AP Psych Unit 2

AP Psych Unit 2 Flashcards, McCarthy G Block

neurons

the basic building blocks of the nervous system, of which there are nearly 100 billion in our brain

cell body

contains the nucleus

dendrites

branching extensions of a neuron that reach out to communicate with other neurons

axon

a tube in a neuron that passes action potential. it is selectively permeable and has a charge difference between the inside and outside

myelin sheath

a fatty protective layer over the axon of a neuron

glial cells

support, nourish, and protect neurons. could be linked to increased intelligence.

action potential

a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon from a speed of anywhere from 2mph to 300 mph

threshold

the level of stimulation needed to trigger a neural impulse

refractory period

the brief pause after the firing of a neuron

all-or-none response

response that may be either high intensity or completely absent depending on the stimulus

synapse

the space between the axon of a sending neuron and the dendrite of a receiving neuron

neurotransmitters

chemical messengers that cross synaptic gaps

reuptake

when a neurotransmitter is reabsorbed by the sending neuron

endorphins

natural, opiate-like neurotransmitters that have been linked to pain control and pleasure

nervous system

the speedy, electrochemical communication network that works by sending signals through neurons

central nervous sytem

the brain and spinal cord

peripheral nervous system

the nerves that aren’t in the brain/spinal cord

sensory neurons

neurons that carry information throughout the body’s tissues and sensory receptors to be processed by the spine

motor neurons

carry instructions from the central nervous system to muscles and glands

interneurons

where information is processed within the brain and spinal cord

somatic nervous system

aka the skeletal nervous system, which enables control of skeletal muscles that is voluntary

autonomic nervous system

controls glands and internal organ muscles that is made of the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems

sympathetic nervous system

arouses the body and mobilizes energy (fight or flight responses)

parasympathetic nervous system

predominates in quiet “rest and digest” conditions

reflexes

automatic responses to sensory stimuli

lesion

to cut/destroy a specific region whilst leaving everything else intact

EEG/electroencephalograms

amplified recordings of electrical activity

MEG/magnetoencephalograms

view of the brain's magnetic field as it passes through the skull with no distortion thus mapping the brain's electrical activity

CT (computer tomography) scan

takes x-rays of brain damage of a “slice” of a brain

PET/positron emission tomography scan

a visual display of brain activity that detects where radioactive glucose goes when the brain does a task

MRI/magnetic resonance imaging

uses magnetic fields to view soft tissue

brainstem

oldest, central part of the brain that is in charge of automatic survival functions

medulla

the part of the brain at the top of the spinal cord that controls breathing and heartbeat

thalamus

above the brainstem. control center of our brains that deal with all senses except smell

reticular formation

the inner network that extends from the spinal cord that controls filtering stimuli and arousal

cerebellum

rear of brainstem. shaped like a baseball. processes sensory input, coordinates movement outputs/balance, enables nonverbal learning/memory

limbic system

controls behavioral and emotional responses

amygdala

almond-shaped part of the brain that controls fear/aggression

amygdala hijack

when the amygdala takes over and floods the body with fear

hypothalamus

neural structure that is below the thalamus that governs the endocrine system through the pituitary gland and controls eating, drinking, body temp, and is linked to emotions and rewards

hippocampus

shaped like a seahorse. processes conscious memories → decreases as we get older

cerebral cortex

intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells, which is the ultimate control center

frontal lobes

at the front of the brain. controls speaking, muscle movement, making plans, and judgements

parietal lobes

at the top of the brain that receives sensory input for touch and body position

occipital lobes

receives info from visual fields at the back of the brain

temporal lobe

includes auditory areas that receives info from the others

movement cortex

area in frontal lobes that controls our voluntary movement

somatosensory cortex

area at the front of the parietal love that registers/processes body touch and movement-related sensations

neuroplasticity

our brain physically changing shape as we learn new things and our neurons form new pathways

nerogenesis

creation of new neurons

corpus callous

wide band of axon fibers that send and receive messages between hemispheres of the brain

split brain

condition resulting from surgery that isolates the two hemispheres of the brain as a result of cutting the fibers connecting them (mainly those of the corpus callosum)

consciousness

subjective awareness of ourselves and our environments

cognitive neuroscience

interdisciplinary field of brain activity and mental processes (cognition)

dual processing

the principle that information is processed in both a conscious level “high road” and an unconscious “low road”

blindsight

when a person can respond to a visual stimulus without consciously experiencing it

parallel processing

processing all parts of a challenge at the same time due to have already experiencing it before, making it our brain’s natural mode of function

sequential processing

processing one part of a new problem at a time to figure it out

sleep

a periodic natural loss of consciousness in which our bodies rest and our brain is still

circadian rhythm

biological clock, which generally runs on a 24 hours cycle but can be impacted by age and experience

REM sleep

rapid eye movement sleep, where we have our dreams and our muscles are relaxed

NREM sleep

non-REM sleep in which there are multiple phases

hallucination

false sensory experience

hypnagogic sensations

bizarre experiences we have when transitioning to sleep

alpha waves

the waves in the brain of a relaxed but not sleeping person

delta waves

large, slow brain waves from a sleeping person

suprachiasmatic nucleus

pair of cell clusters in the hypothalamus that, in response to light, it causes the pineal gland to decrease melatonin levels.

insomnia

persistent trouble falling/staying asleep

narcolepsy

sudden spasm of sleepiness lasting around 5 minutes

sleep apnea

temporarily stopping then restarting breathing in sleep

night terrors

a high arousal during NREM-3 that makes you look terrified

sleepwalking

aka somnambulism, when someone walks and moves around during sleep

dream

a sequence of thoughts, images, and feelings going through a person’s head during REM

manifest content

the content and literal stuff in a dream

latent content

the symbolic meaning of the dream

REM rebound

when you have increased REM sleep following a lack of it

agonists

drugs that mimic a particular neurotransmitter, activating the same receptors that it does

antagonists

drugs that block a particular neurotransmitter from activating its receptors

excitatory

describes a neurotransmitter that causes a postsynaptic neuron to propagate more action potentials

inhibitory

describes a neurotransmitter that causes a postsynaptic neuron to propagate fewer action potentials

acetylcholine

neurotransmitter involved in learning, memory, and muscle contraction

dopamine

neurotransmitter involved in increasing mood, movement, attention, and learning

serotonin

neurotransmitter that regulates sleep, mood, appetite, and body temperature

GABA

primary inhibitory neurotransmitter in the nervous system

norepinephrine

neurotransmitter important in controlling alertness, wakefulness, mood, and attention

glutamate

main excitatory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system; important for learning and memory

behavior genetics

a field that attempts to ascertain whether, or the extent to which, traits, including personality traits, are inherited

heredity

genetic transfer from parents to offspring

environment

nongentic factors

DNA

deoxyribonucleic acid aka our genetic code

chromosome

molecules made of DNA that contain genes

genes

small segments of DNA that controls a certain thing

genome

complete instructions to make an organism

identical/monozygotic twins

twins that have 100% same DNA due to being from the same egg and sperm cells

fraternal/dizygotic twins

siblings who are in the womb at the same time but developed from two different eggs/sperms

heritability

the proportion of variation among individuals in a group that we can attribute to genes

interaction

the interplay that occurs when the effect of one factor depends on another

molecular genetics

the subfield of biology that studies the molecular structure and function of genes

epigenetics

the study of environmental influences on gene expression without a change in DNA

evolutionary psychology

studies the evolution of behavior and the mind by using the principles of natural selection