Psych (Brain Structures & Functions)

Notes directly taken from an AP psychology class.

Amygdala

Part of the limbic system. Influences emotions such as aggression, fear, and self-protective behaviors.

Brain

Portion of the CNS above the spinal cord. Consists of hindbrain, midbrain, and forebrain.

Association areas

Areas of the cerebral cortex that are not involved in primary motor or sensory functions, rather, they are involved in higher mental processes such as thinking, planning, and communication.

Brainstem

Top of the spinal column. Responsible for automatic survival functions.

Broca’s areas

Located in left frontal lobe. Controls production of speech.

Cerebellum

Its functions include processing sensory input, coordinating movement output & balance, & enabling nonverbal learning & memory.

Cerebral Cortex

Intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells covering the forebrain’s cerebral hemispheres. The body’s ultimate control & processing center (thinking, planning, judgment, processing sensory information, & directing movement).

Angular Gyrus

Area of the left occipital lobe that transforms visual representation into an auditory code.

Corpus Callosum

Large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres & carrying messages between them (Intelligence, consciousness & self-awareness. Doesn’t reach full maturity until the 20s).

Forebrain

Cerebral cortex, thalamus, & hypothalamus. Manages complex cognitive activities, sensory & associative functions, & voluntary motor activities.

Midbrain

Atop the brainstem. Connects the hindbrain & forebrain, controls some motor movement, & transmits auditory & visual information.

Hindbrain

Medulla, pons, & cerebellum. Directs essential survival functions, such as breathing, sleeping, wakefulness, coordination, & balance.

Hippocampus

Neural center in the limbic system that helps process explicit (conscious) memories of facts and events for storage. It also plays a role in learning.

Hypothalamus

A limbic system neural structure. Directs several maintenance activities (eating, body temp, etc), helps govern the endocrine system, & is linked to emotion & reward.

Limbic System

Neural system located mostly in the forebrain—below cerebral hemispheres—includes the amygdala, hypothalamus, hippocampus, thalamus, & pituitary gland. It is associated with emotions, drives, & memories.

Medulla

Hindbrain structure that is the brainstem’s base. Controls heartbeat, blood pressure, body temperature, & breathing.

Neurogenesis

Formation of new neurons.

Motor Cortex

Cerebral cortex area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements.

Neural Plasticity

Brain’s ability to change, especially during childhood, by reorganizing after damage or building new pathways based on experience.

Frontal Lobes

Portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forehead. They enable linguistic processing, muscle movements, higher-order thinking, & executive functioning (making plans, judgements, etc) (motor cortex).

Occipital Lobes

Portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the head. Includes areas that receive information from the visual fields (visual cortex).

Parietal Lobes

Portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head & toward the rear. Receives sensory input for touch & body position (Includes (somato) sensory cortex).

Temporal Lobes

Portion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears. Includes the auditory areas, each of which receives information from the opposite ear. They also enable language processing (auditory cortex & Wernicke’s area).

Wernicke’s Area

Area of the left temporal lobe that is involved in language comprehension.

Reticular Formation

Nerve network that travels through the brainstem into the thalamus. Plays an important role in attention, arousal, & alert functions, & it filters information.

Spinal Cord

Portion of the CNS that carries messages to the PNS. Connects the brain to the rest of the body.

Pons

Connects to the cerebellum & medulla to the cerebral cortex. Involved in unconscious processes (sleep/wake cycles, breathing, etc) & facilitates communication between brain regions.

Thalamus

Forebrain’s sensory control center, located on top of the brainstem. Directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex & transmits replies to the cerebellum & medulla.

fMRI

Revealing blood flow & brain activity by comparing successive MRI scans (show brain functions & structure).

MRI

Uses magnetic fields & radio waves to produce computer-generated images of soft tissue (show brain anatomy)

EEG

An amplified recording of the waves of electrical activity sweeping across the brain’s surface. Waves are measured by electrodes placed on the scalp.

MEG

A brain-imaging technique that measures magnetic fields from the brain’s natural electrical activity.

CT/CAT

X-ray photographs taken from different angles & combined by computer into a composite representation of a slice of the brain’s structure.

PET

Technique for detecting brain activity that displays where a radioactive form of glucose goes while the brain performs a given task.

Lesion

Tissue destruction. May occur naturally, during surgery, or experimentally (using electrodes). Help study regions & functions of the brain.

Biopsychosocial Approach

Integrated approach that incorporates biological, psychological, & social-cultural levels of analysis.

Levels of Analysis

Differing complementary views, from biological to psychological to social-cultural, for analyzing any given phenomenon.

Split Brain

Condition resulting from surgery that separates the brain’s two hemispheres by cutting the fibers (mainly those of the corpus callosum) connecting them.

Somatosensory Cortex

Cerebral cortex area at the front of the parietal lobes that registers & processes body touch & movement sensations.

Contralateral Hemispheric Organization

Each hemisphere of the brain controls the opposite side of the body.

Pituitary Gland

Master endocrine gland located in the limbic system. Secretes hormones into the bloodstream (affects growth, metabolism, reproduction, response to stress/trauma, & lactation).

Aphasia

Impairment of language & usually caused by damage to Broca’s area or Wernicke’s area.

Cognitive Neuroscience

Interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition (perception, memory, thinking, & language).

Dual Processing

Principle that information is often simultaneously processed on separate conscious & unconscious tracks.

Alien Hand Syndrome

Rare neurological disorder that causes hand movement without the person being aware or having control over the action. Usually occurs after a person has had the two hemispheres surgically separated.