biopsychology Flashcards
(30 cards)
what are the two divisions of the nervous system
- peripheral nervous system
- central nervous system
what are the two divisions of the peripheral nervous system
- somatic nervous system
- autonomic nervous system
what are the two divisions of the central nervous system
- brain
- spinal cord
what are the two divisions of the autonomic nervous system
- sympathetic branch
- para-sympathetic branch
what are the two main functions of the brain
- collect, process and respond to information in the environment
- to coordinate and direct the working of different organs and cells in the body
what is the function of the spinal cord
- carry messages via neurons to and from the brain to the peripheral nervous system
what is an arc reflex
a special type of neural circuit that protects you from harm
what is the order of a reflex arc
stimulus, receptor, sensory neuron, relay neuron, motor neuron, effector, response
what is the function of the peripheral nervous system
relay nerve impulses from the central nervous system to the rest of the body and vice versa
what is the function of the somatic nervous system
- maintains communication between the outside world and the CNS
what does the somatic nervous system consist of
- sensory receptors
- motor pathways
what do sensory receptors do
- carry info to the spinal cord and brain
- transmit and receive info from senses
what do motor pathways do
- allow the brain to control movement of the skeletal muscles
- orchestrate movements from brain instructions
where is the somatic nervous system’s control centre
in the somatosensory and motor cortex in the brain
what is the function of the autonomic nervous system
responsible for the functions that keep the body stable ( homeostasis ) e.g. heart rate, perspiration, digestion
is the autonomic nervous system conscious or sub-conscious?
most functions or the autonomic nervous system require no conscious thought
where is the autonomic nervous system’s control centre
the control centre is found in the top of the brain stem known as the hypothalamus and pituitary gland
what are the functions of the sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system
- involved in fight or flight response; increases heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate ect
- activates when threats are near
- slows non-essential processes that take up energy e.g. digestion, bladder contraction
what are the functions of the para-sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system
- stores and conserves resources after fight or flight
- returns body to normal state; slows heart rate, increases digestion ect
what is the basic structure of a neuron
- dendrite
- nucleus
- axon
- myelin sheath
- nodes of ranvier
- terminal buttons
what are the three types of neuron in the body
- sensory neuron
- motor neuron
- relay neuron
what is the function of a sensory neuron
- carries messages from the peripheral nervous system to the central nervous system
- tells the brain about external and internal environment
- processes info from the sensory receptors
what is the structure of a sensory neuron
- long dendrites
- short axons
is the sensory neuron multi-polar or unipolar
unipolar
