Intro to Brain and Behavior

Flashcards of key vocabulary terms and definitions from the Intro to Brain and Behavior lecture.

Neuroscience

The study of the brain. A rapidly growing field. The term was coined in the early 1960s and became recognized as a distinct scientific discipline.

Heart as Seat of Consciousness

The idea that the heart is the seat of consciousness. Originated in Ancient Egypt.

Brain as Seat of Intelligence

The idea that the brain is the organ of sensation and the seat of intelligence. Proposed by Hippocrates in Ancient Greece.

Heart as Center of Intellect

The idea that the heart is the center of intellect, and the brain is a radiator that cools blood. Proposed by Aristotle.

Souls in Different Organs

The idea that the rational soul was in the brain, the spiritual soul was in the heart, and the appetitive soul was in the liver. Proposed by Galen in the Roman Empire.

Phrenology

An early 19th-century pseudoscience that claimed measuring bumps on the skull would reveal behavioral traits. Associated with Franz Joseph Gall.

Jean Pierre Flourens' Lesion Studies

Lesion studies in rabbits and pigeons, which suggested some localization of brain functions but a lack of finer localization for memory and cognition.

Aphasia

Condition where patients could understand language but could not speak. Paul Broca's work with aphasia patients revealed lesions in a particular part of the cortex, providing anatomical proof of localization of brain function.

Broadmann Areas

Mapped the cerebral cortex and defined 52 distinct regions based on their cytoarchitectonic characteristics. Postulated that areas with different structures performed different functions.

Formaldehyde

Fixes brain tissue and allows it to be sectioned into slices using a microtome, giving birth to histology.

Nissl Stain (Cresyl Violet)

Stains nucleic acids, mainly RNA on rough endoplasmic reticulum (ribosomes), allowing visualization of the cell body. Various cell types and their locations could now be seen in the brain

Golgi-stain (Silver Stain)

Stains the cell body plus axons and dendrites, but only stains a small percentage of neurons in their entirety. Identifies two parts of neurons: Cell body (soma) and Neurites (axons and dendrites)

Reticular Theory

Golgi's theory that axons and dendrites of different neurons are fused together to form a continuous network, allowing bi-directional information flow. Believed the Nervous system is an exception to Cell Theory

Santiago Ramon y Cajal's Neuron Doctrine

Neurons communicate by contact, not continuity.

The Neuron Doctrine

The fundamental structural and functional unit of the CNS is the neuron. Neurons are discrete cells; connected but not continuous with other cells. A neuron is composed of 3 parts: dendrite, axon, and cell body. Information flows along the neuron in one direction (from dendrites, through cell body, to axon)

Dendrites

Highly branched “tree”. Receives input to neuron. Short, spiny, stubby

Soma

Cell body of the neuron. Contains nucleus and other organelles

Axon

Few branches (collaterals). Sends output from neuron. Long, smooth. Information flows along the neuron in one direction (from dendrites, through cell body, to axon)