Biopsychology Flashcards

(99 cards)

1
Q

What are the divisions of the nervous system

A

CNS
PNS- Somatic Nervous System
- Autonomic nervous system- sympathetic, parasympathetic

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2
Q

What makes up the cns?

A

the brain and the spinal cord

The brain has two hemispheres and cerebral cortex

The spinal cord is responsible for reflex actions

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3
Q

What does the peripheral ns do?

A

transmits messages to and from the CNS

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4
Q

What is the role of the somatic NS

A

controls muscle movement

received info from sensory receptors

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5
Q

what is the role of the autonomous NS?

A

governs vital functions in the body, such as breathing, heart rate, digestion

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6
Q

Name 7 glands in the endocrine system

A
Hypothalamus 
Pituitary 
Thyroid 
Adrenals 
Pancreas 
Ovaries 
Testes
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7
Q

What is the role of the pituitary gland?

A

It is located in the brain

Controls the release of hormones from all other endocrine glands in the body

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8
Q

What hormone does the thyroid gland produce?

A

Thyroxine

This affects the cells in the heart, and increase metabolic rates, affecting growth rates

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9
Q

Name a hormone the adrenal gland produces

A

Adrenaline
Part of the bodies immediate stress response system
strong effect on the cells of the cardiovascular system
part of the fight or flight response

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10
Q

Describe the fight or flight response

A

stressor - hypothalamus triggers activity in the sympathetic branch - adrenaline realised from adrenal medulla- physiological changes - parasympathetic returns body to resting state

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11
Q

describe a sensory neuron

A

carries messages from pns to cns
long dendrites
short axons

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12
Q

describe a relay neuron

A

connects sensory neurons to motor neurons

short dendrites
short axons

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13
Q

describe a motor neuron

A

connects cns to muscles and glands

short dendrites
long axons

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14
Q

how big can neurons be?

A

a mm to a metre long

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15
Q

what makes up a neuron?

A

soma (cell body)- has a nucleus
dendrites carry impulses towards cell body
axons carry impulses away
myelin sheath protects axon and speeds up impulse
nodes of ranvier - gaps in the myelin sheath, , speeds up impulse
terminal buttons- communicate with next neuron in the chain across a synapse

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16
Q

what is action potential

A

when a neuron is activated by a stimulus, the inside of the cell becomes positively charged for a split second causing an action potential

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17
Q

What is a synapse

A

the gap between two neurones

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18
Q

how are signals between neuroma transmitter compared with inside neurons

A

chemically by synaptic transmission, electrically within the neuron

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19
Q

what happens when an electrical impulse reaches the end of the neuron (presymaptic terminal)

A

triggers the release of neurotransmitter from synaptic vesicles which leave the presynaptic nerve terminal and is taken up by the post synaptic receptor sites

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20
Q

give an example of a neurotransmitter

A

serotonin

acetylcholine- found where a motor neuron meets a muscle, on its realise , muscles contract

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21
Q

what is meant by excitatory and inhibitory

A

excitation- when a neurotransmitter increases the positive charge of the post synaptic neuron

inhibition- when a neurotransmitter makes the charge more negative

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22
Q

What is localisation of function in the brain?

A

the theory that different areas of the brain are responsible for different behaviours

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23
Q

what is the outer layer is the hemispheres called?

