Terms : Hide Images
| 12492100 | biological psychology | a branch of psychology concerned with the links between biology and behavior | |
| 12492101 | neuron | a nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system | |
| 12492102 | axon | the extention of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers, through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles or glands | |
| 12492103 | 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 | |
| 12492104 | action potential | a neural impulse; a breif electrical charge that travels down an axon | |
| 12492105 | threshold | the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse | |
| 12492106 | synapse | the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron | |
| 12492107 | neurotransmitters | chemical messengers that traverse the synaptic gap between neurons | |
| 12492108 | acetylcholine | a neurotransmitter that, among its functions, triggers muscle contraction | |
| 12492109 | endorphins | "morphine within" - natural, opiatelike neurotransmitters linked to pain control and pleasure | |
| 12492110 | nervous system | the body's speedy, electrochemical communication system, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous systems | |
| 12492111 | central nervous system | the brain and spinal cord | |
| 12492112 | peripheral nervous system | the sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system to the rest of the body | |
| 12492113 | nerves | neural "cables" containing many axons | |
| 12492114 | sensory neurons | neurons that carry incoming information from the sense receptors to the central nervous system | |
| 12492115 | interneurons | central nervous system neurons that internally communicate and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs | |
| 12492116 | motor neurons | neurons that carry outgoing information from the central nervous system to the muscles and glands | |
| 12492117 | somatic nervous system | the division of the perihperal nervous system that controls the body's skeletal muscles | |
| 12492118 | autonomic nervous system | the part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs | |
| 12492119 | sympathetic nervous system | the division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations | |
| 12492120 | parasympathetic nervous system | the division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy | |
| 12492121 | reflex | a simple, automatic, inborn response to a sensory stimulus | |
| 12492122 | neural networks | interconnected neural cells - with experience, networks can learn | |
| 12492123 | lesion | tissue destruction | |
| 12492124 | 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 | |
| 12492125 | 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 | |
| 12492126 | 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 | |
| 12492127 | 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 | |
| 12492128 | brainstem | the oldest part and central coe of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord swells as it enters the skull; responsible for automatic survival functions | |
| 12492129 | medulla | the base of the brainstem; controls heartbeat and breathing | |
| 12492130 | reticular formation | a nerve network in the brainstem that plays an important role in controlling arousal | |
| 12492131 | 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 | |
| 12492132 | cerebellum | the "little brain" attached to the rear of the brainstem; it helps coordinate voluntary movement and balance | |
| 12492133 | 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 agression and drives such as those for food and sex | |
| 12492134 | amygdala | two almond-shaped neural clusters that are components of the limbic system and are linked to emotion | |
| 12492135 | hypothalamus | a neural struture lying below the thalamus; it directs several maintenance activities, helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland, and is linked to emotion | |
| 12492136 | cerebral cortex | the intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells that covers the cerebral hemispheres; the body's ultimate control and information-processing center | |
| 12492137 | glial cells | cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons | |
| 12492138 | frontal lobes | the portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forehead; invloved in speaking and muscle movements and in making plans and judgments | |
| 12492139 | parietal lobes | the portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head and toward the rear; includes the sensory cortex | |
| 12492140 | occipital lobes | 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 | |
| 12492141 | temporal lobes | 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 | |
| 12492142 | motor cortex | an area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements | |
| 12492143 | sensory cortex | the area at the front of the parietal lobes that registers and processes body sensations | |
| 12492144 | 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 | |
| 12492145 | aphasia | impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damage either to Broca's area (imparing speaking) or to Wernicke's area (imparing understanding) | |
| 12492146 | 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 | |
| 12492147 | Wernicke's area | controls language reception - a brain area involved in language comprehension and expression; usually in the left temporal lobe | |
| 12492148 | plasticity | the brain's capacity for modification, as evident in brain reorganization following damage (especially in children) and in experiments on the effects of experience on brain development | |
| 12492149 | corpus callosum | the large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them | |
| 12492150 | split brain | a condition in which the two hemispheres of the brain are isolated by cutting the connecting fibers (mainly those of the corpus callosum) between them | |
| 12492151 | endocrine system | the body's "slow" chemical communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream | |
| 12492152 | hormones | chemical messengers, mostly those manufactured by the endocrine system, that are produced in one tissue and affect another | |
| 12492153 | adrenal glands | a pair of endocrine glands just above the kidneys that secrete the hormones epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine (noradrenaline), which help to arouse the body in times of stress | |
| 12492154 | pituitary gland | the endocrine system's most influential gland - under the influence of the hypothalamus, the pituitary regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands |
