Biopsychology Flashcards
(185 cards)
1
Q
What is the nervous system split into?
A
- central nervous system
- peripheral nervous system
2
Q
What does the central nervous system split into?
A
- brain
- spinal cord
3
Q
What is the peripheral nervous system split into?
A
- somatic nervous system
- autonomic nervous system
4
Q
What is the autonomic nervous system split into?
A
- sympathetic nervous system
- parasympathetic nervous system
5
Q
What is the central nervous system?
A
A bundle of nerve fibres in the spinal column that receives information an coordinates responses
6
Q
What is the brain?
A
Part of the CNS that is responsible for coordinating sensation, intellectual and nervous activity
7
Q
What are the 4 lobes of the brain?
A
- frontal
- parietal
- occipital
- temporal
8
Q
What is the frontal lobe responsible for?
A
Thinking and speech production
9
Q
Where is the frontal lobe located?
A
Front of the brain
10
Q
What is the parietal lobe responsible for?
A
Perception
11
Q
Where is the parietal lobe located?
A
Top of the brain
12
Q
What is the occipital lobe responsible for?
A
Vision
13
Q
Where is the occipital lobe located?
A
Back of the brain
14
Q
What is the temporal lobe responsible for?
A
Memory/language
15
Q
Where is the temporal lobe located?
A
Sides of the brain
16
Q
What are the 4 areas of the brain?
A
- cerebrum
- cerebellum
- brain stem
- diencephalon
17
Q
What is the cerebrum?
A
Largest division of the brain which divides into the 4 lobes
18
Q
What is the structure of the cerebrum?
A
Divided into 2 hemispheres
19
Q
How do the 2 hemispheres of the cerebrum communicate?
A
Corpus callosum
20
Q
What is the diencephalon?
A
Made up of the thalamus and hypothalamus
21
Q
What is the thalamus?
A
Relay station for impulses from senses and directing them to relevant areas
22
Q
What is the hypothalamus?
A
Regulates internal processes e.g. body temperature/thirst and links nervous system to endocrine system
23
Q
What is the cerebellum?
A
Control of motor skills and balance/coordination
24
Q
What does abnormalities in the cerebellum result in?
A
Speech and motor problems and potentially epilepsy
25
What is the brain stem?
Regulates automatic, essential functions where neurons travel through
26
What is the spinal cord?
Bundle of nerve fibres that links the brain with the PNS
27
What is the peripheral nervous system?
Part of the nervous system outside of the brain and spinal cord
28
What is the somatic nervous system?
Part of the PNS that is responsible for voluntary actions using neurons
29
What is the autonomic nervous system?
Part of the PNS that is responsible for involuntary actions and is self regulating
30
What is the sympathetic nervous system?
The release of adrenaline and noradrenaline to prepare the body for fight or flight
31
What is the parasympathetic nervous system?
Use of hormones to stop fight or flight and return the body to rest and digest
32
What is a neuron?
Specialised cells that move electrical impulses to and from the CNS
33
What are dendrites?
At the end of a neurone and receives the impulse from other neurones
34
What is the cell body/soma?
Contains genetic information
35
What is the axon?
Carries the action potential down the neurons
36
What are the nodes of Ranvier?
Gaps in myelin sheath that speeds up transmission by forcing the impulse to jump the gaps
37
What is the myelin sheath?
Protects the axon and speeds up electrical transmission
38
What are the terminal buttons?
Communicate with the next neurone forming a synapse
39
What are the 3 types of neurones?
- sensory
- relay
- motor
40
What is the role of sensory neurons?
Carries impulses from sensory receptors to the CNS
41
How do you tell a sensory neurone apart?
Soma in the centre of the axon
42
What is the function of a relay neuron?
Carry nerve impulses inside the CNS
43
How do you recognise a relay neuron?
Has no myelin sheath
44
What is the function of a motor neuron?
