Unit 4: Biological Bases of Behavior (Final) In-class activity

Central Nervous System (CNS)

Central Nervous System (CNS)

brain and spinal cord

Peripheral Nervous System

the sensory and motor neurons that connect the CNS to the rest of the body

Autonomic Nervous System

the part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs (consists of sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system)

sympathetic nervous system

fight or flight (arouses)

parasympathetic nervous system

rest and digest (calms)

neuron

nerve cell

afferent (sensory) neurons

a neuron that carries information from the senses to the central nervous system

efferent (motor) neurons

carry messages from the spinal cord to the muscles and glands

Interneurons

carry messages between nerve cells, mainly in brain and spinal cord

Dendrites

a neuron's bushy, branching extensions that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body

Cell Body (soma)

the part of a neuron that contains the nucleus; the cell's life-support center

axon

the neuron extension that passes messages through its branches to other neurons or to muscles or glands

myelin sheath

A layer of fatty tissue segmentally encasing the fibers of many neurons; enables vastly greater transmission speed of neural impulses as the impulse hops from one node to the next.

terminal branches

Branched endings of an axon that transmit messages to other neurons

synapse

reuptake

neurotransmitters that didn't bind to receptor sites are taken back into the synaptic vesicles

all-or-nothing thinking

once action potential reaches threshold, either fires or doesn't

threshold

the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse

action potential

a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon

refractory period

a period of inactivity after a neuron has fired

resting potential

the state of the neuron when not firing a neural impulse

neurotransmitters

chemicals that transmit information from one neuron to another

acetylcholine (ACh)

neurotransmitter involved in learning, memory and muscle movement

serotonin

neurotransmitter that affects hunger, sleep, arousal, and mood. Undersupply linked to depression.

dopamine

neurotransmitter associated with movement, attention and learning and the brain's pleasure and reward system. Oversupply linked to schizophrenia. Undersupply linked to tremors and decreased mobility in Parkinson's disease.

GABA(gamma-aminobutyric acid)

A major inhibitory neurotransmitter. Undersupply linked to seizures, tremors, and insomnia

Norepinephrine

helps control alertness and arousal; undersupply can depress mood

brain stem

the oldest part and central core of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord swells as it enters the skull; responsible for automatic survival functions

medulla

the base of the brainstem; controls heartbeat and breathing

Pons

helps coordinate movement and control sleep

reticular formation

a nerve network that travels through the brainstem into the thalamus and plays an important role in controlling arousal

Thalamus

the brain's sensory control center, located on top of the brainstem; it directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla

Cerebellum

the "little brain" at the rear of the brainstem; functions include processing sensory input and coordinating movement output and balance

limbic system

neural system (including the hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus) located below the cerebral hemispheres; associated with emotions and drives.

Amygdala

two lima bean-sized neural clusters in the limbic system; linked to emotion.

Hypothalamus

A neural structure lying below the thalamus; it directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature), helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland, and is linked to emotion and reward.

cerebral cortex

The intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells covering the cerebral hemispheres; the body's ultimate control and information-processing center.

frontal lobe(pre frontal and motor cortex)

portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forehead; involved in speaking and muscle movements and in making plans and judgements

parietal lobes(Sensory Cortex)

portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head and toward the rear; receives sensory input for touch and body position

Occipital Lobes(Visual Cortex)

portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the head; includes areas that receive information from the visual fields

Temporal Lobes(Auditory Cortex)

portion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears; includes the auditory areas, each receiving information primarily from the opposite ear

corpus callosum

the large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them

split brain

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

Right Side of The Brain

controls the left side of the body; creative, intuitive, spacial

Left Side of The Brain

controls the right side of the body; analytical, language, math

psychoactive drugs

a chemical substance that alters perceptions and moods

Agonists

Mimic neurotransmitters, drugs that occupy receptors and activate them

Antagonists

Block neurotransmitters from functioning by occupying receptors without activating them

Depressants

drugs (such as alcohol, barbiturates, and opiates) that reduce neural activity and slow body functions

Stimulants

Drugs (such as caffeine, nicotine, and the more powerful amphetamines, cocaine, and Ecstasy) that excite neural activity and speed up body functions.

Hallucinogens

psychedelic ("mind-manifesting") drugs, such as LSD, that distort perceptions and evoke sensory images in the absence of sensory input

circadian rhythm

the biological clock; regular bodily rhythms that occur on a 24-hour cycle (ex. wakefulness, body temp)

sleep stages

NREM 1, NREM 2, NREM 3, NREM 2, REM

NREM 1

Falling Asleep,Brain still fairly active but slows down, as does heartbeat, eye movements, breathing, Producing high amplitude theta waves

NREM 2

Light Sleep: Less aware of your surroundings, body temp drops, eye movements stop, breathing and HR become more regular, Sleep Spindles-bursts of rapid, rhythmic brain wave activity

NREM 3

Delta Sleep, Muscles completely relaxed, blood pressure drops, breathing slows, Brain consolidates declarative memories, Deep Sleep (noises or activity in the environment may fail to wake the sleeping person)

REM Sleep

Rapid eye movement sleep, a recurring sleep stage during which vivid dreams commonly occur. Also known as paradoxical sleep, because the muscles are relaxed (except for minor twitches) but other body systems are active.

Freud's wish-fulfillment theory

Wish-fulfillment theory. Dreams allow you to express otherwise unacceptable feelings; manifest context(distinct storyline) and latent content(underlying meaning)

information processing theory

dreams help us sort out the day's events and consolidate our memories

Activation-Synthesis

make sense of neural static. Neural activity have to be made sense of, but they are just random events in our brain

Information processing

file away memoriesLearning and rehearsing the day's events→ new infoRetains information for long-term memory