A

cerebral cortex

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24
Q

what is the motor area

A

voluntary movement in opposite sides of the body

back of frontal lobe

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25
what is the somatosensory area
sensory info from skin is represented separated from motor area by the central sulcus front of parietal lobe
26
what is the visual area?
each eye sends info from eight visual field to left visual cortex and vice versa, damage to left hemisphere can produce blindness in parts of the right visual field in both eyes occipital lobe
27
where are the language areas of the brain restricted to?
the left side
28
what is broca’s area
left frontal lobe responsible for speech production damage caused Broca’s aphasia, such as patient Tan
29
What is Wernicke’s area?
Left temporal lobe Responsible for language comprehension
30
Evaluation of localisation if function in the brain Brain scan evidence What did Petersen et al (1988) find?
Used brain scans showed how Wernickes area was active during listening tasks Broca’s area active during a reading task
31
Evaluation of localisation if function in the brain Brain scan evidence What is Tulving et al (1994) find?
Revealed that semantic and episodic emperors are in different areas of the pre-frontal cortex
32
Evaluation of localisation if function in the brain Neurosurgical evidence What did Freeman do?
developed lobotomy (1950s) severing connections in frontal lobe to control aggressive behaviours
33
Evaluation of localisation if function in the brain Neurosurgical evidence What is Dougherty et al (2004) find?
44 OCD patients underwent a cingulotomy after 32 weeks- 1/3 met criteria for a successful response, 14% for a partial response
34
Evaluation of localisation if function in the brain Case study evidence Who was Phineas Gage?
in 1848, a metre length pole went through his head , taking a portion of his brain (left frontal lobe) turned quick tempered and rude
35
Evaluation of localisation if function in the brain Evidence against what did Lashley find?
removed different areas (10-50%) if the cortex in rats that were learning a maze no area was proven to be any kore important learning apeared to require every part of the cortex
36
what is plasticity?
the brains tendency to change and adapt as a result of learning and experience
37
what is functional recovery?
following damage, the brains ability to redistribute or transfer functions
38
what is synaptic pruning?
synaptic connections peak at 15,000 at age 2-3 rarely used connections are deleted and frequently used ones are strengthened
39
Plasticity What did Maguire et al (2000) research and find?
London taxi drivers brains have significantly more grey matter on the posterior hippocampus (the development of spatial and navigational skills)
40
Plasticity What did Draganski et al (2006) find?
images brains of medical students 3 months before and after final exams learning-induced changes occyred in posterior hippocampus and parietal cortex
41
Plasticity What did Mechelli et al (2004) find?
Larger parietal cortex in bilingual people
42
What is spontaneous recovery?
functional recovery occurring quickly after trauma slows down after a few weeks
43
how does functional recovery work?
new synaptic connections are made , secondary neural pathways are activated to enable functioning
44
Functional recovery What changes in the brain?
axonal sprouting - growth of new nerve endings reformation of blood vessels recruitment of homologous areas
45
Evaluation of plasticity and functional recovery practical application what did research contribute to?
Neurorehabilitation - use of movement therapy and electrical stimulation of the brain
46
Evaluation of plasticity and functional recovery Negative plasticity What is negative about plasticity ?
60-80% of amputees develop phantom limb syndrome - due to cortical reorganisation in somatosensory cortex
47
Evaluation of plasticity and functional recovery Age and Plasticity What did Bezzola et al (2012) find?
40 hours of gold training caused nerve changes in the neural representation of movement in the participants ages 40-60 using fMRI researchers observed reduced motor cortex activity in novice golfers
48
Evaluation of plasticity and functional recovery Cognitive research What did Schneider at al (2014) research?
the more time brian injury patients spend in education, the greater chance of a disability free recovery 2/5 of patients who achieved DFR has more than 16 years of education, compared to 10% of less than 12 years
49
what is split brain research?
a series of studies involving epileptic patients who had experienced a surgical separation of the hemispheres
50
what is hemispheric lateralisation?
the idea that 2 halves of the brains are fundamentally different and that certain mental processes and behaviours are mainly controlled by one hemisphere rather than the other
51
What did Sperry (1968) research?
Split- brain studies | Corpus callousness cut to control frequent and severe seizures
52
What was the procedure of Sperrys studies?
image projected into a patients right visual field and another of the left
53
What was the findings of Sperrys studies?
Lack of language centres in the right hemisphere meant that only a picture shown in the right visual field they could describe able to select a matching object with left hand but now able to say it
54
Evaluation of split brain research
Demonstrated lateralised brian functions - left the analyser, right the synthesiser strengths of methodology - standardised and well controlled theoretical basis - promoted debate about 2 hemispheres in everyday functioning , Pucetti- two minds Generalised
55
WAYS OF INVESTIGATING THE BRAIN What is fMRI?
3D images and detects changes in blood oxygenation and flow that occur due to neural activity shows which part of the brain are involved in mental processes
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WAYS OF INVESTIGATING THE BRAIN what is an EEG?
measures electrical activity in the brain via electrodes unusual arrhythmic patterns of activity may indicate neurological abnormalities , eg epilepsy
57
WAYS OF INVESTIGATING THE BRAIN What is an ERP?
ERPs use statistical averaging techniques , and all extraneous brain actitovy from an EEG is filtered out
58
What are event related potentials?
types of brain waves that are triggered by particular events
59
WAYS OF INVESTIGATING THE BRAIN What are post-mortem examinations?
looking at the brain after death of people with rare disorders and compares with a neurotypical brain
60
What are the strengths of an fMRI?
doesn’t rely on radiation non invasive high spatial resolution
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What are the weaknesses of an fMRI?
expensive person has to stay still poor temporal resolution only measures blood flow
