

body repairs/repletes cellular components for functions that depleted during the day

making memories

the process where the mind interprets, stores, and retrieves info

creativity

ability to produce/develop original work, theories, techniques, and thoughts

growth process

systemic process of actively learning/adapting to new ways to constructively function after a crisis

sleep cycle

rapid eye movement (REM) or non-rapid eye movement (NREM) four stages for 90 minute intervals

NREM stage 1

beginning of the sleep cycle; relatively light stage of sleep. *considered a transition period between wakefulness and sleep; lasts only a brief time (5-10 minutes)

*alpha theta brainwaves

NREM stage 2

onset of sleep- defined by sleep spindles and k-complex

*sleep spindle = brief bursts of brain activity for a second or two

*k-complex = single high voltage spikes of brain activity

NREM stage 3

sleep deepens; delta waves > 20% of total brain activity; vital signs decline

NREM stage 4

delta waves > 50% of total brain activity, oblivious to the world

REM sleep

rapid eye movement sleep, a recurring sleep stage during which vivid dreams commonly occur **also known as paradoxical sleep, because the muscles are relaxed (except for minor twitches) but other body systems are active

**REM sleep disorder = outbursts of activity in REM (emotional and physical)

REM rebound

the tendency for REM sleep to increase following REM sleep deprivation (created by repeated awakenings during REM sleep)

sleep disorders

serious and consistent sleep disturbances that interfere with daytime functioning and cause subjective distress- 2 categories = parasomnia and dyssomnia

**parasomnia = slight disturbances/problems during sleep

**dyssomnia = problems initiating or returning sleep

narcolepsy

unable to stay awake (problem with nervous system) - dyssomnia

**cataplexy = loss of muscle function

sleep apnea

sleeper stops breathing- associated with snoring- dyssomnia

insomnia

difficult to stay awake or go to sleep- dyssomnia

somnambulism

sleep walking- parasomnia

sleep paralysis

state of immobility just before falling asleep or waking up- person is conscious but can't move- several minutes long- hallucinations and abnormal sensations- believed to be caused by an overlap between REM sleep and wakefulness- pons inhibit spinal neuron motor neurons & cause paralysis

preconscious

(subconscious) thoughts/ideas/memory that aren't in immediate awareness but can be recalled quickly (sleep & dreaming)

non-conscious

biological functions we are unaware of

endocrine system

passes hormones through the bloodstream- hypothalamus (limbic system) and pituitary gland work together to make a "master gland"

hunger hormones

ghrelin = appetite stimulant (stomach growl)

leptin = signals fullness (satiety)

**comes from hypothalamus

sleep hormone

melatonin = naturally increases at night

**comes from pineal gland

mood & well being hormones (neuropeptide)

endorphins = happiness hormone- reduce stress, improve mood (pain or stress)- boosted from exercise, sex, and getting a massage

oxytocin = love hormone- linked to feeling trust, empathy, and relationship building- increases during physical affection- essential for childbirth and breastfeeding

**comes from pituitary gland

stress hormones

adrenaline = part of fight or flight

cortisol = related to chronic stress

**comes from adrenal gland

sensation

the process of detecting a physical stimulus

transduction

outside sensory info converted into neural signals for the brain to interpret

the eye

allows humans to have vision

wavelength

distance from one wave peak to another

**same definition for hearing

amplitude

height/depth (intensity/amount of energy) of a wave signal

**same definition for hearing

cornea

the transparent layer forming the front of the eye.

iris

a ring of muscle tissue that forms the colored portion of the eye around the pupil and controls the size of the pupil opening

pupil

the adjustable opening in the center of the eye through which light enters

lens

the transparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to help focus images on the retina

retnia

a light sensitive membrane in the back of the eye that contains rods and cones which receive an image from the lens and send it to the brain through the optic nerve (process visual info)

fovea

the retina's area of central focus

**cones

optic nerve

the nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain