unit 1 outcome 1 Flashcards
1
Q
what 2 parts does the nervous system consist of?
A
the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system
(+ neurons)
2
Q
what 2 parts does the peripheral nervous system consist of?
A
the autonomic nervous system and the somatic nervous system
3
Q
what 2 parts does the central nervous system consist of?
A
the brain and the spinal cord
4
Q
what 2 parts does the autonomic nervous system consist of?
A
the parasympathetic nervous system and the sympathetic nervous system
5
Q
what 2 parts does the somatic nervous system consist of?
A
motor neurons and sensory neurons
6
Q
what is the function of the central nervous system?
A
conveys messages to and from the brain and PNS
7
Q
describe the segments of the spinal cord
A
the upper section is responsible for communication between the brain and the upper body, and the lower section is responsible for lower body parts (legs, feet, toes etc.)
8
Q
what are the functions of the peripheral nervous system?
A
- to communicate information from the body’s organs to the CNS (from both outside world e.g. sensation on skin, and the inside world e.g. aches + pains)
- to communicate information from the CNS to the body’s organs, glands, and muscles via motor neurons
9
Q
what is the somatic nervous system responsible for?
A
voluntary movement of skeletal muscles
10
Q
what do motor neurons do?
A
communicate messages from the CNS to particular muscles that an organism intends to move
11
Q
what do sensory neurons do?
A
convey information from sensory receptors on skin to the brain
12
Q
how do motor and sensory neurons communicate?
A
through interneurons
13
Q
what is the autonomic nervous system responsible for?
A
- communicating information between CNS and the body’s non-skeletal muscles
- involuntary movement / control of vital functions (e.g. digestion and heartbeat)
14
Q
list the things that the autonomic nervous system controls the function of internal organs through
A
- muscles
- the skin
- blood vessels
- the eye
- the stomach
- the heart
- gastrointestinal tract
- gall bladder
- liver
- glands
- pancreas
- adrenal medulla
- sweat gland
15
Q
what does the sympathetic nervous system do?
A
operates when the body percieves itself to be in danger or stress, and readies the body for actions like running away, fighting, or freezing (fight, flight or freeze response)
16
Q
what does the parasympathetic nervous system do?
A
operates when the body is calm, responsible for maintaining automatic day to day bodily functions (breathing, heart rate, digestion)
17
Q
what is homeostasis?
A
regular bodily functioning (maintaining a normal heart rate, breathing rate, digestion etc.)
18
Q
what do neurons do?
A
recieve, process, and transmit information to eachother
19
Q
what are the 3 elements of a neuron?
A
- dendrites
- the soma
- the axon
20
Q
describe the look and function of dendrites
A
they look tree-like, and they recieve information from other neurons / sensory receptors via synapses and deliver this to the cell body / soma
21
Q
describe the function of the soma
A
it is the cell body, the largest part of a neuron, controls metabolism and maintainence of the cell
22
Q
describe the function of the axon
A
a nerve fibre that carries information as an elecritrical impulse from the soma to other cells in contact with the neuron.
23
Q
what happens when information is sent down the axon as electrical impulses?
A
the end of the axon secretes a chemical called a neurotransmitter
24
Q
what are glial cells and what do they do?
A
not part of the neuron, but support them.
- surround neurons and hold them in place
- supply nourishment and oxygen
- remove dead neurons
- insulate neurons and increase speed of tramsmission of nerve impulses by producing myelin (myelination)
25
what is myelin + what does it do?
Produced by glial cells, is a fatty substance that covers + insulates the axon from other neurons.
Myelinated neurons are faster in transmitting messages.
26
what disease destroys myelin and makes the conduction slow or stop in it's sufferers?
multiple sclerosis
27
what is a synapse?
the junction between two neurons where the end of the axon comes into close proximity with the receptor sites on the dendrites of a postsynaptic neuron
28
what is synaptic transmission?
the process of neurons communicating with other neurons.
29
what are the 3 main parts of the brain?
- hindbrain
- midbrain
- forebrain
30
what are the parts of the hindbrain?
- cerebellum
- medulla
- pons
31
what are the parts of the midbrain?
