AP Psychology Unit 2: Biological Bases of Behavior

Expressive Aphasia

inability to speak

Biological Psychology

the scientific study of the links between biological (genetic, neural, hormonal) and psychological process. Ideology is that our genetic code, brain structure, and biochemistry is determined by our physical and psychological studies, "everything psychological is simultaneously biological"

Neuropsychologists

explore the relationships between brain/nervous systems and behavior; also called biological psychologists

Lesions

precise destruction of brain tissue

Receptive Aphasia

inability to comprehend written and spoken language

Broca's Area

controls language expression; motor function of making speech, located in the left frontal lobe

Wernicke's Area

controls language comprehension

Corpus Callosum

dense bundle of neurons running front to back of the brain dividing brain into right and left hemispheres; exchanges Information between hemispheres

Roger Sperry and Michael Gazzaniga

studied split brain patients and revealed differences in left and right hemispheres

Brain Lateralization

specialization of function in each hemisphere

Left Hemisphere

controls the right side of the body; responsible for analytic thought, logic, language, science and math

Right Hemisphere

controls the left side of the body; nonverbal and responsible for spatial, musical, and holistic functions. Intuition, creativity, art and music

CAT scan (computerized axial tomography)

x-ray that shows the structure of the brain; does not show function of the brain

MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)

creates detailed images using a magnetic field and pulses of radio waves to show the structure of the brain

EEG (electroencephalogram)

detects electrical activity in your brain- functional

PET scan (positron emission tomography)

shows which brain regions are most active by displaying where glucose is used in the brain; functional

fMRI (functional MRI)

shows the function or which areas of the brain are being used, functional

Central Nervous System

made up of the brain and spinal cord

MEG (magnetoencephalography)

identifies brain activity and measures small magnetic fields produced in the brain, produces a magnetic source image (MSI) to pinpoint the source of seizures, epilepsy; functional

Divisions of the Nervous System

central nervous system and peripheral nervous system

Divisions of Peripheral Nervous System

somatic nervous system and autonomic nervous system

Peripheral Nervous System

carries sensory information to and motor information away from the central nervous system via spinal and cranial nerves

Somatic Nervous System

division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body's skeletal (voluntary) muscles; sensation

Autonomic Nervous System

division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs; divided in to sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems

Sympathetic Nervous System

the division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations, active during fight/flight moments. Blood flows to muscles to prepare for movement, diverts blood away from non-critical functions in an emergency, this system is overactive in anxious/stressed people

Parasympathetic Nervous System

the division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy. Responsible for regular bodily tasks like digestion, healing, rejuvenations; rest and sleep

Spinal Cord

portion of the central nervous system below the level of the medulla

Hindbrain

oldest structures of the brain that are critical to survival; include brainstem, medulla, pons, and cerebellum

Forebrain

includes cerebrum/cerebral cortex, thalamus, limbic system

Brainstem

the oldest part and central core of the brain, responsible for automatic survival functions, the set of neural structures at the base of the brain (medulla, pons, cerebellum)

Convolutions

folding-in and out of the cerebral cortex that increases surface area of the brain

Association Areas

regions of the cerebral cortex that do not have specific sensory or motor functions, but are involved in higher mental functions such as thinking, planning, and communicating

Controlaterality

one side of the brain controls the opposite side of the body

Medulla Oblongata

involved in muscle movement, autonomic body functions, and excitatory reactions; excessive aggressiveness, sadness, or jealousy linked to this; regulates heart rhythm, blood flow, breathing rate, digestion, vomiting

Pons

bridge between cerebral hemispheres and both medulla and cerebellum; controls a variety of functions including sleep and control of facial muscles

Cerebellum

helps coordinate voluntary movement and balance

Basal Ganglia (Basal Nuclei)

involved in fine motor movements, learning motor skills, implicit memory processing functions, and emotion

Thalamus

brain's switchboard, directs incoming sensory information to the designated brain area

Hypothalamus

plays a central role in controlling eating and drinking, sleep, regulating the body's temperature, blood pressure, sexual arousal, and linked to emotion; the brain's "pleasure center"

Amygdala

limbic system structure involved in memory and emotion; controls instant emotional reaction, especially fear and rage. Linked to our personal, emotional "flashbulb" memories

Hippocampus

brain structure that plays a key role in allowing new information to be stored in memory, converts short term memories to long term memories

Cerebral Cortex

receives and processes sensory information and directs movement; center for higher-order processes such as thinking, planning, and judgement. Divided into 8 lobes, four in each hemisphere

Occipital Lobes

portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the head; primary area for processing visual information

Parietal Lobes

responsible for processing sensation; motor and sensory function

Frontal Lobes

involved with personality, long-term memories, higher order thinking, planning, and abstract thought; integrates activities of skeletal muscles

Temporal Lobes

center for hearing, understanding language/music, and processing smell; Wernicke's area in left temporal lobe

Neuroplasticity

the ability of the brain to form and reorganize synaptic connections, especially in response to learning or experience following injury

Glial Cells

cell that fills the gaps between neurons, helps in the care/uptake of neurons, and speeds up conduction; glue or foundation for neurons

