Myers AP Psychology Modules 12-13

cerebral cortex

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

frontal lobe

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

parietal lobe

A 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 lobe

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

temporal lobe

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

motor cortex

an area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements

somatosensory cortex

area at the front of the parietal lobes that registers and processes body touch and movement sensations

association areas

areas of the cerebral cortex that are not involved in primary motor or sensory functions; rather, they are involved in higher mental functions such as learning, remembering, thinking, and speaking

Plasticity

the brain's ability to change, especially during childhood, by reorganizing after damage or by building new pathways based on experience

neurogenesis

the formation of new neurons

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

consciousness

our subjective awareness of ourselves and our environment

cognitive neuroscience

the interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition (including perception, thinking, memory, and language)

dual processing

the principle that information is often simultaneously processed on separate conscious and unconscious tracks

Blindsight

a condition in which a person can respond to a visual stimulus without consciously experiencing it

parallel processing

the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously

sequential processing

the processing of one aspect of a problem at a time