JHU Psych 101 Exam 2 Terms (Selterman 2022)

action potential

a transient all-or-nothing electrical current that is conducted down the axon when the membrane potential reaches the threshold of excitation

axon

part of the neuron that extends off the soma, splitting several times to connect with other neurons; main output of the neuron

brain stem

the "trunk" of the brain comprised of the medulla, pons, midbrain, and diencephalon

broca's area

an area in the frontal lobe of the left hemisphere. implicated in language production

central nervous system

the portion of the nervous system that includes the brain and spinal cord

cerebellum

the distinctive structure at the back of the brain, latin for "small brain"

cerebrum

usually refers to the cerebral cortex and associated white matter, but in some texts includes the subcortical structures

contralateral

Literally "opposite side"; used to refer to the fact that the two hemispheres of the brain process sensory information and motor commands for the opposite side of the body (e.g., the left hemisphere controls the right side of the body)

corpus callosum

the thick bundle of nerve cells that connect the two hemispheres of the brain and allow them to communicate

dendrites

part of a neuron that extends away from the cell body and is the main input to the neuron

diffuse optical imaging (doi)

a neuroimaging technique that infers brain activity by measuring changes in light as it is passed through the skull and surface of the brain

electroencephalography (eeg)

a neuroimaging technique that measures electrical brain activity via multiple electrodes on the scalp

frontal lobe

the front most (anterior) part of the cerebrum; anterior to the central sulcus and responsible for motor output and planning, language, judgement, and decision-making

functional magnetic resonance imaging (fmri)

a neuroimaging technique that infers brain activity by measuring changes in oxygen levels in the blood

limbic system

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

myelin sheath

fatty tissue, that insulates the axons of the neurons; myelin is necessary for normal conduction of electrical impulses among neurons

nervous system

the body's network for electrochemical communication. this system includes all the nerves cells in the body

neurons

individual brain cells

neurotransmitters

chemical substance released by the presynaptic terminal button that acts on the postsynaptic cell

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

peripheral nervous system

all of the nerve cells that connect the central nervous system to all the other parts of the body

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

soma

cell body of a neuron that contains the nucleus and genetic information, and directs protein synthesis

spatial resolution

a term that refers to how small the elements of an image are; a high ___________ 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

synapses

junction between the presynaptic terminal button of one neuron and the dendrite, axon, or soma of another postsynaptic neuron

synaptic gap (synaptic cleft)

the small space between the presynaptic terminal button and the postsynaptic dendritic spine, axon, or soma

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 ______________ 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

cell membrane

a bi-lipid layer of molecules that separates the cell from the surrounding extracellular fluid

dendrite

part of a neuron that extends away from the cell body and is the main input to the neuron

diffusion

the force on molecules to move from areas of high concentration to areas of low concentration

electrostatic pressure

the force on two ions with similar charge to repel each other; the force of two ions with opposite charge to attract to one another

excitatory postsynaptic potentials

a depolarizing postsynaptic current that causes the membrane potential to become more positive and move towards the threshold of excitation

inhibitory postsynaptic potentials

a hyperpolarizing postsynaptic current that causes the membrane potential to become more negative and move away from the threshold of excitation

ion channels

proteins that span the cell membrane, forming channels that specific ions can flow through between the intracellular and extracellular space

ionotropic receptor

ion channel that opens to allow ions to permeate the cell membrane under specific conditions, such as the presence of a neurotransmitter or a specific membrane potential

nucleus

collection of nerve cells found in the brain which typically serve a specific function

resting membrane potential

the voltage inside the cell relative to the voltage outside the cell while the cell is a rest (approximately -70 mV)

sodium-potassium pump

an ion channel that uses the neuron's energy (adenosine triphosphate, ATP) to pump three Na+ ions outside the cell in exchange for bringing two K+ ions inside the cell

spines

protrusions on the dendrite of a neuron that form synapses with terminal buttons of the presynaptic axon

synapse

junction between the presynaptic terminal button of one neuron and the dendrite, axon, or soma of another postsynaptic neuron

synaptic vesicles

groups of neurotransmitters packaged together and located within the terminal button

terminal button

the part of the end of the axon that form synapses with postsynaptic dendrite, axon, or soma

