Neuroscience
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| 482697997 | phrenology | ill-fated theory that claimed bumps on the skull could reveal mental abilities & character traits | |
| 482697998 | biological psychology | branch of psychology concentrated with links between biology and behavior | |
| 482697999 | neurons | nerve cells; basic building blocks of nervous system | |
| 482698000 | dendrite | bushy, branching extensions of neuron that receive messages and conduct impulses toward cell body | |
| 482698001 | axon | extension of neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers through which messages pass to other neurons/muscles/glands | |
| 482698002 | myelin sheath | insulates axons of some neurons and helps speed impulses | |
| 482698003 | multiple sclerosis | myelin sheath degenerates and communication to muscles slows until eventual loss of muscle control | |
| 482698004 | action potential | neural impulse; brief electrical charge that travels down an axon; generated by movement of positively charged atoms in and out of channels in axon's membrane | |
| 482698005 | resting potential | fluid interior of resting axon has excess of negative ions while fluid outside has more positive ions | |
| 482698006 | selectively permeable | axon's surface is very selective about what it allows in | |
| 482698007 | threshold | level of stimulation required to trigger neural impulse | |
| 482698008 | synapse | junction b/tw axon tip of sending neuron & dendrite/cell body of receiving neuron | |
| 482698009 | neurotransmitters | chemical messengers that traverse the synaptic gaps b/tw neurons | |
| 482698010 | reuptake | excess neurotransmitters are reabsorbed by sending neurons | |
| 482698011 | acetylcholine | neurotransmitter that enables learning & memory, & triggers muscle contractions | |
| 482698012 | dopamine | influences movement, learning, attention, emotion | |
| 482698013 | serotonin | affects mood, hunger, sleep, arousal | |
| 482698014 | norepinephrine | helps control alertness/arousal | |
| 482698015 | GABA | (gammaaminobutyric acid) major inhibitory neurotransmitter | |
| 482698016 | glutamate | major excitatory neurotransmitter; involved in memory | |
| 482698017 | morphine | opiate drug that elevates mood/eases pain; binds to receptors in areas linked w/ mood/pain sensations | |
| 482698018 | endorphins | natural, opiate-like neurotransmitters linked to pain control/pleasure | |
| 482698019 | agonists | drugs that excite; may be similar enough to neurotransmitter to mimic its effects or may block neurotransmitter's reuptake | |
| 482698020 | antagonists | drugs that inhibit; may be drug molecule that inhibits neurotransmitter's release; may be enough like natural neurotransmitter to occupy its receptor site & block its effect but not enough to stimulate receptor | |
| 482698021 | blood-brain barrier | enables brain to fence out unwanted chemical circulating blood | |
| 482698022 | nervous system | body's speedy, electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral/central nervous systems | |
| 482698023 | central nervous system | (CNS) includes brain/spinal chord | |
| 482698024 | peripheral nervous system | (PNS) sensory/motor neurons that connect the CNS to rest of body | |
| 482698025 | nerves | neural "cables" containing many axons; bundled axons (part of PNS) connect CNS w/ muscles/glands/sense organs | |
| 482698026 | sensory neurons | neurons that carry incoming info from sense receptors to CNS | |
| 482698027 | motor neurons | neurons that carry outgoing info from CNS to muscles/glands | |
| 482698028 | interneurons | CNS neurons that internally communicate/intervene b/tw sensory inputs & motor outputs | |
| 482698029 | somatic nervous system | division of PNS that controls body's skeletal muscles | |
| 482698030 | autonomic nervous system | part of PNS that controls glands/muscles of internal organs | |
| 482698031 | sympathetic nervous system | division of autonomic nervous system that arouses body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations | |
| 482698032 | parasympathetic nervous system | division of autonomic nervous system that calms body, conserving its energy | |
| 482698033 | reflexes | simple, automatic, inborn response to a sensory stimulus, such as the knee-jerk response | |
| 482698034 | neural networks | interconnected neural cells; w/ experience, networks can learn, as feedback strengthens/inhibits connections that produce certain results | |
| 482698035 | endocrine system | body's "slow" chemical communications system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream | |
| 482698036 | hormones | chemical messengers, mostly those manufactured by endocrine glands, that are produced in one tissue & affect another | |
| 482698037 | adrenal glands | pair of endocrine glands just above kidneys; secrete hormones epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine (noradrenaline) which help to arouse body in times of stress | |
