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| Question | Answer |
| 1. Biological Psychologists | They study physiological causes of behavior |
| 2. Neurons | Specialized nerve cells in the brain & nervous system |
| 3. Sensory (afferent) neurons | These neurons carry information about the senses, so they bring information from the eyes, ears, etc., as well as from within the body like the stomach |
| 4. Motor Neurons (efferent) | Neurons that carry information from the central nervous system to the muscles |
| 5. Interneurons | Neuron that transmits impulses between other neurons |
| 6. Mirror Neurons | A type of brain cell that fires when you do an action, and also when you simply watch someone else doing the same action |
| 7. Soma (cell body) | Contains the nucleus of the cell |
| 8. Axon | Transmits electrical impulses from the soma to other neurons, or glands, or muscles |
| 9. Axon Terminals | Conducts electrical signals to a nerve synapse. The signal then moves across the synapse to another axon by means of a neurotransmitter |
| 10. Dendrites | Receive neural impulses (electrical and chemical signals) from the axons of other neurons |
| 11. Myelin Sheath | Fatty layer that protects axon, and speeds up the transmission of messages |
| 12. Action Potential | Occurs when a neuron sends information down an axon, away from the cell body. |
| 13. "All or none principle" | The All-or-None Law states that the physical reaction of a nerve or muscle to an outside stimulus will be the same regardless of the comparative strength of the stimulus; there's either a complete response or no response at all |
| 14. Resting Potential | Resting potential refers to the polarization of cellular fluid within a neuron that provides the potential to produce an action |
| 15. Threshold | The change in a stimulus that is detectably different 50% of the time. |
| 16. Synapse (synaptic gap) | The gap between nerve cells |
| 17. Neurotransmitters | Chemicals released by neurons which carry information from one neuron to another |
| 18. Excitatory Neurotransmitters | They “rev” up the neuron, increasing the chances it will fire off an action potential |
| 19. Inhibitory Neurotransmitters | They “chill” neurons out, by decreasing the likelihood that the neuron will jump into action |
| 20. Reuptake | When neurotransmitters "pop out" of the neuron after exciting or inhibiting the neuron's trigger |
| 21. Acetylcholine (Ach) | Enables muscle action, and influences learning and memory |
| 22. Dopamine | Associated with learning, movement, and pleasurable emotions |
| 23. Serotonin | Affects your mood, hunger, and sleep |
| 24. Gamma Aminobutyric Acid (GABA) | Contributes to motor control and vision |
| 25. Endorphins | Involved in pain reduction, and pleasure |
| 26. Central Nervous System | The brain and spinal cord |
| 27. Peripheral Nervous System | Somatic Nervous System- connects the brain and spinal cord to the voluntary muscle system Autonomic- controls the muscles that move involuntarily, like the eyes, the heart, and the intestines |
| 28. Sympathetic Nervous System | "Fight or Flight" response |
| 29. Parasympathetic Nervous System | Responsible for then calming your body after the arousal (to get you back to normal) |
| 30. Reflexes | Any response you have to a stimulus that is inherent (you are born with it), it is a reflex |
| 31. Endocrine System | Chemical signals are created and carried throughout the body using the endocrine system, it works slower than the nervous system, and is made up of glands that secret hormones |
| 32. Hormones | Chemical compounds secreted by the endocrine glands |
| 33. Adrenal Glands | The adrenal gland, located on top of the kidneys. The adrenal cortex is the outer part of the gland and it produces hormones that help regulate metabolism and immune response, among other things. The inner part of the gland, called the adrenal medulla, secretes important hormones for coping with stress. |
| 34. Pituitary Gland | Aka the "master gland". It releases hormones that affect your growth as well as influencing the activities of other glands (located below the hypothalamus). |
| 35. Lesion | Damage to body tissue (any tissue in your body). |
| 36. Electroencephalogram (EEG) | A recording of the electrical waves of activity that occur in the brain, and across its surface |
| 37. Computed Tomography (CT) scan | A process of using computers to make a 3-dimensional image from a 2-dimensional picture |
| 38. Positron emission tomography (PET) scan | A scanning method that enables psychologists and doctors to study the brain (or any other living tissue) without surgery |
| 39. Magnetic resonance imaging | A method used for studying the functions of the brain (or any living tissue) without surgery (similar to PET scan). |
| 40. f MRI (functional MRI) | A brain imaging technique that detects magnetic changes in the brain’s blood flow patterns |
