unit 1 aos 1 the role of the brain in mental processes and behaviour

Question 1

the central nervous system CNS (4 points)

Answer 1

main function - process info received from sensory systems and other body parts and activate appropriate responses.

• consists of the brain and spinal cord
• brain is the centre for cognition, processing and responding
• spinal cord is a route for messages to and from the brain

Question 2

the peripheral nervous system PNS (x3)

Answer 2

responsible for carrying information to and from the CNS

• made up of every nerve in the body outside of the CNS.
• divided into the somatic and autonomic nervous systems.

Question 3

the somatic nervous system SNS

Answer 3

Network of nerves that

• carry sensory information to the CNS
• motor information from the CNS.

controls the skeletal muscles attached to our bones, which produce observable bodily movement

Question 4

sensory messages

Answer 4

transmit information about the body’s sensations, to the CNS so as it can coordinate a response.

Question 5

motor messages

Answer 5

transmitted from the brain (via the spinal cord) to the skeletal muscles, giving instructions on how to move.

Question 6

how is a response coordinated? 4 steps

Answer 6

1 body registers something,
2 SNS sends sensory messages about these sensations to the CNS
3 CNS processes this information and coordinates a response if necessary.
4 CNS sends a motor message to the skeletal muscles through SNS, telling them to respond

Question 7

autonomic nervous system ANS

Answer 7

responsible for initiating the responses of the body’s visceral muscles, organs, and glands, such as the heart, stomach, and liver.
mostly self-regulating
ANS is further divided into sympathetic and parasympathetic

Question 8

sympathetic nervous system

Answer 8

(branch of ANS) FIGHT OR FLIGHT
responsible for activating the body’s visceral organs, muscles and glands in order to prepare the body for dealing with high levels of activity, such as exercise or escaping a threat.
examples of responses - heart rate increase, blood flow increases, dilates pupils

Question 9

parasympathetic nervous system

Answer 9

(a branch of the ANS) responsible for returning the body to and maintaining homeostasis of the body after heightened arousal of sympathetic response.
examples of responses - constricts pupils, heart rate decreases, blood flow is regular

Question 10

homeostasis

Answer 10

an equilibrium in the body where all systems are at a stable level of functioning

Question 11

the role of a neuron

Answer 11

responsible for transmitting, receiving, and processing information in the form of neuronal messages.

Question 12

form of neuronal messages

Answer 12

sent electrochemically
chemically between neurons
electrically throughout a single neuron

Question 13

types of neurons

Answer 13

sensory neurons - communicate info about body’s sensations

motor neurons - communicate info about how to move

interneurons - function to relay neuronal messages between motor and sensory neurons (because motor and sensory don’t communicate with eachother)

Question 14

synaptic gap

Answer 14

the space between two neurons into which a neuronal message is transmitted

Question 15

dendrites

Answer 15

are the bushy branches at the receiving end of a neuron

Question 16

axon

Answer 16

long stick-like part of the neuron that conducts electrical impulses away from the cell body of the neuron to the sending end

Question 17

myelin sheath

Answer 17

the fat and protein substance that surrounds, insulates and protects the axon of a neuron

Question 18

axon terminals

Answer 18

are at the sending end of the neuron

they are responsible for the release of the neuronal message into the synapse

Question 19

glial cells (x5)

Answer 19

a specialised cell that protects and supports neurons and their functioning
• provides nutrients and oxygen
• repair neurons 
• insulate neurons
• produce myelin
• aid neurons in neurotransmission.

Question 20

hindbrain

Answer 20

an area at the base of the brain, including the medulla and pons (in the brain stem) and the cerebellum
responsible for some of our most fundamental functions, such as autonomic regulation of breathing and basic movement

Question 21

cerebellum

Answer 21

the cerebellum is a ball-of-wool-like structure located at the back and base of the brain.

• posture and balance
• muscle movement
• procedures and sequences

Question 22

medulla

Answer 22

located at the very bottom of the brain stem

functions to regulate our autonomic functions, such as breathing, heart rate, digestion, blood pressure, sneezing etc

Question 23

pons (x4)

Answer 23

located directly above the medulla in the brain stem
• relays information
• regulates the respiratory system
• involved in sleep
• involved in some involuntary movements

Question 24

midbrain

Answer 24

located in the middle of the brain between the hindbrain and the forebrain.
consists of the reticular formation

Question 25

reticular formation

Answer 25

has pathways that project into various parts of the brain.
functions to
• filter information to relevant parts of the brain,
• regulating the sleep-wake cycle and consciousness
• regulating physiological arousal and alertness through the reticular activation system (RAS).

