Ch 3 & 4 psych exam

neurons

 Receive and transmit cells; 100 billion in the brain

gila cells

Support & insulation in the nervous system; most of brain volume; gila cells transmits info, 10x more gila cells than neurons 

dendrites

are the branch like that receive information from neurons

axon

the extended fiber that carries its own cell to the next one

myelin sheath

ticky substances that cover some axons, 2 purposes; one is to speed the signal going down the axon, and we are generating more and more myelin and we are smarter than ever. Lots of Myelin around the age of 20

synapse

Junction between neurons; they have a synaptic gap. Causes synaptic vesicles to move to the end, open up and dump into the gap.

soma

produces the proteins that the other parts of the neuron, including the dendrites, axons, and synapses, need to function properly

vesicles

uptake, storage and stimulus-dependent release of neurotransmitter; synaptic transmission 

neurotransmitters

Chemical substance released by the transmitting neuron (presynaptic neuron) at the synapse; alters activity of the receiving neuron (post-synaptic neuron)

receptor sites

proteins typically found on the surface of cells, which are able to recognize and bond to specific messenger molecules.

action potential

• Resting potential of neuron = -70 millivolts 

• Stimulation causes cell membrane to open briefly

• Positively charged sodium ions flow in

• Shift in electrical charge travels along the axon – the Action Potential. 

• Refractory period

Post-synaptic potential

• Voltage change at the receptor cite

• Receiving neuron Integrates

• Allow communication between neurons

excitatory

up the probability the next neuron will fire

inhibitory

decrease the probability the next neuron will fire

Major neurotransmitters

GABA, serotonin, norepinephrine, dopamine, endorphins, acetylcholine

acetylcholine

• has some role in energy,

• and some key role in muscle action

• Critical for memory though; associated with altimerzers  

• Not enough acetylcholine activity altimerzer could be the result 

GABA

• Body’s main inhibitory transmitter

• Works by slowing down the nervous system 

• We need GABA to stay calm 

• Insufficient GABA activity seems to be associated with anxiety disorders

Serotonin

• Insufficient serotonin is associated with depression 

• It is important for an even good mood

norepinephrine

• It is important for arousal (energy)

• Insufficient norepinephrine is associated with depression

dopamine

• Reward pathway 

• When the pathway is stimulated it provides a sense of well-being

• Great but can be dangerous 

• Critical for voluntary movement 

• A person who has insufficient dopamine could develop pakistan’s 

• El Dopa is a “miracle drug”

• To much Dopamine could result in Schizophrenia 

• Side effects of drugs could result in what looks like Parkistan’s

endorphins

• They make us feel good

• They are chemical structure is similar to opioids (heroin)

• Increasing pleasure and reducing pain

• Respond to stress

• “Runners high”

Central nervous system

 consists of the brain and the spinal cord

Peripheral nervous system

Somatic and the Autonomic

somatic

:Skeletal nervous system: permits voluntary moment

sympathetic nervous system

gets us ready for action; fight or flight

parasympathetic

 Activates when body goes back to resting state

medulla

automatic functions- breathing, heart rate, maintaining blood pressure 

cerebellum

“little brain” balance, one of the first areas of the brain affected by alcohol

thalamus

right in the middle (traffic cop). Relays sensory info., takes in information from sight, taste, touch, and sent to processing area (smell is the only one that doesn’t go through)

hypothalamus

survival drives (the 5 f’s) regulates ANS, fighting, fleeing, freeze, feeding, mating 

limbic system

memory and emotion

amygdala

fear response, danger detector

hippocampus

new info into memory

corpus callosum

nerve fibers connecting the two hemispheres (TEST QUESTION) Thick band 

broca’s area

production of speech (left hemisphere task)

wenicke’s area

understanding of language (left hemisphere task)

4 lobes of the cortex

incl prefrontal cortex, occipital lobe, pariental lobe, frontal lobe

incl prefrontal cortex

Responsible for heavy thinking, like decision making, planning, etc. (cognitive process)

occipital lobe

contains the visual cortex; visual processing

parietal lobe

body sensation, and some role on how we are oriented in space. The front is the somatosensory cortex. (where we process touch)

frontal lobe

front strip is the motor cortex; controls body

split-brain research

 Corpus callosum severed. Research– each hem. Receives different info.

facts about brain plasticity

• Deprived vs enriched  

• Enriched: better learning & brain developed 

• Brain can repair itself 

• Younger brains- more plastic

pituitary gland

 releases several hormones and regulates other glands

 What is the name of the condition in which the patient feels pain in a missing limb?

phantom limb syndrome

 Dr. R’s solution for the amputee’s pain is called the

mirror-box technique

 What is Graham’s condition (in which a blind person can see motion)?

blindside

What part of the brain is called the gateway to the emotional centers?

amyglada

What causes John’s condition (in which he experiences intense religious experiences)?

An electrical storm in his temporal lobes, when a group of neurons start firing at random out of sync with the rest of his brain

Behavioral genetics

• the study of the influence of genetic factors on behavioral traits.

What methods are used for behavioral genetics

Family, twin, adoption, stuides

Evolutionary bases of behavior

Darwin’s ideas:

•  Reproductive success is key

• Fitness

• Adaptation

• Controversial ideas

Fitness:

Natural selection:

Ex: behavioral adaptations:

• Adoption studies

• Compare adopted children with their biological and adoptive parents

• Biological– genetics has a greater impact

• Adoptive– Environment has a greater impact

Darwins ideas

Darwin’s ideas:

•  Reproductive success is key

• Fitness

• Adaptation

• Controversial ideas

What does the left hemisphere do ?