Carries impulses from CNS to effector
45
How do you recognise a motor neuron?
Soma in the dendrites
46
What is the process of synaptic transmission?
- action potential reaches axon terminal
- stimulates synaptic vesicles to move to and bind with the presynaptic membrane
- synaptic vesicles release neurotransmitters into the synaptic cleft
- neurotransmitters bind to receptors on post synaptic neuron
- summation happens determining whether axon fires or not
47
What is summation?
- total excitatory and inhibitory inputs
- determines if the axon fires the action potential or not
48
What is excitation?
- excitatory neurotransmitters (adrenaline) binds to receptors on post synaptic membrane
- generates an action potential
- increases likelihood of axon firing
49
What is inhibition?
- inhibitory neurotransmitters (serotonin) bind to receptors on post synaptic membrane
- doesn’t generate action potential
- less likely the axon fires or
50
What is the endocrine system?
Process of glands secreting hormones that travel in the blood and bind to receptors on target cells
51
What are the glands?
- pituitary
- adrenal
- thyroid
- ovaries
- testes
52
What is the pituitary gland also known as?
Master gland
53
What control the pituitary gland?
Hypothalamus
54
What is the role of the pituitary gland?
- release hormones to influence other glands
- controls negative feedback
55
What are the 2 divisions of the pituitary gland and what do they release?
- anterior pituitary gland and releases ACTH in response to stresss
- posterior pituitary gland releases oxytocin
56
Where is the adrenal glands?
On top of the kidney
57
What are the 2 divisions of the adrenal gland and what do they release?
- adrenal cortex releases cortisol in response to stress
- adrenal medulla releases adrenaline to prepare the body for fight or flight
58
Where is the thyroid gland?
The neck
59
What is the role of the thyroid gland?
Release thyroxine to regulate metabolism
60
What are the ovaries?
Female reproductive organs
61
What is the role of the ovaries?
Procure oestrogen and progesterone to regulate the menstrual cycle
62
What are the testes?
Male reproductive organs
63
What is the role of the testes?
Release testosterone
64
What is negative feedback?
- pituitary gland is stimulated by hypothalamus to release a hormone
- the hormones bind to target glands so they release the hormone
– the hypothalamus detects normal levels and stops the pituitary gland releasing hormones
65
What is fight or flight?
A sequence of activities in the body triggered by stress that prepares the body
66
What is the HPA axis?
- hypothalamus releases CRH
- pituitary gland releases ACTH
- causes adrenal cortex to release cortisol
67
What is the process of fight to flight?
- person feels stress
- amygdala perceives the stress and sends signal to hypothalamus
- hypothalamus sends signal to adrenal medulla
- adrenal medulla releases adrenaline
- activates sympathetic nervous system
68
What are the physiological effects of fight or flight?
- function of non-critical organs slow
- increase in energy
- muscles tense
- increased heart rate
- increased breathing rate
- pupils dilate
- sweating
69
Why does the function of non critical organs slow?
Maximise performance of critical organs
70
Why is there an increase in energy?
To be able to fight to run
71
Why do muscles tense?
So the body is ready to react
72
Why does heart rate increase?
To increase oxygen supply
73
Why does breathing rate increase?
To increase oxygen intake
74
Why do pupils dilate?
Let more light in to see more
75
Why do we sweat?
To cool the body down
76
What is a strength of fight or flight?
- biological processes that can be objectively observed
77
What are weaknesses of fight or flight?
- freeze response
- gender differences as women do tend and befriend
- has a negative impact on health due to the release of cortisol
78
What is localisation of function?
There are specific parts of the brain associated with different function
79
What are the localised areas of the brain?
- motor cortex
- somatosensory cortex
- Wernicke’s area
- visual cortex
- auditory cortex
- Broca’s area
80
What is the motor cortex?
Responsible for generation of voluntary movements
81
Where is the motor cortex located?
