Lecture Notes Flashcards

Flashcards of key vocabulary terms and definitions from the lecture notes.

Alarm Reaction

The initial response of the body to a stressor, characterized by physiological changes such as increased heart rate and blood pressure, as part of the fight-or-flight response.

Amygdala

A small, almond-shaped structure in the brain involved in processing emotions, particularly fear and aggression, and in forming emotional memories.

Antibody

A protein produced by B lymphocytes that binds to specific antigens, neutralizing pathogens or marking them for destruction by other immune cells.

B Lymphocyte

A type of white blood cell that produces antibodies and is involved in the adaptive immune response.

Bell’s Palsy

A condition characterized by sudden, temporary weakness or paralysis of the facial muscles, often affecting one side of the face, due to inflammation of the facial nerve.

Brain Self-Stimulation

A phenomenon where animals perform behaviors that deliver electrical stimulation to certain brain regions, indicating that these areas are associated with pleasure or reward.

Cannon-Bard Theory

A theory of emotion proposing that physiological reactions and emotional experiences occur simultaneously and independently in response to a stimulus.

Cognitive Attribution Theory

A theory suggesting that individuals interpret and label their physiological arousal based on the context, leading to the experience of emotion.

Cortisol

A glucocorticoid hormone produced by the adrenal cortex, involved in the stress response and regulation of metabolism and immune function.

Cytokine

Small proteins released by cells that have a specific effect on the interactions and communications between cells, especially in immune responses.

Decorticate Rage

A type of aggressive behavior observed in animals with damage to the cerebral cortex but intact diencephalon, indicating the role of subcortical structures in aggression.

Emotion

A complex psychological state involving physiological arousal, expressive behaviors, and conscious experience, often in response to stimuli.

Epigenetic Regulation

The study of changes in gene expression or cellular phenotype caused by mechanisms other than changes in the underlying DNA sequence, often influenced by environmental factors.

Epinephrine

Also known as adrenaline, a hormone and neurotransmitter produced by the adrenal medulla that prepares the body for fight-or-flight responses.

Evolutionary Psychology

A theoretical approach that explains psychological traits as evolved adaptations shaped by natural selection.

Facial Nerve

The seventh cranial nerve responsible for controlling the muscles of facial expression and transmitting taste sensations from the anterior two-thirds of the tongue.

Fear Conditioning

A behavioral paradigm in which an organism learns to associate a neutral stimulus with an aversive event, leading to a conditioned fear response.

Health Psychology

A field of psychology that focuses on how biological, social, and psychological factors influence health and illness.

Individual Response Stereotypy

The consistent pattern of responses exhibited by an individual to a particular stimulus or situation over time.

Intermale Aggression

Aggressive behavior exhibited by males towards other males, often related to competition for mates or dominance.

James-Lange Theory

A theory of emotion proposing that physiological arousal precedes the emotional experience, suggesting that emotions result from the perception of physiological changes.

Klüver-Bucy Syndrome

A rare neurological disorder resulting from bilateral damage to the temporal lobes, characterized by symptoms such as hyperorality, hypersexuality, and docility.

Limbic System

A group of interconnected structures in the brain involved in emotion, motivation, and memory, including the amygdala, hippocampus, and hypothalamus.

Maternal Aggression

Aggressive behavior exhibited by mothers to protect their offspring from threats or predators.

Medial Amygdala

A region of the amygdala involved in processing social and reproductive behaviors, including aggression and mating.

Medial Forebrain Bundle

A neural pathway that connects the midbrain to the forebrain and is involved in the reward system and the regulation of motivated behaviors.

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)

A therapeutic program that combines mindfulness meditation and yoga to reduce stress and improve psychological well-being.

Norepinephrine

A neurotransmitter and hormone involved in arousal and alertness, produced by the adrenal medulla and sympathetic nervous system.