threshold of excitation

specific membrane potential that the neuron must reach to initiate an action potential

adaptations

evolved solutions to problems that historically contributed to reproductive success

error management theory (emt)

a theory of selection under conditions of uncertainty in which recurrent cost asymmetries of judgment or inference favor the evolution of adaptive cognitive biases that function to minimize the more costly errors

evolution

change over time

gene selection theory

the modern theory of evolution by selection by which differential gene replication is the defining process of evolutionary change

intersexual selection

a process of sexual selection by which evolution (change) occurs as a consequences of the mate preferences of one sex exerting selection pressure on members of the opposite sex

intrasexual competition

a process of sexual selection by which members of one sex compete with each other, and the victors gain preferential mating access to members of the opposite sex

natural selection

differential reproductive success as a consequence of differences in heritable attributes

psychological adaptance

mechanisms of the mind that evolved to solve specific problems of survival or reproduction; conceptualized as information processing devices

sexual selection

the evolution of characteristics because of the mating advantage they give organisms

sexual strategies theory

a comprehensive evolutionary theory of human mating that defines the menu of mating strategies humans pursue (e.g., short-term casual sex, long-term committed mating), the adaptive problems women and men face when pursuing these strategies, and the evolved solutions to these mating problems

absolute threshold

the smallest amount of stimulation needed for detection by a sense

agnosia

loss of the ability to perceive stimuli

anosmia

loss of ability to smell

audition

ability to process auditory stimuli

auditory canal

tube running from the outer ear to the middle

auditory hair cells

receptors in the cochlea that transduce sound into electrical potentials

binocular disparity

difference is images processed by the left and right eyes

binocular vision

our ability to perceive 3D and depth because of difference between images on retinas

bottom-up processing

building up to the perceptual experience from individual pieces

chemical senses

our ability to process the environmental stimuli of smell and taste

cochlea

spiral bone structure in the inner ear containing auditory hair cells

cones

photoreceptors of the retina sensitive to color; located primarily in the fovea

dark adaptation

adjustment of eye to low levels of light

differential threshold

the smallest difference needed in order to differentiate two stimuli

dorsal pathway

pathway of visual processing; "where" pathway

flavor

combination of smell and taste

gustation

taste

just noticeable difference

smallest difference needed in order to differentiate two stimuli

light adaptation

adjustment of eye to high levels of light

mechanoreceptors

mechanical sensory receptors in the skin that respond to tactile stimulation

multimodal perception

effects that concurrent stimulation in more than one sensory modality has on the perception of events and objects in the world

nociception

our ability to sense pain

odorants

chemicals transduced by olfactory receptors

olfaction

smell

olfactory epithelium

organ containing olfactory receptors

opponent-process theory

theory proposing color vision as influenced by cells responsive to pairs of colors

ossicles

collection of three small bones in the middle ear that vibrate against the tympanic membrane

perception

the psychological process of interpreting sensory information

phantom limb

the perception that a missing limb still exists

phantom limb pain

the perception that a missing limb still exists

pinna

outermost portion of the ear

primary auditory cortex

area of the cortex involved in processing auditory stimuli

primary somatosensory cortex

area of the cortex involved in processing somatosensory stimuli

primary visual cortex

area of the cortex involved in processing visual stimuli

principle of inverse effectiveness

the finding that, in general, for a multimodal stimulus, if the response to each unimodal component (on its own) is weak, then the opportunity for multisensory enhancement is very large. however, if one component—by itself—is sufficient to evoke a strong response, then the effect on the response gained by simultaneously processing the other components of the stimulus will be relatively small

retina

cell layer in the back of the eye containing photoreceptors

rods

photoreceptors of the retina sensitive to low levels of light. located around the fovea

sensation

the physical processing of environmental stimuli by the sense organs

sensory adaption

decrease in sensitivity of a receptor to a stimulus after constant stimulation

shape theory of olfaction

theory proposing that odorants of different size and shape correspond to different smells

signal detection

method for studying the ability to correctly identify sensory stimuli

somatosensation

ability to sense touch, pain and temperature

somatotopic map

organization of the primary somatosensory cortex maintaining a representation of the arrangement of the body

sound waves

changes in air pressure; stimulus for audition