- frontal lobe
- both hemispheres (contralateral)
82
What is the somatosensory cortex?
Detects and processes sensory events from different regions of the body
83
Where is the somatosensory cortex located?
- parietal lobe
- both hemispheres (contralateral)
84
What is the visual cortex?
Processes visual information from the retina via the optic nerve
85
Where is the visual cortex?
- occipital lobe
- both hemispheres (contralateral)
86
What is the auditory cortex?
Processes auditory information from the cochlea to the brain
87
Where is the auditory cortex located?
- temporal lobe
- both hemispheres (contralateral)
88
What is Broca’s area?
Concerned with speech production
89
Where is Broca’s area located?
- frontal lobe
- left hemisphere
90
What study supports Broca’s area?
Broca’s patient Tan revealed damage in Broca’s area and couldn’t say anything but Tan
91
What is Wernicke’s area?
Concerned with speech perception
92
Where is Wernicke’s area located?
- temporal lobe
- left hemisphere
93
What are strengths of localisation of function?
- different types of aphasia supports the idea of Broca’s and Wernicke’s are
- brain scans show evidence for different parts of the brain lighting up in response to different activities
94
What are weaknesses of localisation of function?
- Lashley contradicts as he found it was more important how much tissue was removed than what tissue was removed in affecting rats completion of a maze
- evidence for plasticity so other areas can take on others functions
95
What is hemispheric lateralisation?
The 2 hemispheres have specialised functions
96
What is the left hemisphere specialised for?
Language, speech production and logic
97
What is the right hemisphere specialised for?
Creativity, face recognition, drawing etc
98
What connects the 2 hemispheres?
- corpus callosum
- bundle of nerve fibres allowing them to communicate
99
What does contralateral mean?
The left hemisphere controls the right side of the body and the right hemisphere controls the left side of the body
100
What are strengths of hemispheric lateralisation?
- supporting research by Roger’s et al who showed chickens can find food and be aware of predators simultaneously
101
What are weaknesses of hemispheric lateralisation?
- isn’t prevalent at all stages of life as it starts to decrease at 25
- may have negative effects as a correlation has been found between left handed news and poor immune system functioning
102
What is the research into split brain?
Sperry et al
103
What was Sperry et al’s aim?
To test capabilities of separated hemispheres
104
What was Sperry et al’s procedure?
11 patients who had corpus callosum cut due to epilepsy and completed a series of tasks
105
What was the describing what you see task?
- objects in RVF only could be described
- showing the right hemisphere has no language production abilities
106
What was the drawing abilities task?
- pictures drawn by the left hand were better than the right
- showing the right hemisphere has the drawing abilities
107
What was Sperry et al’s conclusion?
- left hemisphere is responsible for speech and language
- right hemisphere is responsible for visual processing and drawing abilities
108
What are strengths of split brain research?
- scientific lab study
109
What are weaknesses of split brain research?
- oversimplifies brain function as plasticity occurs
- artificiality of the study
- used epilepsy patients who may have already had brain damage
110
What is plasticity?
The brain changing and adapting physically and functionally as a result of new experiences and learning
111
How does plasticity occur?
- changing synaptic connections which are the links between neurones when learning things
- synaptic pruning occurs which detects unused connections and strengthens frequently used ones
112
What was Maguire’s taxi study?
- brain scans show London taxi drivers have a larger than normal posterior hippocampus
- posterior hippocampus processes 2D spatial information (maps)
113
What is Boyke’s juggling study?
- 60 year olds learnt to juggle and it increased grey matter in visual cortex
- this was reduced when they stopped practicing
114
What are the strengths of plasticity?
- practical application to rewiring the brain after injuries
- studies such as Maguire’s use control groups to compare to
- research support from Kempermann et al who found there was an increase in neurones in rats when in a more complex environment
115
What are weaknesses of plasticity?
- negative plasticity e.g. phantom limb syndrome
116
What is functional recovery?