62
What are the strengths of EEG?
invaluable diagnosis of epilepsy contributed to a better understanding of sleep high temporal resolution
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What are the weaknesses of EEG?
generalised info low spatial resolution
64
What are the strengths of ERPs?
temporal resolution Been able to identity many ERPs and describe precise role in cognitive functioning
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what are the weaknesses of ERPs ?
lack of standardisation difficult to completely eliminate extraneous variables
66
What are the strengths of post mortems?
vital in providing a foundation for early understanding of key processes, (broca and wernicke) improve medical knowledge
67
what are the weaknesses of post-mortems?
correlation ≠ causation ethical issues of informed consent
68
What is a biological rhythm?
distinct patterns of changes in body activity that conform to cyclical time periods
69
What are circadian rhythms?
24 hours cycles regulates a number of body processes, such as the sleep/wake cycle
70
What are biological rhythms governed by?
endogenous pacemakers exogenous zeitgebers
71
What was Siffre’s cave study?
2 months in a cave deprived of natural light and sound resurfaced in mid-september but believed it to be mid- august his free running biological rhythm settled down to just beyond 24 hours
72
What was Aschoff and Wever’s study?
participants spent 4 weeks in a WW2 bunker all but one participant displayed a circadian rhythm of between 24 and 25 hours
73
What was Folkard et als study?
12 people in a dark cave for 3 weeks researchers sped up the clocks for a 24 hour day was now 22 hours only one participant was able to keep up
74
Evaluation of circadian rhythms Practical application shift work
Night workers concentration reduced around 6am shiftwork and poor health- 3x more likely to develop heart disease May have economic implications on managing workers productivity
75
Evaluation of circadian rhythms Practical application - drug treatments
effect on pharmacokinetics (the action of drugs on the body and how well they are absorbed) research revealed how they are peak times when drugs will be more effective led to development of guidelines to do with timing and drug dosing
76
Evaluation of circadian rhythms Use of case studies/ small samples
not representative Siffre re-did his cave study aged 60, found his internal clock ticked much more slowly
77
evaluation of circadian rhythms individual differences
Duffey et al- revealed some people have a preference to go to bed early and wake up early (larks) and the opposite (owls) Czeisler et al- individual cycles can vary from 13-65 hours
78
What is an infradian rhythm?
a type of biological rhythm frequency of less than one cycle every 24 hours eg menstrual cycle
79
What is an ultradian rhythm?
frequency of more than one cycle in 24 hours eg stages of sleep
80
What is the menstrual cycle?
28 days oestrogen releases an egg progesterone makes womb lining thicker
81
What did Stern and McClintock find and study?
synchronisation due to pheromones 29 women, 9 samples taken from different stages of the cycle 68% experienced changes which bought them closer to the odour donor
82
What is SAD
seasonal affective disorder depression circannual
83
What causes SAD?
the pineal gland secretes melatonin until an increase in light, in winter, less light in mornings so secretion of melatonin for longer, inhibits serotonin production
84
What are the stages of sleep?
stage 1+2 : light sleep, easily woken, alpha and theta waves stage 3+4: delta waves, deep sleep stage 5 + REM: body is paralysed, rapid eye movement, brian activity speeds up, dreaming
85
Infradian and ultradian rhythms evaluation Evolutionary basis of menstural cycle
pregnant same time, newborns cared for collectively, greater chance of survival however Schank argued if too many cycles together, produce competition for highest quality male so evolutionary disadvantage
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infradian and ultradian rhythms evaluation methodological limitations in synchronising studies
too many factors affect cycles - stress, diet small samples any patterned is no more than what would have been expected by chance
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infradian and ultradian rhythms evaluation evidence supports idea of distinct stages of sleep
Dement and Kleitman- sleep patterns of 9 p.s , REM correlates with dreaming and brain activity varied to how vivid dreams were replications found similar findings
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infradian and dan ultradian rhythms evaluation Practical application: SAD
phototherapy stimulates very strong light in morning reseats melatonin levels 60% of sufferers symptoms relieved
89
What is the suprachiasmatic nucleus?
an endogenous pacemaker bundle of nerve cells in hypothalamus sits about optic chiasm receives info about light
90
Shat did DeCoursey study and find?
destroyed SCN connections in 30 chipmunks sleep/ wake cycle disappeared significant proportioned killed by predators
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What did Ralph et al find and study?
hamsters with 20 hour cycle when SCN cells from them were transplanted into normal hamsters, these hamsters defaulted to 20 hours
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What is the pineal gland?
during night, pineal gland increases production of melatonin , which is the hormone that induced sleep
93
What did Campbell and Murphy study and find?
light may be detected by skin receptor sites on body 15 participants woken up during sleep with light pads shone on the back of knees
94
What are social cues?
an exogenous zeitgeber by 16 weeks old, babies are entrained adult determined mealtimes and bedtimes
95
How can someone beat jet lag?
adapting to local times for eating and sleeping, entrains circadian rhythms
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EVALUATION OF ENDOGENOUS PACEMAKERS AND EXOGENOUS ZEITGEBERS Beyond the master clock
Peripheral oscillators found in adrenal glands, lungs, skin highly influenced by SCN but can act independently
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EVALUATION OF ENDOGENOUS PACEMAKERS AND EXOGENOUS ZEITGEBERS Damiola et al
changing feeding patterns in mice can alter circadian rhythms of liver cells by up to 12 hours
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EVALUATION OF ENDOGENOUS PACEMAKERS AND EXOGENOUS ZEITGEBERS Ethics in animal studies
animals exposed to harm
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EVALUATION OF ENDOGENOUS PACEMAKERS AND EXOGENOUS ZEITGEBERS Influence of exogenous zeitgebers may be over stated
Miles et al: blind man with a circadian rhythm of 24.9 hours despite expire to social cues , his sleep/wake cycle could not be adjusted