Math and logic

What does the right hemisphere do?

art and face

Two Hemispheres

Cerebral specialization (which tasks seem specialized?) : Each hemisphere is specialized to do certain tasks better than the other hemisphere. Left hemisphere: math and logic. Right hemisphere: art and face 

Contralateralization: The left hemisphere controls the right side of the body, right hemisphere controls the left side of the body

Cerebral specialization

: Each hemisphere is specialized to do certain tasks better than the other hemisphere. Left hemisphere: math and logic. Right hemisphere: art and face 

Contralateralization

The left hemisphere controls the right side of the body, right hemisphere controls the left side of the body

Sensation

Raw sensory data coming from the environment, sound, touch, etc; Stimulation; visual system

Perception

Brain’s selection, and interpretation of that data

Wavelength

color

Amplitude

brightness

Purity

Saturation

Cones

6 million in each eye; are responsible for starting the process of color vision

• The sharpest vision

• Only cones exist in the phobia

Retina

a layer of photoreceptors cells and glial cells within the eye that captures incoming photons and transmits them along neuronal pathways as both electrical and chemical signals for the brain to perceive a visual picture.

Rods

a type of photoreceptor cell in the retina. They are sensitive to light levels and help give us good vision in low light.

Fovea

a small depression within the neurosensory retina where visual acuity is the highest. The fovea itself is the central portion of the macula, which is responsible for central vision.

Blind Spot

Where information from various part of the eye come together to form the optic nerve

Optic Chiasm

optic nerves come together in order to allow for the crossing of fibers from the nasal retina to the optic tract on the other side.

feature detectors

The ability to detect certain types of stimuli, like movements, shape, and angles, requires specialized cells in the brain

Two theories of color vision

• Trichromatic theory

  • At cones 

• Opponent process theory

  • At ganglion cells and brain 

• Trichromatic theory

• • At cones 

• Opponent process theory

• • At ganglion cells and brain 

Reversible Figures

an ambiguous two-dimensional drawing that represents a three-dimensional object in such a way that it can be seen from two different perspectives

perceptual sets

A hypothesis about what we are looking at 

Feature analysis

theorizes the possibility that humans and animals have neurons and neural networks that function as detectors, observing the individual characteristics, or features, of every object and pattern we encounter

Top-down processing

• Form a perceptual hypothesis about the nature of the stimulus as a whole

• Select and examine features to check hypothesis 

• Recognize stimulus

Bottom-up processing

• Detect specific features of stimulus

• Combine specific features into more complex forms

Recognize stimulus  

perceiving forms

Reversible figures, Perceptual sets, Feature analysis, Top-down vs. Bottom-up processing

Gestalt principles

• Proximity

• Similarity

• Closure

• Continuity

Binocular cues

• 2 eyes

• Tools are brain uses to draw conclusions about distances

• Retinal disparity

  • Phenomenon  each eye receives slightly different information from another eye 

Monocular cues

• One eye

• Ex: motion parallax

  • Fast moving things are close, vs versa

• Pictorial depth cues

• Interposition (closer things cover up further things)

• Relative size (in general closer things bigger)

• Height in plane (things below horizon further they are) 

Perceptual constancy

the tendency of animals and humans to see familiar objects as having standard shape, size, colour, or location regardless of changes in the angle of perspective, distance, or lighting.

Ames room

rely on one eye

Muller-lyer illusions

• Tend to say the right one is longer 

• When we see up-reaching or down-reaching extensions it reminds us of a corner of a building which is the farthest thing from us 

• Are brain interprets the right line to be further/longer away 

• Depth-perception are brain makes

Cultural differences with illusions

• Cultural differences in illusions: Perceptual hypotheses at work

•  

  • Ex – Muller-Lyer 

    • People who don’t live in right-angle houses don’t fall for the illusion

• Use of depth cues is not all “hard-wired.” 

• Partly an acquired skill based on experience.

Imagine that a picture of a spoon is briefly flashed in the left visual field of an individual with a severed corpus callosum. At the same time, a picture of a cup is briefly flashed in the right visual field. Based on research with split-brain patients, you could predict that this individual would say

I saw a cup

A good analogy for the way in which a neurotransmitter binds to receptor sites is

a key fitting in the lock of a door

Which of the following parts of the brain is MOST likely to play a major role in the work of artists, architects, and engineers, who must rely heavily on visual-spatial skills?

right hemisphere

Abnormalities at norepinephrine and serotonin synapses appear to play a role in which of the following?

depression

If a patient has severe damage to the prefrontal cortex, you would predict that he might have difficulty

planning, paying attention, and getting organized

Information is received by a neuron through the ____, and is transmitted toward other neurons through the _____.

dendrites; axon

An electrical potential that increases the likelihood that the post-synaptic neuron will fire is called an  

excitatory post-synaptic potential

Opiate drugs bind onto the same receptor sites as the body's own endorphins. Therefore, opiate drugs tend to

reduce pain

The critical thinking section of chapter 3 discusses the dangers of over-extrapolating from research findings. According to that section, which of the following has NOT be demonstrated through scientific research? 

Young infants exposed to classical music show significantly higher cognitive performance later in school.

Elizabeth just caught the sight of a red hummingbird. The neural impulses from her eye will eventually travel to her visual cortex, but first they must pass through the

thalamus

When Jeffrey slipped on the stairs and hit his head, he saw "stars" for a few minutes. The "stars" were MOST likely a result of activity in Jeffrey's 

occipital lobes

Which of the following is NOT an example of a behavioral adaptation?

male wild turkeys growing larger beak ornaments

The chemicals that are released from the terminal buttons into the gap between neurons are called

neurotransmitters

The movement of voluntary skeletal muscles involved in doing calisthenics is under the control of the 

somatic nervous system