A form of plasticity where the brain recovers after damage by redistributing functions to healthy areas
117
How does the brain recover in functional recovery?
- axonal sprouting where new connections are formed
- recruitment of similar areas
- forming new blood vessels
- neuronal unmasking by increasing rate of input to dormant neurones
- stem cells which can specialise into nerve cells
118
What are strengths of functional recovery?
- research support from Tajikstan et al that found stem cells showed neuronal development
- real world application to neurorehabilitation of stroke patients
119
What are weaknesses of functional recovery?
- reduces with age so there are individual differences
- correlation between education level and better functional recovery
120
What are the 4 ways to study the brain?
- post morgen
- fMRI
- EEG
- ECG
121
What is a post mortem?
Examining and cutting open brains to look for abnormalities
122
What is an example of a post mortem?
Broca’s patient Tan revealed damage in Broca’s area in a post mortem
123
What are strengths of post mortem?
- allows for detailed examination down to microscopic level
124
What are weaknesses of post mortems?
- can’t be sure of the effects of brain damage as they are dead
- patients may not be able to give informed consent
125
What is an fMRI?
Measures brain activity by measuring oxygenated blood flow
126
What is an example of using fMRI’s?
Patient is asked to perform a range of tasks while hooked up to detect blood flow
127
What is the temporal resolution of fMRIs?
1-4s
128
What is the spatial resolution of fMRIs?
1-2mm
129
What are strengths of fMRIs?
- non invasive as it doesn’t require radiation
- high spatial resolution
130
What are weaknesses of fMRIs?
- not a direct measurement of neural activity
- low temporal resolution
131
What is an EEG?
Use of electrodes on the scalp that measures alpha, beta, delta and theta waves
132
What is an example of using an EEG?
Used as a diagnostic tool for epilepsy
133
What is the temporal resolution of EEGs?
1-10ms
134
What is the spatial resolution of EEGs?
Superficial regions only
135
What are strengths of EEGs?
- valuable in diagnosing epilepsy
- high temporal resolution
136
What are weaknesses of EEGs?
- cannot pin point exact areas of neural activity due to low spatial resolution
- only measures surface level brain activity
137
What is an ERP?
Use of electrodes to measure electrical activity in response to events or stimuli
138
What is the temporal resolution of an ERP?
1-10ms
139
What are spatial resolution of ERPs?
Superficial regions only
140
What are strengths of ERPs?
- more specific than EEGs
- high temporal resolution
141
What are weaknesses of ERPs?
- need lots of trials to get meaningful data
- only measures surface level brain activity
142
What is spatial resolution?
Quality of the picture
143
What is temporal resolution?
Time from neuron firing to display on the chart
144
What are biological rhythms?
Cyclical changes in the way organisms behave
145
What are 3 biological rhythms?
- infradian
- circadian
- ultradian
146
What governs biological rhythms?
Governed by bodies internal biological clocks (endogenous pacemakers)
147
What impacts endogenous pacemakers?
Changes in the environment (exogenous zeitgebers)
148
What is a circadian rhythm?
Biological rhythm that lasts 24 hours
149
What is are examples of a circadian rhythm?
- sleep wake cycle
- core body temperature
150
How is the sleep wake cycle a circadian rhythm?
- daylight (exogenous zeitgeber) alters feelings of alertness
- by the SCN (endogenous pacemaker) changing feelings of alertness in response to light
- by altering pineal glands release of melatonin
151
When do we experience dips of sleep?
2-4am and 1-3pm
152
How is core body temperature a circadian rhythm?
- lowest at around 36ºc at 4am
- highest at around 38ºc at 6pm
153
What was Siffre’s study?
- spent 6 months in a cave with no natural light
- repeated it when he was 60
- fund that natural light cues are vital for maintaining a 24 hour cycle as the sleep wake cycle did vary
154
What are weaknesses of Siffre’s study?
