AP Psych Theme Quiz: Brain, NT, Drugs

alcohol

depressant

• Pleasurable effects: Initial high followed by relaxation and disinhibition

• Negative aftereffects: Depression, memory loss, oxygen damage, impaired reactions

Heroin

depressant

• Pleasurable effects: Flush of euphoria relief from pain

• Negative aftereffects: Depressed physiology, agonizing withdrawal

Caffeine

stimulant

• Pleasurable effects: Increased alertness and wakefulness

• Negative aftereffects: Anxiety, restlessness, and insomnia in high doses, uncomfortable withdrawal

Methamphetamine

stimulant

• Pleasurable effects: Euphoria, alertness, and energy

• Negative aftereffects: Irritability, insomnia, hypertension, seizures

cocaine

stimulant

• Pleasurable effects: Rush of euphoria, confidence, energy

• Negative aftereffects: Cardiovascular stress, suspiciousness, depressive crash

nicotine

stimulant

• Pleasurable effects: Arousal and relaxation, sense of well-being

• Negative aftereffects: Heart disease, cancer

ecstasy (MDMA)

stimulant/mild hallucinogen

• Pleasurable effects: Emotional elevation, disinhibition

• Negative aftereffects: Dehydration, overeating, depressed mood, impaired cognitive and immune functioning.

LSD

hallucinogen

• Pleasurable effects: Visual trip

• Negative aftereffects: Risk of panic

Marijuana

mild hallucinogen

• Pleasurable effects: Enhanced sensation, relief of pain, distortion of time, relaxation

• Negative aftereffects: Impaired learning and memory, increased risk of psychological disorders, lung damage from smoke

acetycholine (ach)

• Function: Enables muscle action, learning and memory.

• Malfunction: With Alzheimer’s disease, Ach-producing neurons deteriorate.

dopamine

• Function: Influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion

• Malfunction: Oversupply linked to schizophrenia. Undersupply linked to tremors and decreased mobility in Parkinson’s disease

serotonin

• Function: Affect mood, hunger, sleep, and arousal.

• Malfunction: Undersupply linked to depression. Some antidepressant drugs raise this neurotransmitter’s levels.

norepinephrine

• Function: Helps control alertness and arousal

• Malfunction: Undersupply can depress mood.

GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid)

• Function: A major inhibitory neurotransmitter

• Malfunction: Undersupply linked to seizures, tremors, and insomnia

glutamate

• Function: A major excitatory neurotransmitter; involved in memory.

• Malfunction: Oversupply can overstimulate the brain, producing migraines or seizures (Why some people avoid this in food.)

temporal lobe

• A portion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears

• Holds the ability to recognize faces

• Responsible for auditory processing

• Receives information from the opposite ear

• Lobe that contains the Wernicke’s Area

occipital lobe

• Responsible for being able to see written words as visual stimulation

• Processes information from visual receptors

• Portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the head

thalamus

• The brain’s central processing center, processing all incoming sensory information, except smell

• Filters and relays sensory information to the appropriate areas of the cerebral cortex

pituitary gland

• controls the endocrine system, secretes the hormone for body growth

corpus callosum

• Bundle of axons connecting the two hemispheres of the brain that aids in communication between them.

• This area is sometimes cut in patients with severe epilepsy to prevent the epilepsy from damaging both hemispheres of the brain

cerebellum

• Responsible for balance and coordinate voluntary movement, for fine motor skills, and processing sensory input

• Enables nonverbal learning and memory

• Initiates smooth voluntary movement, balance, eye movement, and posture

• AKA “the little brain” at the rear of the brainstem

hypothalamus

• Responsible for the four Fs: feeding, fighting, fleeing, and flirting

• Controls the endocrine system by controlling the pituitary gland

• Responsible for maintenance functions including eating, drinking, sex and internal body temperature

• Linked to emotion and reward

• A neural structure lying below the thalamus

prefrontal cortex

• Area that controls higher order thinking and cognitive processing

• Area is responsible for judgment, planning, and processing new memories

• Located in the forward part of the frontal lobe

motor cortex

• An area at the rear of the frontal lobes

• Controls voluntary movements

• Area responsible for outgoing messages directing movement to muscles

pons

• Controls sleeping and dreaming

• Area located on the brainstem just before the spinal cord enters the brain

amygdala

• A portion of the limbic system.

• Controls emotions such as fear, aggression, and rage

• Damage to this area causes limited emotional responses

frontal lobes

• Area responsible for impulse control

• Area that holds Broca’s areas

• Responsible for speaking, muscle movement, reasoning, planning, judgment

• Portion of the cerebral cortex, just behind the forehead

• Differences in this area distinguish humans from other animals

• This area is activated when listening or humming a tune

association areas

• Areas of the cerebral cortex

• Integrates sensory input with stored memory

• Are involved in higher mental functions such as learning, remembering, thinking, and speaking.