Psych 100 Exam Prep

Week 6 Neurbiology

Ablation

Surgical removal of brain tissue.

Axial plane

Any plane that divides the body into superior and inferior parts, roughly perpendicular to spine.

Lateralized

To the side; used to refer to the fact that specific functions may reside primarily in one hemisphere or the other (e.g., for the majority individuals, the left hemisphere is most responsible for language).

Lesion

A region in the brain that suffered damage through injury, disease, or medical intervention.

Limbic system

Includes the subcortical structures of the amygdala and hippocampal formation as well as some cortical structures; responsible for aversion and gratification.

Metabolite

A substance necessary for a living organism to maintain life.

Motor cortex

Region of the frontal lobe responsible for voluntary movement; the motor cortex has a contralateral representation of the human body.

Myelin

Fatty tissue, produced by glial cells (see module, “Neurons”) that insulates the axons of the neurons; myelin is necessary for normal conduction of electrical impulses among neurons.

Nomenclature

Naming conventions.

Occipital lobe

The back most (posterior) part of the cerebrum; involved in vision.

Parietal lobe

The part of the cerebrum between the frontal and occipital lobes; involved in bodily sensations, visual attention, and integrating the senses.

Phrenology

A now-discredited field of brain study, popular in the first half of the 19th century that correlated bumps and indentations of the skull with specific functions of the brain.

Positron emission tomography (PET)

A neuroimaging technique that measures brain activity by detecting the presence of a radioactive substance in the brain that is initially injected into the bloodstream and then pulled in by active brain tissue.

Sagittal plane

A slice that runs vertically from front to back; slices of brain in this plane divide the left and right side of the brain; this plane is similar to slicing a baked potato lengthwise.

Somatosensory (body sensations) cortex

The region of the parietal lobe responsible for bodily sensations; the somatosensory cortex has a contralateral representation of the human body.

Spatial resolution

A term that refers to how small the elements of an image are; high spatial resolution means the device or technique can resolve very small elements; in neuroscience it describes how small of a structure in the brain can be imaged.

Split-brain patient

A patient who has had most or all of his or her corpus callosum severed.

Subcortical

Structures that lie beneath the cerebral cortex, but above the brain stem.

Sulci

(plural) Grooves separating folds of the cortex.

Sulcus

A groove separating folds of the cortex.

Temporal lobe

The part of the cerebrum in front of (anterior to) the occipital lobe and below the lateral fissure; involved in vision, auditory processing, memory, and integrating vision and audition.

Temporal resolution

A term that refers to how small a unit of time can be measured; high temporal resolution means capable of resolving very small units of time; in neuroscience it describes how precisely in time a process can be measured in the brain.

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS)

A neuroscience technique that passes mild electrical current directly through a brain area by placing small electrodes on the skull.

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)

A neuroscience technique whereby a brief magnetic pulse is applied to the head that temporarily induces a weak electrical current that interferes with ongoing activity.

Transverse plane

Any plane that divides the body into superior and inferior parts, roughly perpendicular to the spine. sagittal plane: Any imaginary plane parallel to the median plane.

Visual hemifield

The half of visual space (what we see) on one side of fixation (where we are looking); the left hemisphere is responsible for the right visual hemifield, and the right hemisphere is responsible for the left visual hemifield.

White matter

The inner whitish regions of the cerebrum comprised of the myelinated axons of neurons in the cerebral cortex.

Blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD)

The signal typically measured in fMRI that results from changes in the ratio of oxygenated hemoglobin to deoxygenated hemoglobin in the blood.

Central nervous system

The part of the nervous system that consists of the brain and spinal cord.

Deoxygenated hemoglobin

Hemoglobin not carrying oxygen.

Depolarization

A change in a cell’s membrane potential, making the inside of the cell more positive and increasing the chance of an action potential.

Hemoglobin

The oxygen-carrying portion of a red blood cell.

Hyperpolarization

A change in a cell’s membrane potential, making the inside of the cell more negative and decreasing the chance of an action potential.

Invasive Procedure

A procedure that involves the skin being broken or an instrument or chemical being introduced into a body cavity.

Lesions

Abnormalities in the tissue of an organism usually caused by disease or trauma.

Neural plasticity

The ability of synapses and neural pathways to change over time and adapt to changes in neural process, behavior, or environment.

Neuroscience methods

A research method that deals with the structure or function of the nervous system and brain.

Noninvasive procedure

A procedure that does not require the insertion of an instrument or chemical through the skin or into a body cavity.

Oxygenated hemoglobin

Hemoglobin carrying oxygen.

Parasympathetic nervous system (PNS)

One of the two major divisions of the autonomic nervous system, responsible for stimulation of “rest and digest” activities.

Peripheral nervous system

The part of the nervous system that is outside the brain and spinal cord.

Positron

A particle having the same mass and numerically equal but positive charge as an electron.

Psychophysiological methods

Any research method in which the dependent variable is a physiological measure and the independent variable is behavioral or mental (such as memory).

Spatial resolution

The degree to which one can separate a single object in space from another.

Sympathetic nervous system (SNS)

One of the two major divisions of the autonomic nervous system is responsible for the stimulation of “fight or flight” activities.

Temporal resolution

The degree to which one can separate a single point in time from another.

Voltage

The difference in electric charge between two points.

Afferent nerves

Nerves that carry messages to the brain or spinal cord.

