Year 9 Body Coordination

Central Nervous System (CNS)

brain and spinal cord

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

the sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system (CNS) to the rest of the body.

Neurons

specialized nerve cells that transmit electrical signals called nerve impulses around your body

Dendrites

Branchlike parts of a neuron that are specialized to receive information.

Axon

A threadlike extension of a neuron that carries nerve impulses away from the cell body.

Axon terminal

The endpoint of a neuron where neurotransmitters are stored

Schwann cells

Fatty cells responsible for the formation of myelin.

myelin sheath

A fatty layer made up of schwann cells that insulates some axons to allow for faster movement of electrical impulses along the axon

sensory neurons

neurons that receive information from the external world and convey this information to the CNS

relay neurons

These connect the sensory neurons to the motor or other relay neurons. They have short dendrites and short axons.

motor neurons

neurons that carry outgoing information from the CNS to the muscles and glands

Synapse

Gap between axon terminal of one neuron and the dendrites of the next neuron

Neurotransmitters

chemical messengers that diffuse across the synaptic gaps between neurons

Cerebrum

Largest part of the brain; responsible for voluntary movement, processing sensory information, and complex thought.

Cerebellum

Balance and coordination

Brainstem / Medulla

responsible for automatic survival functions e.g. breathing, heart rate, blood pressure

frontal lobe

A region of the cerebral cortex that controls movement, higher order thinking, problem solving and emotion

parietal lobe

A region of the cerebral cortex that receives sensory input for touch and body position

temporal lobe

A region of the cerebral cortex responsible for hearing and language.

occipital lobe

A region of the cerebral cortex that processes visual information

stimulus response model

Stimulus - receptor - sensory neuron - control centre - motor neuron - effector - response

Receptor

special organs or cells that can respond to stimuli and transmit signal to sensory neuron.

photoreceptor - light

chemoreceptor - smell

thermoreceptor - temperature

mechanoreceptor - touch

pain receptor - pain / damaged cells

reflex arc

A neural pathway that shortcuts through the spinal cord, resulting in rapid, involuntary action

Metabolism

the chemical processes that occur within a living organism in order to maintain life. catabolic = reactions that break down. anabolic = reactions that build.

cellular respiration

glucose + oxygen --> carbon dioxide + water + energy

Enzymes

Proteins that speed up chemical reactions. Are not used up during reactions.

Homeostasis

process by which organisms maintain a relatively stable internal environment

endocrine system

Consists of glands that produce hormones to regulate the body's internal environment

hormones

chemical messengers that travel through the bloodstream, and affect target cells

Hypothalamus

brain region in charge of homeostasis, controls the pituitary gland

pituitary gland

The endocrine system's "master" gland. Controls other endocrine glands.

thyroid gland

produces the hormone thyroxine which increases metabolic heat.

vasoconstriction and vasodilation

narrowing and widening of blood vessels

Sensation vs. Perception

Sensation is arrival of info to brain, perception is interpretation of info in brain

sensory memory

A type of storage that holds sensory information for a few seconds or less.

short-term memory

"working" memory that holds a few items briefly, e.g. seven digits of a phone number while dialing

long-term memory

the relatively permanent storage of information

Rehearsal

the conscious repetition of information, either to maintain it in short-term memory (maintenance) or to encode it for long-term storage (elaborate)

Retrieval

the process of getting information out of long-term memory

Chunking

organizing information into familiar, manageable units; helps improve memory

Contextual Clues

improves memory by situating information in familiar contexts

classical conditioning

the learning of involuntary behaviour in which an organism comes to associate stimuli. a response that is at first elicited by the unconditioned stimulus is eventually elicited by the neutral stimulus alone.

operant conditioning

the learning of voluntary behavior through the effects of reinforcement or punishment

observational learning

learning voluntary behaviour by observing others