General Psychology > chapter 2 > Flashcards

chapter 2 Flashcards

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1
Q

what is a neuron?

A
  • the basic unit of the nervous system
  • a nerve cell
  • receives signals from neurons or sensory organs
  • processes information
  • sends signals to other neurons, muscles, organs
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2
Q

what are glial cells and what do they do?

A
  • fill the gaps between neurons (glia = glue)
  • nutrition and maintenance of nerve cells
  • some involved in brain’s immune response
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3
Q

what are dendrites and what do they do?

A

part of neuron; receive signals from other cells

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4
Q

what is the cell membrane and what does it do?

A

part of neuron; protects the cell

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5
Q

what is an axon and what does it do?

A

part of neuron; transfers signals to other cells and organs

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6
Q

what is the myelin sheath and what does it do?

A

part of neuron; increases the speed of a signal
a layer of fatty tissue that insulates them and speeds their impulses

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7
Q

what are the neurotransmitters?

A

chemical messengers
- Acetylcholine (ACh)
- Dopamine(DA)
- Norepinephrine (NE)
- Serotonin (5-HT)
- GABA
- Glutamate (Glu)
- Endorphins

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8
Q

what does acetylcholine do?

A

learning + memory, muscle movement
problems: Alzheimer’s disease

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9
Q

what does dopamine do?

A

movement, learning, attention, emotion
problems: Schizophrenia (too much), Parkinson’s (too little)

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10
Q

what does norepinephrine do?

A

alertness and arousal
problems: depression, bipolar disorder

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11
Q

what does serotonin do?

A

mood, hunger, sleep, arousal
problems: depression, bipolar disorder

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12
Q

what does GABA do?

A

inhibitory action (calms firing of cells)
problems: generalized anxiety disorder, insomnia, seizures, tremors

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13
Q

what does glutamate do?

A

excitatory action (increases firing of cells), memory
problems: schizophrenia, migraines, seizures

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14
Q

what do endorphins do?

A

pain and pleasure
problems: too much can alter body’s production of natural endorphins

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15
Q

what are the 2 main parts of the nervous system?

A
  • central nervous system
  • peripheral nervous system
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16
Q

what does the central nervous system consist of?

A

the brain and the spinal cord

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17
Q

what does the peripheral nervous system consist of?

A
  • motor neurons (somatic and autonomic (sympathetic and parasympathetic))
  • sensory neurons
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18
Q

what does an EEG do?

A

an electroencephalogram reads the electrical activity of cells
- brain computer interface

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19
Q

what are methods of observing the brain?

A
  • EEG
  • MEG
  • MRI
  • PET
  • fMRI
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20
Q

what does an MEG do?

A

a magnetoencephalography maps activity by recording magnetic fields from electricity in the brain

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21
Q

what is an MRI?

A

a magnetic resonance imaging visualizes brain structure

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22
Q

what is a PET scan?

A

a positron emission tomography visualizes brain function by tracking radioactively tagged glucose used as energy in brain functions

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23
Q

what are the parts of the brain stem?

A
  • medulla
  • pons
  • reticular formation
    (near the brainstem)
  • thalamus
  • cerebellum
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24
Q

what does the medulla control?

