biopsychology Flashcards
(21 cards)
what are circadian rhythms?
the 24 hour cycle in your body
what are ultradian rhythms?
it is your night time cycle which lasts less than 24hours in your stages of sleep
what are biological rhythms?
biological rhythm are 24-hour circadian rhythms (often known as the ‘body clock’), which are reset by levels of light.
what are exogenous zeitgebers?
external environmental cues that help regulate our internal body clock
whats an example of an exogenous zeitgeber?
suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN) which receives light levels to tell the body when to release melatonin
what are endogenous pacemakers?
the internal cues that controls biological rhythms like the circadian sleep-wake cycle
what is an example of an endogenous pacemaker?
light (sound, environment)
what is brain lateralisation?
is the fact that the two halves of the brain are functionally different and that each hemisphere has functional specializations, e.g. the left is dominant for language, and the right excels at visual motor tasks.
what is the left hemisphere responsible for?
language
what is the right hemisphere responsible for?
visual motor tasks
what is a case study to support brain lateralisation?
sperrys split brain research
what is a limitation of sperrys split brain research?
not generalisable to all split brain people = due to the fact that he only used split brain patients who had severe epilepsy and were therefore ill.
what is brain localisation?
the knowledge that different parts of the brain have different functions to them
what is it important to recognise brain localisation?(evaluation point)
application = it allows specific damage to be found and allow people to get the correct medication for them
what is brain plasticity?
the brain’s ability to change and adapt in response to experiences and environmental factors
what are case studies that can support brain plasticity?
- sperry
- danelli
taxi drivers)
what is functional recovery?
the brains ability to diverts functions from damaged areas to undamaged areas (axon sprouts + pruning)
what are some things that effect functional recovery?
- age
- gender
- perseverance
- physical state (intoxicated, stressed)
what is a case study that supports functional recovery? (hint: Sch…)
schneider found that people with college education were 7x more likely than people who did not complete high school to be disability free one year after a moderate to severe traumatic brain injury.
