AP Psych - Unit 1 - Summative Quiz (brain)

hypothalamus

regulates hunger, thirst, body temp, sexual drive, hormones, and the autonomic nervous system. It also contains reward/pleasure centers. located below the thalamus

occipital lobe (visual cortex)

primarily responsible for vision. located at the back of the brain, visual cortex located in the occipital lobes

angular gyrus

converts written words into a form the brain can process for reading and understanding language. essentially takes written words and connects them to their sounds. located in the rear of the left parietal lobe. if damaged, trouble reading.

cerebellum

coordinates voluntary movement, balance, and motor learning. located behind the brainstem

parietal lobe (sensory cortex)

processes sensory info, including touch and body position. located at the top and rear part of brain. sensory cortex processes touch and other body sensations, located in the front of the parietal lobe, parallel to motor cortex.

broca’s area

controls speech production, helps form spoken words. located in the left frontal lobe. if damaged, spoken words don’t form well or at all.

medulla

part of the brain stem that mostly controls heartbeat and breathing

temporal lobe (auditory cortex)

responsible for hearing, language, and memory. located near the ears

motor cortex

controls voluntary movements. located at the back of the frontal lobe.

frontal lobe

responsible for judgement, planning, decision making, personality, impulse control, and voluntary movement. located at the front part of the brain above the eyes

thalamus

receives and relays sensory info (except smell) to the appropriate areas of the cerebral cortex

amygdala

deals with aggression and fear (emotion), it is almond shaped on the ends of the hippocampus

hippocampus

responsible for processing and forming new long term memories. damage to it can cause amnesia (loss of memory)

wernicke’s area

responsible for comprehending spoken and written language. located in the left temporal lobe. if damaged, communication from others doesn’t make much sense.

lesion

surgically destroy/remove tissue in the brain

eeg

records and measures the brains electrical activity (brain waves)

cat scan

uses x-rays to create detailed images of the brain’s structure

pet scan

injected with a raioactive glucose. this measures brain activity by showing which areas use more glucose

mri

uses strong magnets and radio waves to create a picture with details of tissue specifically and of brain structures

fmri

repeated MRI images of one area, creates a “movie” using blood flow indicators. helps show and identify levels of which brain areas are active/inactive

brainstem

the most basic, primal part of the brain that connects the spinal cord and controls essential survival functions. it is the crossover point - left side of brain switches to right side of body and vice versa.

reticular formation

a nerve network that runs from the base of skull up to the thalamus that helps control wakefulness/alertness

pons

where the spinal cord swells a lot, helps coordinate movement and bladder control and sleep (sleep paralysis) and breathing

limbic system

core system of the brain, a group of brain structures involved in emotions, memory, and motivation

pituitary gland

the master gland of the endocrine system that works in response to the hypothalamus and releases hormones that control other glands

skeletal nervous system

controls voluntary movements

autonomic nervous system

controls “automatic” bodily function

nervous system

neurons communicating w each other

central nervous system

brain and spinal cord, neurons communicate w lots of other neurons

peripheral nervous system

links the CNS with everything else

sympathetic nervous system

prepares us for action (fight or flight). increases blood sugar, heartbeat up, slows digestion, makes u sweat, dilate pupils

parasympathetic nervous system

conserves energy and calms us down. slow heartbeat, speed up digestion, constrict pupils, relax muscles

sensory/afferent neurons

receive external info and send into CNS

interneurons/association neurons

processing neurons in the CNS

motor/efferent neurons

carry info from CNS to body to carry out actions

nerves

bundles of axons that carry info to and from the CNS

reflexes

causes a reaction to something before information reaches the brain. no pain until it reaches the brain

neural networks

clusters of neurons working together

endocrine system

a system of glands that release hormones into the bloodstream to regulate body functions

hormones

chemical messengers secreted by glands that travel through the bloodstream. they take longer to kick in, but lasts longer. they influence many aspects of our lives

epinephrine - ex of hormone

adrenaline - increases heart rate, energy, and alertness during stressful situations (fight or flight)

melatonin - ex of hormone

regulates your sleep - wake cycle and helps signal when its time to sleep

oxytocin - ex of hormone

helps with relationships (trust), childbirth, reduce stress, and it is the happy hormone

leptin - ex of hormone

not hungry - signals to your brain that you have enough stored energy, helping reduce hunger

ghrelin - ex of hormone

hungry - signals to your brain that you’re hungry, increasing appetite

corpus callosum

a band of axon flows that connects the left and right hemispheres together

cerebral cortex

the brain’s outer surface layer, responsible for advanced thinking and information processing

glial cells

cells that support, nourish, protect, and help neurons communicate, (glue cells). provides nutrients/myelin.

frontal lobes and prefrontal cortex have same definition

yes

motor cortex

area at the back of the frontal lobe that controls voluntary body movements

somatosensory cortex

touch - area at the front of the parietal lobe, parallel to motor cortex, that processes touch and other body sensations

visual cortex

located in the occipital lobes that processes visual information

auditory cortex

processes sounds, located in the temporal lobes

association areas

areas that make up most of the cerebral cortex and integrate info involved in higher level thinking, learning, memory, and judgment

aphasia

impaired use of language, often cause by damage to language-related areas of the brain

brain plasticity

the brain’s ability to (naturally) reorganize/reunite to some extent. much better when your younger. (can happen after split brain)

neurogenesis

the Brian producing new brain cells that can help out, produced at a pretty slow rate though

left hemisphere

primarily involved in reading, writing, speaking, arithmetic, and logic. controls rights side of body. more “active” so easier to study. deals with right field of vision

right hemisphere

primarily involved in perception, spatial reasoning, and creativity. deals with left side of body and left field of vision. less “active” but still crucial

split brain

cutting the corpus callosum, divides the two hemispheres. this separates communication between the two hemispheres. (originally done to eliminate seizures)