Parasympathetic Nervous System

A division of the autonomic nervous system that promotes rest and digestion, counteracting the effects of the sympathetic nervous system.

Phagocyte

A type of immune cell that engulfs and digests foreign particles, bacteria, and dead or dying cells.

Polygraph

An instrument that measures physiological responses such as heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration, often used in lie detection.

Psychoneuroimmunology

The study of the interactions between the nervous system, the immune system, and psychological processes.

Trigeminal Nerve

The fifth cranial nerve responsible for sensation in the face and motor functions such as biting and chewing.

Two-Photon Excitation Microscopy

An advanced imaging technique that allows for deep tissue imaging with minimal photodamage, commonly used in neuroscience to observe live brain activity.

Amnesia

A condition characterized by memory loss, which can result from brain injury, disease, or psychological trauma.

AMPA Receptor

A type of ionotropic glutamate receptor that mediates fast synaptic transmission in the central nervous system.

Anterograde Amnesia

The inability to form new long-term memories following an event, while retaining memories formed before the event.

Associative Learning

A learning process in which a new response becomes associated with a particular stimulus.

Border Cell

Neurons that fire when an animal is near the boundary of its environment, contributing to spatial navigation.

Cell Assembly

A group of neurons that become functionally connected through repeated activation, forming the basis of memory traces.

Classical Conditioning

A learning process in which a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a meaningful stimulus, eliciting a similar response.

Cognitive Map

A mental representation of the layout of one's environment, aiding in navigation and spatial reasoning.

Conditional Knockout

A genetic technique that allows for the deletion of a specific gene in a particular tissue or at a specific time, enabling the study of gene function.

Confabulate

To fabricate or distort memories without the intention to deceive, often occurring in certain memory disorders.

Consolidation

The process by which short-term memories are transformed into long-term memories, stabilizing them over time.

CREB

Cyclic AMP response element-binding protein, a transcription factor involved in the formation of long-term memories.

Declarative Memory

Conscious, explicit memory for facts and events, which can be verbally expressed.

Delayed Non-Matching-to-Sample Task

A test of memory in which an individual must select the object that differs from a sample after a delay, assessing recognition memory.

Dentate Gyrus

A region of the hippocampus involved in the formation of new episodic memories and the processing of spatial information.

Dishabituation

The restoration of a response to a stimulus after it has been diminished through habituation, typically due to a novel or intense stimulus.

Encoding

The process of converting sensory input into a form that can be stored in memory.

Engram

The physical trace of a memory in the brain, representing the storage of information.

Enriched Condition (EC)

An environment that provides enhanced sensory, social, and cognitive stimulation, often used in animal studies to promote neuroplasticity.

Episodic Memory

A type of declarative memory that involves the recollection of personal experiences and specific events, including contextual details.

Grid Cell

Neurons in the entorhinal cortex that fire in a hexagonal grid pattern, contributing to spatial navigation and the formation of cognitive maps.

Habituation

A non-associative learning process in which repeated exposure to a stimulus results in a decreased response.

Hebbian Synapse

A synapse that strengthens its connection based on the repeated and persistent stimulation of one neuron by another, often summarized as 'cells that fire together wire together.'

Hippocampus

A brain structure located in the medial temporal lobe, crucial for the formation of new declarative memories and spatial navigation.

Impoverished Condition (IC)

An environment with minimal sensory, social, and cognitive stimulation, often used in animal studies to compare with enriched conditions.

Intermediate-Term Memory (ITM)

A type of memory that lasts longer than short-term memory but is not as durable as long-term memory, typically lasting from minutes to hours.

Korsakoff’s Syndrome

A chronic memory disorder caused by severe deficiency of thiamine (vitamin B1), often associated with alcohol abuse, leading to anterograde and retrograde amnesia.

Learning

The process by which experience leads to lasting changes in behavior or knowledge.

Long-Term Memory (LTM)

A type of memory that stores information over extended periods, from hours to a lifetime.