- reticular formation
32
what are the parts of the forebrain?
- hypothalamus
- thalamus
- cerebrum
33
what are the four lobes of the cerebral cortex?
- frontal lobe
- parietal lobe
- temporal lobe
- occipital lobe
34
what is in the frontal lobe?
the primary motor cortex
35
what is in the parietal lobe?
the primary somatosensory cortex
36
what is in the temporal lobe?
the primary auditory cortex
37
what is in the occipital lobe?
the primary visual cortex
38
what is the cerebral cortex?
the outer layer of the brain - higher mental processes and complex behaviours
39
what does the corpus callosum do?
connects the left and right hemispheres of the cerebral cortex
40
what are the parts of the limbic system?
- hippocampus
| - amygdala
41
what does the hippocampus do?
long term memory and spatial orientation
42
what does the amygdala do?
responsible for aggression, fear and emotional memory
43
what does the midbrain / reticular formation do?
coordinates movement, sleep and arousal
44
what does the spinal cord do?
relays information between the brain and the body
45
what part of the brain is the forebrain?
upper level structures
46
what does the hypothalamus do?
regulates emotions and instinctive drives
47
what does the pons do?
controls movement, breathing, sleeping, dreams and waking
48
what does the cerebellum do?
perception and cognition, balance and fine muscle control
49
what does the medulla do?
heartbeat, breathing and other vital bodily functions
50
what is the cerebrum?
biggest part of the forebrain, divided into left and right cerebral hemispheres
51
where is the frontal lobe?
the front of the brain
52
where is the parietal lobe?
middle of the brain, behind frontal lobe
53
where is the occipital lobe?
back of the brain, behind the parietal lobe
54
where is the temporal lobe?
underneath of the brain, under the frontal and parietal lobe
55
where are the left and right hemispheres of the brain?
left and right divided down middle of the brain from birds eye view
56
what is the frontal lobe responsible for?
- body movement
- language
- planning
- judgement
- problem solving
- personality
- emotional regulation
57
what is the parietal lobe responsible for?
recieves sensations from the body
- touch
- pressure
- temperature
- pain
58
what is the temporal lobe responsible for?
- hearing
- language
- visual recognition
59
what is the occipital lobe responsible for?
vision
60
what is contralateral organisation?
the left primary motor cortex controls the right side of the body + vice versa
(if the right primary motor cortex is damaged, the person will be unable to move the left side of their body)
61
what is it called when the one side of the primary motor cortex controls the opposite side of the body
contralateral organisation
62
where is the thalamus located and what does it do?
Located beneath cerebral cortex, divided into two egg shaped parts, one in each hemisphere.
Receives information from the ears, eyes, skin + other sensory organs (not nose).
63
what is the role of the cerebral cortex? + and example
- enables us to plan and carry out a series of body movements and use words to make conversation
(ranges from simple tasks like making toast to complex tasks like building and construction)
- allows us to detect the difference in pieces of information, to understand and think in abstract ways
64
what parts of the body require more motor neurons for activity?
- hands
- fingers
- lips
65
what parts of the body require less motor neurons for activity?
- neck
- hip
- wrist
- face
66
what is hemispheric specialisation?
each hemisphere in the brain being specialised to perform particular functions, also called lateralisation of a hemisphere
67
what are some examples of hemispheric specialisation?
the left hemisphere controls language and mathematical calculation
the right hemisphere controls types of spatial and visual processing
68
what is plasticity?
the way the brain and synaptic connections change in response to stimulation from the environment
69
what is developmental plasticity?
development and consolidation of neural pathways in babies, children, and adolescents.
an infant / child's brain will have more plasticity than an adults.
70
what is adaptive plasticity?
changes in synapses throughout life as learning takes place
| enables older brains to be modified through experience / learning
71
what are the five stages of neural development?
