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| a nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system | ||
| the bushy, branching extensions of a neuron that receiv messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body | ||
| extension of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers, through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles or glands | ||
| layer of fatty tissure segmentally encasing the fibers of many neurons; enables faster transmissions of neural impulses | ||
| neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon | ||
| level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse | ||
| junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron. | ||
| chemical messengers that traverse the synaptic gaps between neurons | ||
| neurotransmitter that enables learning and memory and also triggers muscle contraction | ||
| "morphine within"- natural, opiatelike neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure | ||
| body's speedy, electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous system | ||
| the brain and the spinal cord | ||
| sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system (CNS) to the rest of the body | ||
| neural "cables" containing many axons | ||
| neurons that carry incoming information from the sense receptors to the central nervous system | ||
| neurons that carry outgoing information from the central nervous system to the muscles and glands | ||
| central nervous system neurons that internally communicate and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs | ||
| division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body's skeletal muscles' skeletal nervous system | ||
| part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs; sympathetic, parasympathetic | ||
| division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations | ||
| division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy | ||
| simple, automatic, inborn response to a sensory stimulus, such as the knee-jerk response | ||
| interconnected neural cells | ||
| body's "slow" chemical communication system; set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream | ||
| chemical messengers, mostly those manufactured by the endocrine glands, that are produced in one tissue and affect another | ||
| pair of endocrine glands just above the kidneys; secretes adrenaline and arouses body in times of stress | ||
| endocrine system's most influential gland; regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands | ||
| tissue destruction | ||
| oldest part and central core of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord swells as it enters the skills; survival functions | ||
| base of the brainstem; controls heartbeat and breathing | ||
| nerve network in the brainstem that plays an important role in controlling arousal | ||
| brain's sensory switchboard, located on top of the brainstem | ||
| "little brain" attached to the rear of the brainstem; movement output and balance | ||
| doughnut-shaped system of neural structures associated with emotions such as fear and aggression, and drives such as those for food and sex | ||
| two lima bean-sized neural clusters that are components of the limbic system and are linked to emotion | ||
| neural structure that maintains activities (eating, drinkin, body temperature) | ||
| intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells that covers the cerebral hemispheres | ||
| cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons | ||
| portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forehead; involved in speaking and muscle movements; personality, judgements | ||
| portion off the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head and toward the rear; touch and body position | ||
| portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the head; visual areas | ||
| portion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears; auditory areas | ||
| area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements | ||
| area at the front of the parietal lobes that registers and processes body touch and movement sensations | ||
| areas of the cerebral cortex not involved in primary motro or sensory functions | ||
| impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damage either to Broca's area or Wernicke's area | ||
| controls language expression | ||
| controls language reception | ||
| brain's capacity for modification, as evident in brain reorganization following damage | ||
| large band of neural fibers connecting two brain hemispheres and carrying mesages between them | ||
| condition in which the two hemispheres of the brain are isolated by cutting the connecting fibers between them |