Agnosias

Due to damage of Wernicke’s area. An inability to recognize objects, words, or faces.

Aphasia

Due to damage of the Broca’s area. An inability to produce or understand words.

Arcuate fasciculus

A fiber tract that connects Wernicke’s and Broca’s speech areas.

Autonomic nervous system

A part of the peripheral nervous system that connects to glands and smooth muscles. Consists of sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions.

Broca’s area

An area in the frontal lobe of the left hemisphere. Implicated in language production.

Central sulcus

The major fissure that divides the frontal and the parietal lobes.

Cerebellum

A nervous system structure behind and below the cerebrum. Controls motor movement coordination, balance, equilibrium, and muscle tone.

Cerebrum

Consists of left and right hemispheres that sit at the top of the nervous system and engages in a variety of higher-order functions.

Cingulate gyrus

A medial cortical portion of the nervous tissue that is a part of the limbic system.

Computerized axial tomography

A noninvasive brain-scanning procedure that uses X-ray absorption around the head.

Ectoderm

The outermost layer of a developing fetus.

Efferent nerves

Nerves that carry messages from the brain to glands and organs in the periphery.

Electroencephalography

A technique that is used to measure gross electrical activity of the brain by placing electrodes on the scalp.

Event-related potentials

A physiological measure of large electrical change in the brain produced by sensory stimulation or motor responses.

Forebrain

A part of the nervous system that contains the cerebral hemispheres, thalamus, and hypothalamus.

Fornix

(plural form, fornices) A nerve fiber tract that connects the hippocampus to mammillary bodies.

Frontal lobe

The most forward region (close to the forehead) of the cerebral hemispheres.

Functional magnetic resonance imaging

(or fMRI) A noninvasive brain-imaging technique that registers changes in blood flow in the brain during a given task (also see magnetic resonance imaging).

Globus pallidus

A nucleus of the basal ganglia.

Gray matter

Composes the bark or the cortex of the cerebrum and consists of the cell bodies of the neurons (see also white matter).

Gyrus

(plural form, gyri) A bulge that is raised between or among fissures of the convoluted brain.

Hippocampus

(plural form, hippocampi) A nucleus inside (medial) the temporal lobe implicated in learning and memory.

Homo habilis

A human ancestor, handy man, that lived two million years ago.

Homo sapiens

Modern man, the only surviving form of the genus Homo.

Hypothalamus

Part of the diencephalon. Regulates biological drives with pituitary gland.

Immunocytochemistry

A method of staining tissue including the brain, using antibodies.

Lateral geniculate nucleus

(or LGN) A nucleus in the thalamus that is innervated by the optic nerves and sends signals to the visual cortex in the occipital lobe.

Lateral sulcus

The major fissure that delineates the temporal lobe below the frontal and the parietal lobes.

Lesion studies

A surgical method in which a part of the animal brain is removed to study its effects on behavior or function.

Limbic system

A loosely defined network of nuclei in the brain involved with learning and emotion.

Magnetic resonance imaging

Or MRI is a brain imaging noninvasive technique that uses magnetic energy to generate brain images (also see fMRI).

Magnification factor

Cortical space projected by an area of sensory input (e.g., mm of cortex per degree of visual field).

Medulla oblongata

An area just above the spinal cord that processes breathing, digestion, heart and blood vessel function, swallowing, and sneezing.

Neural crest

A set of primordial neurons that migrate outside the neural tube and give rise to sensory and autonomic neurons in the peripheral nervous system.

Neural induction

A process that causes the formation of the neural tube.

Neuroblasts

Brain progenitor cells that asymmetrically divide into other neuroblasts or nerve cells.

Neuroepithelium

The lining of the neural tube.

Occipital lobe

The back part of the cerebrum, which houses the visual areas.

Parasympathetic nervous system

A division of the autonomic nervous system that is slower than its counterpart—that is, the sympathetic nervous system—and works in opposition to it. Generally engaged in “rest and digest” functions.

Parietal lobe

An area of the cerebrum just behind the central sulcus that is engaged with somatosensory and gustatory sensation.

Pons

A bridge that connects the cerebral cortex with the medulla, and reciprocally transfers information back and forth between the brain and the spinal cord.

Positron Emission Tomography

(or PET) An invasive procedure that captures brain images with positron emissions from the brain after the individual has been injected with radio-labeled isotopes.

Primary Motor Cortex

A strip of cortex just in front of the central sulcus that is involved with motor control.

Primary Somatosensory Cortex

A strip of cerebral tissue just behind the central sulcus engaged in sensory reception of bodily sensations.

Rostrocaudal

A front-back plane used to identify anatomical structures in the body and the brain.

Somatic nervous system

A part of the peripheral nervous system that uses cranial and spinal nerves in volitional actions.

Spina bifida

A developmental disease of the spinal cord, where the neural tube does not close caudally.

Sulcus

(plural form, sulci) The crevices or fissures formed by convolutions in the brain.

Sympathetic nervous system

A division of the autonomic nervous system, that is faster than its counterpart that is the parasympathetic nervous system and works in opposition to it. Generally engaged in “fight or flight” functions.

Temporal lobe

An area of the cerebrum that lies below the lateral sulcus; it contains auditory and olfactory (smell) projection regions.

Thalamus

A part of the diencephalon that works as a gateway for incoming and outgoing information.

Transduction

A process in which physical energy converts into neural energy.