Long-Term Potentiation (LTP)

A long-lasting enhancement in signal transmission between two neurons resulting from their repeated and persistent stimulation, believed to be a cellular mechanism underlying learning and memory.

Mammillary Body

A pair of small round bodies located on the undersurface of the brain, involved in memory processing and connected to the hippocampus.

Memory

The mental processes of encoding, storing, and retrieving information.

Neuroplasticity

The brain's ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections throughout life, allowing for adaptation to new experiences or recovery from injury.

NMDA Receptor

A subtype of glutamate receptor that plays a key role in synaptic plasticity and memory function, particularly in the induction of long-term potentiation.

Nonassociative Learning

A type of learning involving a change in the magnitude of response to a stimulus rather than the formation of associations between stimuli.

Nondeclarative Memory

Implicit memory that involves skills and procedures, priming, and conditioning, which are not consciously accessible.

Nootropics

Substances that are claimed to improve cognitive function, particularly executive functions, memory, creativity, or motivation, in healthy individuals.

Operant Conditioning

A learning process in which the likelihood of a behavior is increased or decreased through reinforcement or punishment.

Patient H.M.

A patient who underwent bilateral medial temporal lobectomy to treat epilepsy

Patient K.C.

A patient who suffered brain damage in an accident, resulting in severe anterograde and retrograde amnesia, and is widely studied for his inability to recall episodic memories.

Patient N.A.

Patient who, after a fencing accident, sustained damage to his thalamus, leading to profound anterograde amnesia, which has been instrumental in understanding the role of the thalamus in memory.

Place Cell

Neurons in the hippocampus that become active when an animal is in a particular location in its environment, aiding in spatial navigation and memory.

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

A mental health condition triggered by experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event, characterized by symptoms like flashbacks, nightmares, and severe anxiety.

Prefrontal Cortex

The part of the brain located at the front of the frontal lobe, involved in high-level cognitive functions such as decision-making, problem-solving, and regulating emotions.

Priming

A phenomenon where exposure to one stimulus influences the response to a subsequent stimulus, often without conscious awareness, affecting memory and perception.

Protein Kinase

An enzyme that modifies other proteins by adding phosphate groups, playing a critical role in signal transduction, and regulating various cellular processes, including learning and memory.

Reconsolidation

The process by which reactivated memories become susceptible to modification or disruption before they are stabilized again in long-term storage.

Retrieval

The process of accessing stored memories and bringing them into conscious awareness.

Retrograde Amnesia

Memory loss for events that occurred before a particular event, such as an injury or trauma, while new memories can still be formed.

Retrograde Messenger

A signaling molecule that is released by a postsynaptic neuron and travels backward to affect the presynaptic neuron, influencing synaptic activity and plasticity.

Semantic Memory

A type of declarative memory involving factual knowledge and concepts that are not tied to personal experiences, such as vocabulary and historical facts.

Sensitization

An increased response to a stimulus following repeated exposure, often due to heightened emotional or physiological sensitivity.

Sensory Buffer

A temporary storage system for sensory information, such as iconic memory for visual stimuli and echoic memory for auditory stimuli, which allows for brief retention before encoding.

Short-Term Memory (STM)

A type of memory that holds a small amount of information for a short period, typically seconds to minutes, before it is either forgotten or transferred to long-term memory.

Skill Learning

The process of acquiring abilities through practice and experience, such as learning to ride a bike or play an instrument, typically involving nondeclarative memory.

Standard Condition (SC)

A standard experimental condition in which subjects are provided with typical or neutral environments, used as a control group for comparison in studies involving enriched or impoverished conditions.

Tetanus

A form of high-frequency stimulation used in research to induce long-term potentiation (LTP) in synapses, leading to stronger synaptic connections.

Working Memory

A system for temporarily holding and manipulating information required for cognitive tasks such as reasoning, comprehension, and learning, involving both storage and processing of
information.