| 41. Hindbrain | The portion of the brain that contains the pons, cerebellum, and medulla. It is responsible for regulating basic human functions. |
| 42. Medulla | A structure of the brain located in the brain stem. |
| 43. pons | Acts as a major pathway for motor and sensory information between the body and higher level brain functioning (located in the lower brain stem, just above the spinal cord). |
| 44. Cerebellum | The cerebellum helps control voluntary movements such as eye movement and tracking of moving objects, as well as coordination and balance in behaviors that are very fast (ex: running or sprinting) |
| 45. Midbrain | A portion of the brain located just above the medulla and pons and contains basic vision and hearing functions; it also is the input center for muscle movement |
| 46. Reticular formation | A portion of the brain that passes through the medulla, pons, and stops in the midbrain. Its functions can be classified into 4 categories: motor control, sensory control, visceral control, and control of consciousness. |
| 47. Forebrain | The most forward part of the physical brain, that controls (amongst many other functions) body temperature, reproductive functions, eating, sleeping, and emotional display |
| 48. Thalamus | A structure deep within the brainstem that receives sensory information from the nervous system and passes the information to the cerebral cortex and other parts of the brain. |
| 49. Hypothalamus | Controls hunger, thirst, body temperature, and pleasure. |
| 50. Amygdala | Controls aggression and fear |
| 51. Hippocampus | Controls memory processes |
| 52. Limbic System | The Limbic System contains the hypothalamus, amygdala, pituitary gland, and the hippocampus |
| 53. Cerebral Cortex | The Cerebral Cortex is the body’s ultimate control, and information processing center. It contains the four lobes of the brain (frontal, occipital, parietal, and temporal). |
| 54. Left Hemisphere | Responsible for control of the right side of the body, and is the more academic and logical side of the brain |
| 55. Right Hemisphere | Responsible for control of the left side of the body, and is the more artistic and creative side of the brain |
| 56. Brain Lateralization | Lateralization of brain function means that there are certain mental processes that are mainly specialized to one hemisphere, or the other |
| 57. Corpus Callosum | The Corpus Callosum is a large bundle of neural fibers (myelinated axons, or white matter) connecting the two hemispheres |
| 58. Lobes | Frontal, Parietal, Temporal, and Occipital |
| 59. Association Areas | Association Areas are sections of the cerebral cortex that are connected to the function of a primary part of the cerebral cortex |
| 60. Frontal Lobe | Involved in speaking and muscle movements and in making plans and judgments |
| 61. Broca's Area | Located in the left frontal lobe, and directs the muscle movements involved in speech |
| 62. Wernicke's Area | Located in the left temporal lobe, and is involved with language comprehension and expression |
| 63. Aphasia | The inability to use language appropriately and may include problems speaking language, hearing language, and reading language |
| 64. Motor Cortex | Motor Cortex refers to that part of the brain where nerve cells are engaged in planning and directing the actions of muscles and glands that are under conscious control |
| 65. Sensory Cortex | The sensory cortex is an "umbrella" term that encompasses all the senses: sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell |
| 66. Parietal Lobe | Controls sensory processes |
| 67. Occipital Lobe | Controls vision processes |
| 68. Temporal Lobe | Controls auditory processes |
| 69. Brain Plasticity | The ability of the brain to reorganize neural pathways based on new experiences |
| 70. Roger Sperry | He was a neuropsychologist |
| 71. Prosopagnosia | Prosopagnosia, also called face blindness, is a disorder in which people are unable to recognize faces. Those with this condition can see individual parts of a face (the nose, eyes, mouth, and so on) but can’t process the features together as a whole |
| 72. Parkinson's Disease | This disorder affects the central nervous system. It results in symptoms such as uncontrollable tremors, slow shuffling movements, slurred speech, and cognitive impairment |
| 73. Schizophrenia | Very high levels of the neurotransmitter Dopamine are associated with this psychological disorder. People suffering from schizophrenia often hear voices in their head and have hallucinations. |
| 74. Multiple Sclerosis | Multiple Sclerosis is a disease of the central nervous system that causes increasing physical and mental disabilities caused by a breakdown of the myelin sheath. |
| 75. Alzheimer's Disease | People who have the disease have trouble mainly with remembering things, and taking care of themselves. |
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