1. proliferation
2. migration
3. circuit formation
4. synaptic pruning
5. myelination
72
what is proliferation?
the process where an unborn baby's cells (that will become neurons) divide and multiply at a rate of approximately 250,000 cells per minute
73
what is migration?
newly formed neurons moving toward their destined location, determined by where it is at the time of formation
74
what is circuit formation?
occurs when the axons of new neurons grow to target cells, and form synapses with them
(e.g. axons for motor neurons grow to the spinal cord)
75
what is synaptic pruning?
the elimination of excess neurons and synapses (those that have not established a connection with a neighbouring cell)
76
what is myelination?
process where the axons of the neurons become insulated by myelin
77
what is synaptogenesis?
the process of forming new synapses between neurons
78
what parts of the brain change during adolescence?
- cerebellum
- amygdala
- corpus callosum
- frontal lobe
79
how does the cerebellum change during adolescence?
increase in the number of neurons and synapses
(parts of the brain responsible for balance + muscle tone which could be why some teenagers are more physically uncoordinated)
80
how does the amygdala change during adolescence?
becomes more active
81
how does the corpus callosum change during adolescence?
thickens, increase in number of connections / nerve fibres between two hemispheres
82
how does the frontal lobe change during adolescence?
motor movement and higher order thinking
83
what are sensitive periods?
certain stages in development that are the best times for a developing individual to learn specific things
(as children and adolescents grow and their brains become less plastic + neural pathways become more set)
84
where is wernicke's aera located and what is it's role?
located in the temporal lobe, important for comprehension of speech and language
85
were is broca's area located and what is it's role?
located in the back part of the frontal lobe, important for speech and grammar
86
who was phineas gage + what happened to him?
a railway worker in 1848, was involved in a workplace accident that resulted in a metal rod going through his left cheekbone and the top of his skull.
he survived and was able to speak because the motor cortex and broca's area were not affected.
he was left with permanent brain damage and went from calm and responsible man, to an impulsive, irresponsible man incapable of making good judgements.
87
what are some common head injuries that can cause brain damage?
- stroke
- anoxia (lack of oxygen)
- concussion
88
what is the effect of a concussion?
amnesia + inability to remember events that take place before and after the injury
89
what is aphasia?
an impairment of language caused by damage to the brain
90
what can aphasia affect in a person?
| what does it NOT affect?
- talking
- reading
- writing
- understanding others
- relationships
- self identity
- DOSENT affect intelligence
91
what are the two types of aphasia?
broca's aphasia and wernicke's aphasia
92
how is broca's aphasia caused?
damage to an area in the left FRONTAL lobe
93
how is wernicke's aphasia caused?
damage to an area in the left TEMPORAL lobe
94
what are the characteristics of broca's aphasia?
- non fluent speech + pauses between words
- loss of the ability to recall names (anomia)
- articulation difficulties
- speech lacks grammar
- difficulty writing
- mild comprehension difficulties
95
what are the characteristics of wernicke's aphasia?
- speech is fluent
- loss of ability to recall names
- meaningless / nonsense words used
- difficulty understanding written and spoken language
- difficulty producing writing and speech that makes sense
96
what is spatial neglect?
a disorder in which the person systematically ignores stimuli on one side of their body
97
where would the damage be if a person ignored stimuli on the left side of their body? (spatial neglect)
the damage would be in the rear of their right parietal lobe
98
do most sufferers of spatial neglect know they have it?
no
99
what are some examples of what a sufferer of spatial neglect might do?
- only draw one side of a picture
- not notice people on one side
- shaving / applying makeup to only one side
100
what is parkinson's disease?
a dopamine deficiency in the central nervous system that affects movement
101
what are the motor symptoms of parkinson's disease?
- slowness of movement
- rigidity
- involuntary tremor of hands, arms, feet, legs, jaw, or head
102
what are the non motor symptoms of parkinson's disease when there is a significant drop in dopamine levels?
- pain
- depression
- dementia
- difficulty sleeping
103
what are the possible / theoretical causes for parkinson's diease?
(+ proof)
- genetics
- environmental factors (pesticide causes parkinson's disease in rats)
- drugs and diet (caffeine decreases risk, vitamin b deficiency is a link)
104
what are the treatments for parkinson's disease?
- medicaton that increases dopamine levels
- diet / rehabilitation
- deep brain stimulation
- medication for non motor symptoms
- stem cell treatment
- gene therapy
105
is parkinson's disease fatal?
no
