Psych Chapter 2.1

Question 0

neuron

Answer 0

a nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system

Question 1

biological psychology

Answer 1

branch of psychology concerned with the links between biology and behavior

Question 2

dendrite

Answer 2

the bushy, branching extensions of a neuron that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body

Question 3

axon

Answer 3

extension of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers through which messages pass to other neurons, muscles, or glands

Question 4

myelin sheath

Answer 4

layer of fatty tissue segmentally encasing the fibers of many neurons; enables vastly greater transmission speed of neural impulses as the impulse travels from node to node

Question 5

action potential

Answer 5

neural impulse; brief electrical charge that travels down an axon and is generated by the movement of positively charged ions in and out of channels in the axon’s membrane

Question 6

threshold

Answer 6

the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse

Question 7

synapse

Answer 7

junction between the axon tip of a sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving one; tiny gap at this junction is called the synaptic gap or cleft

Question 8

neurotransmitters

Answer 8

chemical messengers that traverse the synaptic gaps between neurons; when released by the sending neuron they travel across a synapse and bind to receptor sites on a receiving neuron which influences whether that neuron will generate an impulse

Question 9

acetylcholine

Answer 9

a neurotransmitter that enables learning and memory and also triggers muscle contraction

Question 10

endorphins

Answer 10

“morphine within”-natural, opiatelike neurotransmitters linked to pain and pleasure

Question 11

agonist

Answer 11

a type of drug which excited and triggers neural impulses by mimicking neurotransmitters

Question 12

antagonist

Answer 12

a type of drug which inhibit the release of neurotransmitters