- he was his own participant
- artificial light may have been a confounding variable
155
What are strengths of circadian rhythms?
- practical application to drug treatments as there are times of the day where drugs will be most effective
156
What are weaknesses of circadian rhythms?
- research is inconsistent as often involves small groups
- studies often have poor control e.g. artificial light in Siffre’s study
- individual differences as sleep wake cycle can vary between 13-65 hours
157
What is an ultradian rhythm?
Biological rhythm that are les than 24 hours
158
What are examples of ultradian rhythms?
- 5 stages of sleep
- BRAC
159
What is stage 1/2 of the sleep wake cycle?
- light sleep
- alpha/fast wave
160
What is stage 3/4 of the sleep cycle?
- deep sleep
- delta/slow wave
161
What is stage 5 of the sleep cycle?
- REM
- body is paralysed and brain activity increases
- often correlated with dreaming
162
How long does the sleep cycle last?
90 minutes
163
What is BRAC?
- basic rest activity cycle
- periods of alertness followed by periods of rests
164
How long does BRAC last?
90 minutes
165
What support BRAC?
Students find it hard to concentrate for more than 90 minutes
166
What are strengths of ultradian rhythms?
- laboratory experiments
- practical application to improving sleep
167
What are weaknesses of ultradian rhythms?
- laboratory experiments
- individual differences in length of sleep cycles
168
What are infradian rhythms?
Biological rhythm that lasts more than 24 hours
169
What are examples of infradian rhythms?
- menstrual cycle
- SAD
170
How is the menstrual cycle an infradian rhythm?
- cycle of hormones determining ovulation and menstruation
- lasts about 28 days
171
How is SAD an infradian rhythm?
- seasonal affective disorder
- persistent low mood and lack of activity
- later sunrises and earlier sunsets means melatonin is secreted for a higher proportion of the day
- occurs in autumn/winter
172
What are strengths of infradian rhythms?
- real world application to night lights to mimic sunsets and rises
- research support as females mate preferences change during the menstrual cycle
173
What are weaknesses of infradian rhythms?
- incomplete as it is suggested pheromones has an effect on menstrual cycle so lacks detail on exogenous zeitgebers
174
What are endogenous pacemakers?
Internal body clocks that regulate biological rhythms
175
What is an example of an endogenous pacemaker?
Influence of SCN on sleep wake cycle
176
How is the SCN an endogenous pacemaker?
- main endogenous pacemaker in mammals
- located in the hypothalamus
- recieves information about light via optic nerve
- sends impulses to pineal gland to alter melatonin secretion
177
What was DeCoursey et al’s study?
- destroyed connections in SCN connections in chipmunks
- returned them to natural habitat
- sleep wake cycle disappeared so lots were killed by predators
- shows the importance of endogenous pacemakers
178
What are strengths of endogenous pacemakers?
- supporting research from DeCoursey et al
- research support from Morgan who bred hamsters to have 20 hour sleep cycles and transplanted their brain into normal hamsters who developed a 20 hour sleep cycle
179
What are weaknesses of endogenous pacemakers?
- dangers of disrupted rhythms e.g. teenagers use of phones at night leading to irregular sleep
- reductionist as it relies on external factors
180
What are exogenous zeitgebers?
External cues that affect/entrain biological rhythms
181
What are examples of exogenous zeitgebers?
- influence of light on sleep wake cycle
- social cues
182
How is light an example of an exogenous zeitgeber?
Receptors in the eye are sensitive to light and send impulses to the SCN to maintain a 24 hour cycle
183
How are social cues an example of an exogenous zeitgeber?
Things such as meal times and sleeping times can entrain circadian rhythms and can help to beat jet lag
184
What are strengths of exogenous zeitgebers?
- research support from Siffre
- real world application to jet lag
185
What are weaknesses of exogenous zeitgebers?
- in the arctic circle people experience 6 months of darkness and their sleep wake cycle couldn’t change