Question 26

reticular activation system

Answer 26

a network of neurons that has pathways through the brain and down toward the spinal cord, telling the body to either increase or decrease arousal/alertness in response to information about the body’s state and environmental stimuli.

Question 27

forebrain

Answer 27

the largest area of the brain
is responsible for our most sophisticated functions such as 
- memory
- learning
- perception
- cognition.

Question 28

thalamus

Answer 28

part of the forebrain. the “relay centre”

• functions to regulate arousal, attention and activity
• filters sensory and motor signals

Question 29

hypothalamus

Answer 29

primarily involved in homeostatic functions as well as motivated and emotional behaviours

Question 30

cerebrum

Answer 30

largest expanse of brain matter including the outer cerebral cortex and inner tissue of the forebrain.
responsible for our most sophisticated, higher order functions like language, perception and evaluation

Question 31

left and right hemispheres

Answer 31

left = verbal and analytical functions
right = non-verbal functions and creativity and facial recognition

Question 32

frontal lobe

Answer 32

responsible for high-order mental processes, regulation and expression of emotions, voluntary movement and speech production.

Question 33

cerebral cortex

Answer 33

the thin outer layer of the cerebrum

Question 34

pre-frontal cortex of the frontal lobe

Answer 34

an area of the frontal lobe responsible for higher-order cognitive processes such as decision making and planning
reaches maturity at 25 y/o

Question 35

pre-motor cortex

Answer 35

an area of the frontal lobe responsible for planning necessary sequences for motor movements

Question 36

primary-motor cortex

Answer 36

an area of the frontal lobe that initiates and controls voluntary movements

Question 37

broca’s area

Answer 37

area of the frontal lobe responsible for production of clear and fluent speech

Question 38

parietal lobe (x3)

Answer 38

• processing bodily functions such as touch and temperature
• information about muscle movement
• attention and spatial reasoning

Question 39

somatosensory cortex

Answer 39

responsible for receiving and processing sensory information from the skin and body.

Question 40

occipital lobe

Answer 40

organisation and interpretation of visual stimuli

Question 41

primary visual cortex

Answer 41

major destination for visual information.

the information comes in from the sensory receptors located on the retina of the eyes.

Question 42

temporal lobe (x3)

Answer 42

• hearing
• decisions made about which features of environments we will remember
• facial recognition

Question 43

primary auditory cortex

Answer 43

temporal lobe - receives and processes sound from both ears so that we can perceive and identify different types of sounds

Question 44

wernicke’s area

Answer 44

temporal lobe - speech comprehension and interpreting human speech. you cannot understand words until processed here

Question 45

plasticity

Answer 45

our brain’s ability to physically change in response to experience and learning

Question 46

developmental plasticity (what and when)

Answer 46

changes in the brain that occur in response to ageing and maturation
- begins when we are a fetus and ends when we are in our mid-twenties.

Question 47

adaptive plasticity

Answer 47

changes in the brain that occur in response to injury or trauma

Question 48

myelination (what and when)

Answer 48

the process of coating neurons axons’ with a fatty protein substance (myelin sheath) to ensure neuronal communication is fast and efficient. occurs largely during infancy and then further in adultolesence

Question 49

Synaptic pruning

Answer 49

The elimination of underused synapses.

• To ensure the brain can function efficiently as only necessary connections are kept.
• Some pruning occurs after infancy but it occurs most intensely during adolescence.

Question 50

Frontal lobe development

Answer 50

The development of the frontal lobe, including its growth in size and the maturation of its neuronal connections.

• To allow for the functioning of any task the frontal lobe is responsible for, such as movement, language and decision making.
• The frontal lobe develops from when we are a fetus until about the age of 25 through changes to our neuronal connections.

Question 51

proliferation

Answer 51

the forming of neurons in infancy

Question 52

Migration

Answer 52

when neurons migrate from where they were formed, to where they will stay in the nervous system

Question 53

synaptogenesis

Answer 53

The axons of neurons grow and form connections to nearby neurons creating synapses. This can occur throughout the lifespan but is most intense in infancy.