Brain Functions Flashcards
What is the action potential?
All-or-nothing electrical current that is conducted down the axon when the potential reaches the threshold
What is the axon?
Extends off the soma, main output of the neuron
What is the brain stem?
“Trunk” of the brain comprised of the medulla, pons, midbrain, and diencephalon
This is in charge of a wide array of “life support functions” breathing, digestion, and beating the heart
What is Broca’s area?
Frontal lobe of the left hemisphere, implicated in language production
What is the Central Nervous System?
Includes the brain and the spinal cord, has the parts that are mostly responsible for sensory processing
What is the cerebellum?
Structure at the back of the brain, “small brain” (big circle lump in the picture), involved in movement and posture
What is the cerebrum?
In charge of the processes that associated with awareness and voluntary control such as speaking or planning (seeing, hearing, feeling, and moving), cerebral cortex
What is the limbic system?
Collection of specialized neurons that sit at top of brain stem, involved in regulating emotions
(In pictures it is the little dot in the center above the brain stem and next to the cerebellum)
What is the nervous system?
The body’s communication network that consists of all nerve cells (central nervous system and peripheral nervous system)
What are neurons?
Fundamental building blocks that make up the brain (100 billion of them)
What are synapses?
The contact points of neurons
What are dendrites?
Receive information from other neurons
What is the soma?
Information from dendrites is channeled here (also called the cell body) builds up electro-chemical signal
What is the myelin-sheath?
The protective coating covering the axon to help speed up the cell-to-cell communication
What is the synaptic gap?
The space between neurons
What are neurotransmitters?
Tiny packets of chemicals that travel from one neuron to another, and enabling communication between them
What are sensory neurons?
Communication from the environment to the CNS
What are motor neurons?
Communicate info from the CNS to the muscles
What are interneurons?
Communicate info from one neuron to another
What is contralateral?
“Opposite side,” the two hemispheres of the brain process sensory information and motor commands for the opposite side of the body
What is the corpus callosum?
The part of the brain that allows the left and right hemispheres to share information with each other
What is split-brain?
Had all or most of the corpus callosum severed
If given picture on right patient can say I see the car key and draw with right hand
If given picture on left patient can see nothing and draw with left hand
What part of the brain is involved in language and what part with motor skills?
Language is associated with the left side and that art of drawing is associated with the right side
What is the occipital lobe?
Houses the visual aspect (located at the back of cerebral cortex, smallest lobe)
