Unit 2 Study Guide: Core Behavioral Systems

These flashcards cover key definitions and concepts from lectures on perception, movement, learning, and memory, emphasizing the physiological and psychological aspects of behavior.

Sensation

The process of detecting physical energy from the environment through sensory receptors.

Perception

The process of organizing and interpreting sensory information to understand it.

Transducer

A device that converts one form of energy into another; sensory receptors are biological transducers.

Bistable Perception

A perception that can be interpreted in two different ways depending on the viewing context.

Receptor Cell

Cells that respond to specific types of stimuli and convert them into neural signals.

Action Potential

An electrical signal that travels along a neuron and conveys information about the strength, duration, and location of a stimulus.

Receptive Field

The specific area or range that a sensory neuron responds to; fundamental for understanding sensory processing.

Center-Surround Receptive Field

A type of receptive field in which the center responds differently to stimuli than the surrounding region; important for sensory transduction.

Neuromuscular Junction

The synapse or connection point between a motor neuron and a muscle fiber.

Motor Plan

A set of coordinated muscle movements to perform an action.

Extrapyramidal System

A neural network involved in the regulation of involuntary and automatic control of muscles.

Efference Copy

A copy of a motor command sent to sensory areas to predict sensory consequences of an action.

Cognitive Maps

Mental representations of physical locations, allowing for navigation and understanding of spatial relationships.

Synaptic Plasticity

The ability of synapses to strengthen or weaken over time, in response to increased or decreased activity.

Long-Term Memory

A more permanent storage of information that can last from days to a lifetime.

Hippocampus

A brain region crucial for the formation of new memories and spatial navigation.

Active Sensation

A process where sensory information is gathered in a dynamic, interactive way, often requiring movement.

Dendritic Branching

The development of new dendrites in neurons, often associated with learning and experiences in enriched environments.

Synaptic Strengthening

An increase in the efficacy of synaptic transmission, often due to repetitive stimulation.

Neural Engram

The physical trace of a memory in the brain.