u3v1 Flashcards
(25 cards)
antagonists
decreasea neurotransmitter’s action by blocking production or release, such as a molecule that inhibits or blocks a neurotransmitter’s action.
motor (efferent) neurons
carry instructions from the central nervous system outward to the body’s muscles and glands
central nervous system
The brain and spinal cord
and body’s decision maker
sensory (afferent) neurons
carry messages from the body’s tissues and sensory receptors inward to the brain and spinal cord for processing.
Inward=afferent
endocrine system
the body’s “slow” chemical communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream.
synapse
the meeting point between neurons
blindsight
a condition in which a person can respond to a visual stimulus without consciously experiencing it
consciousness
our subjective awareness of ourselves and our environment
threshold
minimum intensity of thee excitatory signals exceeding the inhibitory signals. If this happens the combined signals trigger an action potential
plasticity
the brain’s ability to change, especially during childhood, by reorganizing after damage or by building new pathways based on experience
cognitive neuroscience
the interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition
autonomic nervous system
the part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organ
parasympathetic nervous system
the division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy
peripheral nervous system
the sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system (CNS) to the rest of the body, responsible for gathering information and for transmitting CNS decisions to other body parts
endorphins
natural, opiate-like neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure
dual processing
the principle that information is often simultaneously processed on separate conscious and unconscious tracks
neurogenesis
the formation of new neurons
hormones
chemical messengers that travel through the bloodstream, and affect other tissues
myelin sheath
a layer of fatty tissue that insulates axons and speeds their impulses LIKE ELECTRICAL WIRES
cell body
The cell’s life support center (in neurons)
dendrites
Parts of neurons that receive and integrate info
reflex
our automatic responses to stimuli
refractory period
time when subsequent action potentials cannot occur until the axon returns to its resting state
axon
Parts of neurons that pass the message through its terminal branches to other neurons, muscles, and glllllllllands