| 482698038 | pituitary gland | endocrine system's most influential gland; under influence of hypothalamus, pituitary gland regulates growth/controls other endocrine glands | |
| 482698039 | lesion | tissue destruction; naturally or experimentally caused destruction of brain tissue | |
| 482698040 | electroencephalogram | (EEG) amplified recording of waves of electrical activity that sweep across brain's surface; waves are measured by electrodes placed on scalp | |
| 482698041 | positron emission tomography scan | (PET scan) visual display of brain activity that detects where a radioactive form of glucose goes while brain performs given task | |
| 482698042 | magnetic resonance imaging | (MRI) technique using magnetic fields/radio waves to produce computer-generated images that distinguish among different types of soft tissue; allows us to see structures within the brain | |
| 482698043 | functional MRI | (fMRI) technique for revealing blood flow & therefore brain activity by comparing successive MRI scans; show brain function | |
| 482698044 | brainstem | oldest part/central core of brain, beginning where spinal cord swells as it enters skull; responsible for automatic survival functions | |
| 482698045 | medulla | base of brainstem; controls heartbeat/breathing | |
| 482698046 | pons | just above medulla; help coordinate movement | |
| 482698047 | reticular formation | nerve network to brainstem that plays important role in controlling arousal; located inside brainstem b/tw ears extending from spinal cord into thalamus | |
| 482698048 | thalamus | brain's sensory switchboard; located on top of brainstem; it directs messages to sensory receiving areas in cortex & transmits replies to cerebellum/medulla; receives all senses except smell | |
| 482698049 | cerebellum | "little brain" attached to rear of brainstem; functions include processing sensory input/coordinating movement output & balance, one type of nonverbal learning/memory, helps judge time, modulate emotions, discriminate sounds/textures, coordinates voluntary movement | |
| 482698050 | limbic system | doughnut-shaped system of neural structures at border of brainstem & cerebral hemispheres; associated w/ emotions such as frear/aggression & drives such as those for food & sex | |
| 482698051 | amygdala | two lima bean-sized neural clusters that are linked to emotion; influence aggression/fear | |
| 482698052 | hypothalamus | neural structure below thalamus; directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature), helps govern endocrine system via pituitary gland, and is linked to emotion | |
| 482698053 | cerebral cortex | intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells that covers cerebral hemisphere; body's ultimate control/info processing center | |
| 482698054 | glial cells | cells in nervous system that support/nourish/protect neurons; guide neural connections, provide nutrients/insulating myelin, mop up ions/neurotransmitters | |
| 482698055 | frontal lobes | behind forehead; involved in speaking/muscle movements & in making plans/judgments | |
| 482698056 | parietal lobes | on top of head toward rear; receives sensory input for touch/body position | |
| 482698057 | occipital lobes | back of head; visual areas which receive visual info from opposite visual field | |
| 482698058 | temporal lobes | above ears; auditory areas, each of which receives auditory info primarily from opposite ear | |
| 482698059 | motor cortex | area at rear of frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements | |
| 482698060 | sensory cortex | area at front of parietal lobes that registers/processes body touch/movement sensations | |
| 482698061 | association area | areas of cerebral cortex that aren't involved in primary motor/sensory functions; involved in higher mental functions like learning/remembering/thinking/speaking | |
| 482698062 | aphasia | impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damage either to Broca's area (impairing speaking) or to Wernicke's area (impairing understanding) | |
| 482698063 | Broca's area | controls language expression - an area of frontal lobe, usually in left hemisphere, that directs muscle movements involved in speech | |
| 482698064 | Wernicke's area | controls language reception - a brain area involved in language comprehension/expression; usually in left temporal lobe | |
| 482698065 | angular gyrus | receives visual info from visual area & recodes it into auditory form | |
| 482698066 | plasticity | brain's capacity for modification, as evident in brain reorganization following damage (especially in children) and in experiments on effects of experiences on brain development | |
| 482698067 | corpus callosum | large band of neural fibers connecting two brain hemispheres/carrying messages b/tw them | |
| 482698068 | split brains | condition in which two hemispheres of brain are isolated by cutting connecting fibers b/tw them | |
| 482698069 | lateralization | using magnetic stimulation to temporarily disrupt left or right brain activity or by briefly sedating entire hemisphere |
