Unit 3 Ap Psych

Dentrites

Antenna like branches/extensions that recieve chemical messages

Myelin sheath

Has the layer of fatty Substance that wraps around the axon (the long part-electrical wire) to protect the nerve fiber from damage and speeds up the neural message

- speeding up the message which the electrical signal gemstone the fiber instead of crawling slowly along it

All or nothing principle

When a neuron fires it is at full strength or not at all

ex: flushing a toilet

Refactory period

Period of time during which a cell is incapable of repeating an action potential (recovery time)

Dopamine

The chemical gives you a burst of energy:reward and motivation

-makes you feel excited, proud and motivated to keep trying hard things

Serotonin

A neurotransmitter that helps regulate hunger, sleep, arousal, and mood

Reuptake

Neurotransmitters are released back into synapse and the originating neuron reabsorbs the excess neurotransmitters

neurons that are sent out and when they have done their work they cant stay in the tiny gap (synapse) so they have to be reabsorbed. They are recycled and reabosorbed (to be used later)

Peripheral nervous system (PNS)

outside-highways leading to citys

A communication network of cables that connects your CNS (brain and spinal cord) to the rest of your body

Autonomic nervous system

automatically

Regulates involuntary and unconscious actions

ex: breathing, blood pumping through the veins, digestion

Somatic nervouse system

(so much movement)

Transmit signals from your brain to the skeleton muscles to allow voluntary movement

ex:walking, talking

Sympathetic nervous system

synonym

Part of the autonomic system-Emergency response system “Fight, Flight, or Freeze”

Raises your heart rate and slows down digestion

Parasympathetic nervous system

opposite of sympathetic

Part of the autonomic system-functions that calms you down and recover after stress “Rest & digest”

Lowers your heart rate and accelerates digestion

Thalamus

“Sensory Highway” where it receives information from all the senses except smell and directs messages to the cerebal cortex

Medulla

Lower part of the brain stem that controls automatic life functions like breathing, heart rate, and blood pressure

Cerebellum

cerv*ix-baby

“Little brain” responsible for balance, coordination, and fine motor skills.

Hypothalamus

Homostasis-Regulates “maintence activities” such as body temp., thirst and hunger

Parietal lobe

registers on what to do with the feeling of touch, pain, etc.

Temporal lobe

Interpret

Responsible for the sense of hearing and meaningful speech

* speech/talking, how we process others and our speech

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)

Non-radiation brain scan, can show different blood volume in brain, areas when performing different tasks

Somatosensory cortex

sensations

A strip of the brain that processes the raw physical sensations from the body such as touch and pain