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Psyc 101 Flash Cards > Chapter 2 > Flashcards

Chapter 2 Flashcards

(55 cards)

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1
Q

What is Neuroplasticity?

A

The brain changes throughout life by reorganizing
after damage or by building new pathways based on
experience.
New neural pathways reflect personal experiences.
The human brain is designed to change.

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1
Q

True or False: Everything Psychological is Biological

A

True

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2
Q

What are Neurons?

A

The elementary components of the nervous
system—the body’s speedy electrochemical system.

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3
Q

A neuron receives signals through branching _______ and
sends signals through its ________

A
  1. Dendrites
  2. Axons
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4
Q

Some axons are encased in a _________, which enables.
faster transmission of the signal.

A

myelin sheath

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5
Q

________ provide myelin and support, nourish, and protect neurons. They also play a role in thinking and learning.

A

Glial cells

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6
Q

True or false
If a combined signal received by a neuron exceeds a
minimum threshold, the neuron fires, transmitting an electrical
impulse down its axon through a chemical-to-electricity
process.

A

True

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7
Q

True or false; The neuron’s reaction is an all or none process.

A

True

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8
Q

Neurotransmitter Acetylcholine (ACh) affects

A

muscle action, learning,
and memory

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9
Q

Neurotransmitter endorphins are natural _______ released in response
to pain and exercise

A

opiates

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10
Q

Neurotransmitter Dopamine

A

Influences movement, learning,
attention, and emotion

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11
Q

Neurotransmitter Seratonin

A

Affects mood, hunger, sleep, and
arousal
Undersupply linked to depression.

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12
Q

Neurotransmitter Norepinephrine (adrenaline)

A

Helps control alertness and
arousal
Undersupply can depress mood.

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13
Q

GABA (gamma-aminobutyric
acid)

A

A major inhibitory neurotransmitter Undersupply linked to seizures,
tremors, and insomnia.

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14
Q

Glutamate

A

A major excitatory
neurotransmitter; involved in
memory
Oversupply can overstimulate the
brain, producing migraines or
seizures.

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15
Q

Endorphins

A

Neurotransmitters that influence
the perception of pain or pleasure
Oversupply with opiate drugs
can suppress the body’s natural
endorphin supply.

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16
Q

Agonist

A

Agonist: Molecule that increases a
neurotransmitter’s action
(example LSD and Seratonin, Morphine and endorphins)

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17
Q

Antagonist:

A

Molecule that inhibits or blocks a
neurotransmitter’s action
(example nalaxone for opiod receptor)

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18
Q

Central nervous system (CNS)

A

 The brain and the spinal cord are the body’s decision makers

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19
Q

Peripheral Nervous System

A

Sensory and motor neurons connect the CNS to the rest of
the body for gathering and transmitting information

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20
Q

Sensory neurons

A

Carry messages from the body’s tissues and sensory
receptors inward to the spinal cord and brain for processing

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21
Q

Motor neurons

A

Carry instructions from the central nervous system out to the
body’s muscles

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22
Q

Interneurons within the brain and spinal cord

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A

Communicate with one another and process information
between the sensory input and the motor output

23
Q

Sympathetic
subdivision:

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A

arouses
and expends energy
and enables voluntary
control of skeletal
muscles.

24
Parasympathetic subdivision
calms and conserves energy, allowing routine maintenance activity, and controls involuntary muscles and glands
25
True or False: The brain accounts for 2 percent of body weight and uses 20 percent of the body’s energy
True
26
The adult brain has approximately __ billion neurons.
86 billion
27
Endocrine system:
A set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream
28
The pituitary is the
master gland that influences hormone release by other glands, including the adrenal glands
29
In an intricate feedback system, the brain’s _________ influences the pituitary gland, which influences other glands that release hormones and influence the brain.
Hypothalamus
30
EEG (Electroencephalogram)
Electrodes placed on the scalp measure electrical activity in neurons. Symptoms of depression and anxiety correlate with increased activity in the right frontal lobe, a brain area associated with behavioral withdrawal and negative emotion (Thibodeau et al., 2006).
31
MEG (Magnetoencephalography)
A head coil records magnetic fields from the brain’s natural electrical currents. Soldiers with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), compared with soldiers who do not have PTSD, show stronger magnetic fields in the visual cortex when they view trauma-related images (Todd et al., 2015).
32
Positron emission tomography (PET)
Tracks where in the brain a temporarily radioactive form of glucose goes while the person given it performs a task. Monkeys with an anxious temperament have brains that use more glucose in regions related to fear, memory, and expectations of reward and punishment (Fox et al., 2015).
33
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
People sit or lie down in a chamber that uses magnetic fields and radio waves to provide a map of brain structure. People with a history of violence tend to have smaller frontal lobes, especially in regions that aid moral judgment and self-control (Glenn & Raine, 2014).
34
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
Measures blood flow to brain regions by comparing continuous MRI scans. Years after surviving a near plane crash, passengers who viewed material related to their trauma showed greater activation in the brain’s fear, memory, and visual centers than when they watched footage related to the 9/11 terrorist attacks (Palombo et al., 2015).
35
Medulla:
Located at the base of the brainstem; controls heartbeat and breathing
36
Pons:
Sits above the medulla and helps coordinate movement
37
Thalamus
The area at the top of the brainstem Directs sensory messages to the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla influences multitasking
38
Reticular formation
 A nerve network running through the brainstem and thalamus  Plays an important role in controlling arousal
39
The Cerebellum
Aids in judgment of time, sound and texture discrimination, and emotional control  Coordinates voluntary movement and life- sustaining functions  Helps process and store information outside of awareness
40
The Limbic System
sits between the brain’s older parts and its cerebral hemispheres  Neural centers include the hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus  Is linked to emotions, memory, and drives  Controls the nearby pituitary gland
41
Amygdala
 Two lima bean–sized neural clusters in the limbic system  Linked to emotion
42
Hypothalamus
 Neural structure lying below the thalamus  Directs several maintenance activities  Helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland and is linked to emotion and reward
43
Hippocampus
 Processes conscious, explicit memories  Decreases in size and function with age
44
The Cerebral Cortex
Two hemispheres * Each hemisphere has four lobes: frontal, parietal, occipital, and temporal
45
Motor cortex
 Fritsch and Hitzig: Discovered the motor cortex at the rear of the frontal lobes  Foerster and Penfield: Mapped the motor cortex; discovered that body areas requiring precise control (e.g., fingers, mouth) occupied the largest part of the cortical space
46
Function in the cortex: Sensory functions
 The somatosensory cortex processes information from skin senses and body part movement.
47
The visual cortex of the occipital lobes,
located at the rear of the brain, receives input from your eyes.
48
The auditory cortex of the temporal lobes,
located above the ears, receives information from the ears.
49
Constraint-induced therapy
aims to rewire the brain and improve the dexterity of brain- damaged people.  Blindness or deafness makes unused brain areas available for other uses
50
Split-brain hemisphere
Hemispheres are isolated by cutting the fibers (mainly those of the corpus callosum) connecting them
51
Intact brain
Data received by either hemisphere are quickly transmitted to the other side across the corpus callosum.
52
Severed corpus callosum brain 
This information sharing does not take place
53
The left hemisphere
is good at making quick, exact interpretations of language. (Left hemisphere controls the right side of the body)
54
The right hemisphere
excels in making inferences, modulating speech, and facilitating self-awareness (controls the left side of the body)

Psyc 101 Flash Cards (4 decks)

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