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psychology tesy #2
vocab for 2nd test
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Biological Psychology | – a branch of psychology that studies the links between biology and behavior (aka, behavioral neuroscientist, neuropsychologists, behavioral geneticists, physiological psychologist, or biopsychologists |
| Neuron | – a nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system |
| Dendrite | the bushy, branching extensions of a neuron that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body. |
| Axon | the extension of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers, through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles or glands. |
| Myelin Sheath | layer of fatty tissue that insulates the fibers of some neurons and helps speed their impulses. |
| Threshold | – the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse |
| Action Potential | the neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon. |
| When electrical impulses reach the axon terminal, they stimulate the release of chemical messengers called _____ | neurotransmitters. |
| synapse | the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite of the receiving neuron, aka, the synaptic gap |
| Acetylcholine | enables muscle action, learning, and memory |
| Dopamine | movement, learning, attention, and emotion |
| Serotonin | mood, hunger, sleep, and arousal |
| Norepinephrine | alertness and arousal |
| GABA | major inhibitory (e.g., low levels linked to seizures, tremors and insomnia) |
| Glutamate | major excitatory, involved in memory (e.g., high levels can lead to migraines and seizures; why some people avoid MSG in food) |
| Endorphins | “morphine within” – natural, opiate-like neurotransmitters linked to pain control and pleasure |
| The Nervous System | the body’s speedy, electrochemical communication system, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous systems |
| Central Nervous System (CNS) | – the brain and spinal chord |
| Peripheral Nervous System (PNS) | the sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system (CNS) to the rest of the body. |
| Nerves | the neural “cables” containing many axons. Part of the PNS, they connect the CNS with muscles, glands, and sense organs |
| Reticular Formation | Nerve network in the brainstem that plays an important part in arousal; filters incoming stimuli and relays important info. To other parts of the brain |
| Thalamus | Atop the brainstem, it acts as the brain’s sensory switchboard; receives info from all the senses except for smell and routes it to higher brain regions that deal with seeing, hearing, tasting, and touching |
| Cerebellum | at the rear of the brainstem, coordinates muscle movement |
| Lesioning | – tissue destruction; A naturally or experimentally destruction of brain tissue (e.g., a lesion in one area of the hypothalamus of a rat’s brain reduces eating) |
Created by:
dlantry
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