Neuron (Nerve Cell

basic building block of the nervous system; receives signals from other neurons or sensory organs, processes these signals, and transmits signals to the rest of the body

SOMA

cell body; central part of the neuron that contains the nucleus and regulates cell functioning

Axon

the cable-like branch that carries the neural communication; transmits an action potential

Dendrites

the branching part of the neuron that receives messages from other neurons and relays them to the cell body; these grow and branch when we learn new information

Axon Terminals (Terminal Buttons)

tips at the end of axons that secrete neurotransmitters when stimulated by the action potential

Myelin Sheath

fatty substance covering the axon that protects it and speeds along transmission of the neural message; degradation of this leads to multiple sclerosis

Transduction

converting chemical stimuli input from senses into an electrical/chemical signal so it can be understood by the brain

Neurogenesis

the growth of new neurons

Enriched Environment

grow new dendritic spines/branches- learning, new experiences

Neurotransmitters

chemical messengers that carry impulses across the synaptic gap from the axon terminals of one neuron to the dendrites of another neuron

SNAGGED

Serotonin, Norepinephrine, Acetylcholine, Glutamate, GABA, Endorphins, and Dopamine

Acetylcholine (Ach)

regulates muscle action/contractions, memory formation, learning, and intelligence

Excess of Acetylcholine

violent muscle contractions, spasms

Deficit of Acetylcholine

paralysis, Alzheimer's

Dopamine

regulates motor function, attention, learning, memory, emotional arousal, sleep, motivated behavior/addiction, and mood- related to addictive behavior

Surplus of Dopamine

schizophrenia, linked to ADHD/addiction, restless leg syndrome

Deficit of Dopamine

Parkinson's disease

Serotonin

regulates mood, emotional stability, sleep/wakefulness, eating, aggression, learning, and memory; most drugs act like an agonist to serotonin

Excess of Serotonin

euphoria

Deficit of Serotonin

depression, OCD, insomnia

Norepinephrine

relates to energy, physical action, surges during fight/flight response, and mental concentration; medications act as antagonists to treat anxiety, but some excitatory drugs act as agonists to this NT

Excess of Norepinephrine

anxiety, stress, mania

Deficit of Norepinephrine

lethargy, depression

Gamma Aminobutyric Acid (GABA)

an inhibitory neurotransmitter; critical to sleep-wake cycles, relaxation, offsets excitatory neurotransmitters. Alcohol acts as an agonist to GABA

Excess of GABA

sleep disorders, some eating disorders

Deficit of GABA

anxiety, seizures, chronic pain, epilepsy

Glutamate

enhances transmission of information in the brain, regulates learning and memory; most abundant neurotransmitter in the brain

Excess of Glutamate

migraines and seizures

Deficit of Glutamate

poor memory, confusion

Endorphins

regulate pain perception and produce a sense of wellbeing; released after exercise, hugs with a loved one, laughter, and therapeutic massages/acupuncture. Opiates are agonists to endorphins

Surplus of Endorphins

euphoria, artificial high

Deficit of Endorphins

bodily experience of pain

Resting Potential of a Neuron

the negative charge maintained within neurons that are at rest; more sodium ions outside the neuron than inside, more potassium ions inside neuron than outside

All or Nothing Response

a neuron's reaction of either firing or not firing

Nodes of Ranvier

gaps in the myelin sheath

Absolute Threshold

the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse; excitatory signals minus the inhibitory signals exceed a minimum intensity, the neuron fires an action potential

Action Potential

a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon. Depolarization as sodium ions go in, potassium goes out. If absolute threshold is crossed \= action potential; ions depolarize and return to their starting spot

Saltatory Conduction

rapid conduction of impulses when the axon is myelinated since depolarizations jump from node (of Ranvier) to node

Synapse

the region of communication between neurons

Excitatory Synapses

cause neurons to fire and generate an action potential

Inhibitory Synapses

reduce or prevent neural impulses

Refractory Phase

phase in which the neuron can't fire, must recover before firing again

Lock and Key Concept

neurotransmitters fit into the neural receptor site on the dendrite of the next neuron; the shape of this chemical messenger works like a key in a lock and triggers the communication to this next neuron

Agonists

chemical that binds to a receptor that activates the receptor to produce a biological response; stimulate release of more neurotransmitter

Antagonists

substance that blocks/acts against the chemical message being delivered to the receptor site of dendrites; suppress neurotransmitter from being released, shortens neurotransmitter life

Effectors

muscle and gland cells

Reflex Arc

the path over which the reflex travels

Sensory Neurons

afferent neurons; carry the incoming information from the senses to the brain

Motor Neurons

efferent neurons; carry outgoing information from the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands

Interneurons

connect sensory and motor neurons; the bulk of the brain. Found only in the central nervous system

Mirror Neurons

neuron that fires both when an animal acts and when the animal observes the same action performed by another; "mirrors" the behavior of the other. Biological basis for empathy, linked to Autism and Asperger's

Endocrine System

set of glands that regulate the body by secreting hormones into the bloodstream