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| 90088998 | Biological Psychology | A branch of psychology concerned with the links between biology and behavior. | |
| 90088999 | Neuron | A nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system. | |
| 90089000 | Dendrite | The bushy, branching extensions of a neuron that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body. | |
| 90089001 | Axon | The extension of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers, through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles or glands. | |
| 90089002 | Myelin Sheath | A layer of fatty tissue segmentally encasing the fibers of many neurons; enables vastly greater transmission speed of neural impulses as the impulse hops from one node to the next. | |
| 90089003 | Action Potential | A neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon. It is generated by the movement of positively charged atoms in and out of channels in the axon's membrane. | |
| 90089004 | Threshold | The level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse. | |
| 90089005 | Synapse | The junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron. | |
| 90089006 | Neurotransmitters | Chemical messengers that traverse the synaptic gaps between neurons. Travel across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on receiving neurons. | |
| 90089007 | Acetylcholine (ACh) | A neurotransmitter that, among its functions, triggers muscle contraction. | |
| 90089008 | Dopamine | Influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion. | |
| 90089009 | Serotonin | Affects mood, hunger, sleep, and arousal. | |
| 90089010 | Norepinephrine | Helps control alertness and arousal. | |
| 90089011 | GABA (Gamma-aminobutyric acid) | A major inhibitory neurotransmitter. | |
| 90089012 | Glutamate | A major excitatory neurotransmitter; involved in memory. | |
| 90089013 | Endorphins | "Morphine within"; natural, opiate like neurotransmitters linked to pain control and pleasure. | |
| 90089014 | Nervous System | The body's speedy, electrochemical communication system, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous systems. | |
| 90089015 | Central Nervous System (CNS) | The brain and spinal cord. | |
| 90089016 | Peripheral Nervous System (PNS) | The sensory and motor neurons that connect the CNS to the rest of the body. | |
| 90089017 | Nerves | Neural "cables" containing many axons. These bundled axons, which are part of the PNS, connect the CNS with muscles, glands, and sensory organs. | |
| 90089018 | Sensory Neurons | Neurons that carry incoming information from the sense receptors to the CNS. | |
| 90089019 | Interneurons | CNS neurons that internally communicate and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs. | |
| 90089020 | Motor Neurons | Neurons that carry outgoing information from the CNS to the muscles and glands. | |
| 90089021 | Somatic Nervous System | The division of the PNS that controls the body's skeletal muscles. | |
| 90089022 | Autonomic Nervous System | The part of the PNS that controls the glands and muscles of the body's internal organs. | |
| 90089023 | Sympathetic Nervous System | The division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations. | |
| 90089024 | Parasympathetic Nervous System | The division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving it's energy. | |
| 90089025 | Reflexes | A simple, automatic, inborn response to a sensory stimulus, such as the knee-jerk response. | |
| 90089026 | Neural Networks | Interconnected neural cells. With experience, they can learn, as feedback strengthens or inhibits connections that produce certain results. | |
| 90089027 | Lesion | Tissue destruction. A naturally or experimentally caused destruction of brain tissue. | |
| 90089028 | Electroencephalogram (EEG) | An amplified recording of the waves of electrical activity that sweep across the brain's surface. These waves are measured by electrodes placed on the scalp. | |
| 90089029 | CT (computed tomography) Scan | A series of x-ray photographs taken from different angles and combined by computer into a composite representation of a slice through the body. Also called a CAT Scan. | |
| 90089030 | PET (positron emission tomography) Scan | A visual display of brain activity that detects where a radioactive form of glucose goes while the brain performs a given task. | |
| 90089031 | MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) | A technique that uses magnetic fields and radio waves to produce computer generated images that distinguish among different types of soft-tissue; allows us to see structures within the brain. | |
| 90089032 | Brainstem | The oldest part and central core of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord swells as it enters the skull; it's responsible for automatic survival functions. | |
| 90089033 | Medulla | The base of the brainstem; controlls heartbeat and breathing. | |
| 90089034 | Reticular Formation | A nerve network in the brainstem that plays an important role in controlling arousal. | |
| 90089035 | Thalamus | The brain's sensory switchboard, located on top of the brainstem; it directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla. | |
| 90089036 | Cerebellum | The "little brain" attached to the rear of the brainstem; it helps coordinate voluntary movement and balance. | |
| 90089037 | Limbic System | A doughnut shaped system of neural structures at the border of the brainstem and cerebral hemispheres; associated with emotions such as fear and aggression and drives such as those for food and sex. Includes the hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus. | |
| 90089038 | Amygdala | Two almond shaped neural clusters that are components of the limbic system and are linked to emotion. | |
| 90089039 | Hypothalamus | A neural structure lying below the thalamus; it directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, temperature), helps govern the endocrine system and is linked to emotion. | |
| 90089040 | Cerebral Cortex | The intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells that covers the cerebral hemispheres; the body's ultimate control and information-processing center. | |
| 90089041 | Glial Cells | Cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons. | |
| 90089042 | Frontal Lobe | The portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forehead; it's involved in speaking and muscle movements and in making plans and judgments. | |
| 90089043 | Parietal Lobe | The portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head and towards the rear; includes the sensory cortex. | |
| 90089044 | Occipital Lobe | The portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the head; includes the visual areas, which receive visual information from the opposite visual field. | |
| 90089045 | Temporal Lobe | The portion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears; includes the auditory areas, each of which receives auditory information primarily from the opposite ear. | |
| 90089046 | Motor Cortex | An area at the rear of the frontal lobe that controls voluntary movements. | |
| 90089047 | Sensory Cortex | The area at the front of the parietal lobe that registers and processes body sensations. | |
| 90089048 | Association Areas | Areas of the cerebral cortex that are not involved in primary motor or sensory functions; rather, they are involved in higher mental functions such as learning, remembering, thinking, and speaking. | |
| 90089049 | Aphasia | Impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damage either to Broca's Area or Wernicke's Area. | |
| 90089050 | Broca's Area | Controls language expression- an area of the frontal lobe, usually in the left hemisphere, that directs the muscle movements involved in speech. | |
| 90160013 | Wernicke's Area | Controls language reception- A brain area involved in language comprehension and expression; usually in the left temporal lobe. | |
| 90160014 | Plasticity | The brain's capacity for modification, as is evident in brain reorganization following damage and in experiments on the effects of experience on brain development. | |
| 90160015 | Corpus Collosum | The large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them. | |
| 90160016 | Split Brain | A condition in which the two hemispheres of the brain are isolated by cutting the corpus collosum. | |
| 90160017 | Endocrine System | The body's "slow" chemical communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the blood stream. | |
| 90160018 | Hormones | Chemical messengers, mostly those manufactured by the endocrine glands, that are produced in one tissue and affect another. | |
| 90160019 | Adrenal Glands | A pair of endocrine glands just above the kidney's. They secrete the hormones epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine (noradrenaline), which help to arouse the body in times of stress. | |
| 90160020 | Pituitary Gland | The endocrine system's most influential gland. Under the influence of the hypothalamus, it regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands. |