A

heartbeat & breathing

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25
what does the pons control?
sleep control & movement coordination
26
what does the reticular formation control?
arousal/alertness levels (if severed leads to permanent coma)
27
what does the thalamus do?
receives sensory info, relays info to higher brain regions
28
what does the cerebellum control?
coordination of movement and balance, involved in nonverbal learning and memory
29
what is the limbic system and its major components?
associated with memory and drives - hippocampus - amygdala - hypothalamus
30
what is the hippocampus?
memory formation of facts, events, & spatial awareness
31
what is the amygdala?
linked to emotions, especially aggression & fear
32
what does the hypothalamus do?
- maintenance & motivational behaviors - homeostasis - thirst & hunger - linked to reward & pleasure via nucleus accumbens (in humans more likely to produce desire)
33
what is the cerebral cortex?
the largest division of the brain. divided in 2 hemispheres, each divided into 4 lobes
34
what are the different lobes of the brain?
occipital lobe, temporal lobe, parietal lobe, frontal lobe
35
where is the occipital lobe and what's its functon?
at the back of the head, many aspects of vision
36
where is the temporal lobe and what's its function?
around the ears, hearing
37
where is the parietal lobe and what's its function?
top, rear of the brain; attention, spatial location, somatosensory control
38
where is the frontal lobe and what's its function?
front of the brain; planning, memory search, motor control, reasoning
39
what is the somatosensory strip?
front of the parietal lobe; a strip of brain tissue that processes sensory information from the body, such as touch, pressure, temperature, and pain
40
what is the motor strip?
rear of frontal lobe; a narrow strip of brain tissue in the frontal lobe that controls movement
41
what are some association areas?
Broca's- speech production and articulation Wernicke's- understanding written and spoken language
42
what does the left hemisphere of the brain control?
right side of body language/ speech reading writing logic math science interpretation of events
43
what does the right hemisphere of the brain control?
left side of the body spatial relations creativity inference fantasy music & art helps orchestrate self-awareness
44
what is brain lateralization?
the process by which different parts of the brain control specific cognitive skills and behaviors
45
what is the corpus callosum responsible for?
connecting the left and right hemispheres of the brain, allowing them to communicate
46
what are behavioral genetics?
a field of research that studies genetics and how it contributes to, influences, and is influenced by individual differences in behavior - nature vs nurture
47
what are chromosomes?
threadlike structures made of DNA molecules that contain the genes
48
what is DNA?
molecules that contains genes
49
what is a gene?
a stretch of DNA that produces specific protein
50
what is inheritance?
the joint action of combinations of genes working together
51
what are research practices for behavioral genetics?
adoption studies and twin studies
52
what are examples of gene-environment interaction?
- Environment acts on gene expression - Gene expression leading to certain characteristics affects environment - Choices we make are influenced by and affect both our gene expression & our environment
53
what is a neural impulse
Neurons transmit messages when stimulated by our senses or by neighboring neurons. A neuron sends a message by firing an impulse,
54
what is an action potential
a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon
55
what is a refractory period
in neural processing, a brief resting pause that occurs after a neuron has fired; subsequent action potentials cannot occur until the axon returns to its resting state
55
what is the threshold
the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse
56
what is the all or none response
a neuron’s reaction of either firing (with a full-strength response) or not firing
57
what is a synapse
the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron
58
what is the synaptic gap
The tiny gap at this junction
59
what is reuptake
a neurotransmitter’s reabsorption by the sending neuron
60
what is the axon terminal
the end of the axon, synaptic gap
61
what is the nervous system
a communication network that takes in information from the world and the body’s tissues, makes decisions, and sends back information and orders to the body’s tissues
62
what are the 3 types of neurons
Sensory neurons carry messages from the body’s tissues and sensory receptors inward (what biologists term afferent) to the brain and spinal cord for processing. Motor neurons (which are efferent) carry instructions from the central nervous system outward to the body’s muscles and glands. Between the sensory input and motor output, information is processed via interneurons.
63
what does the somatic nervous system do
enables voluntary control of our skeletal muscles
64
what does the autonomic nervous system do
controls our glands and our internal organ muscles
65
what is the difference between sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems
The sympathetic nervous system arouses and expends energy. your parasympathetic nervous system will produce the opposite effects, conserving energy as it calms you. work together to keep us in a steady internal state called homeostasis
66
what is a reflex
a simple, automatic response to a sensory stimulus, such as the knee-jerk reflex.
67
what is the endocrine system
the body’s “slow” chemical communication system; a set of glands and fat tissue that secrete hormones into the bloodstream
68
what are hormones
chemical messengers that are manufactured by the endocrine glands, travel through the bloodstream, and affect other tissues
69
what is the adrenal gland
a pair of endocrine glands that sits just above the kidneys and secretes hormones (epinephrine and norepinephrine) that help arouse the body in times of stress
70
what is the pituitary gland
the endocrine system’s most influential gland. Under the influence of the hypothalamus, the pituitary regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands
71
what does lesion mean
tissue destruction. Brain lesions occur naturally (disease or trauma), in surgery, or experimentally (using electrodes to destroy brain cells)
72
what are split brains
a condition resulting from surgery that separates the brain’s two hemispheres by cutting the fibers (mainly those of the corpus callosum) connecting them.
73
what are differences between the right and left brain hemispheres
The right hemisphere typically activates during perceptual tasks, while the left is engaged during speech and mathematical calculations. The left hemisphere excels at quick, literal interpretations, whereas the right hemisphere is better at making inferences and understanding subtleties in language.
74
what is our environment
every nongenetic influence, from prenatal nutrition to our experiences of the people and things around us.
75
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