Psychology Chapter 2 & 3
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| 97406588 | medulla | The base of the brainstem; controls heartbeat and breathing | |
| 97406589 | biological psychology | A branch of psychology concerned with the links between biology & behavior. | |
| 97451101 | Lesion | Destruction of tissue; it can be naturally or experiementally causted destruction of brain tissue. | |
| 97451102 | Endocrine System | The body's "slow" chemical communication system, a set of glands that secrete homones into the bloodstream. | |
| 97451103 | Split Brain | A condition in which 2 hemispheres of the brain are isolated by cutting the connecting fibers (mainly those of the corpus callosum) between them. | |
| 97451104 | Axon | The extension of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers, through which messges pass to other neurons or to muscle glands. | |
| 97451105 | Pituitary Gland | The endocrine system's most influential gland. Under the influence of the hypothalamus, this gland regulates growth & controls other endocrine glands. | |
| 97451106 | Synapse | The junction between teh axon tip of the sending neuron & the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron. The tiny gap at this junction is called the synaptic gap or cleft. | |
| 97451107 | Myelin Sheath | A layer of fatty tissue segmentally encassing the fibers of many neurons. It enables vastly greather transmission speed of neural impulses as the impulse hops from 1 node to the next. | |
| 97451108 | Hormones | Chemical messangers, mostly manufactured by the endocrine glands, that are produced in one tissue & affect another | |
| 97451109 | Plasticity | The brain's capacity for modification, as evident in brain reorganization following damage (especially in kids) & in experiments on the effects of experience on brain development | |
| 97451110 | Broca's Area | Controls language expression- an area of the frontal lobe, usally in the left hemisphere, that directs muscle movements involved in speech | |
| 97451111 | Wernicke's Area | Controls language reception: a brain area involved in language comprehension & expression, usally in the left temporal lobe | |
| 97451112 | Adrenal Glands | A pair of endocrine glands just above the kidneys. The adrenals secrete the hormones epinephrine (adrenaline), & norepinephrine (noradrenaline)which help to arouse the body in times of stress. | |
| 97451113 | 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 | |
| 97451114 | Corpus Callosum | The large band of neural fibers connecting the 2 hemispheres and carrying messages between them. | |
| 97451115 | Dendrite | The bushy, branching extensions of a neuron that receive messages & conduct impulses toward the cell body. | |
| 97451116 | Cerebellum | The "Little Brain" attached to rear of the brainstem; it helps to coordinate voluntary movement & balance | |
| 97451117 | Neural Networks | Interconnected neural cells. With experience, networks can learn, as feedback strengthens or inhibits connections that produce certain results. Computer simulations of neural networks show analogus learning. | |
| 97451118 | Limbic System | a doughnut-shaped system of neural structures at the border of the brainstem & cerebral hemispheres; associated with emotions such as fear & aggression & drives such as those for food & sex Includes: hippocampus, amygdala & hypothalamus | |
| 97451119 | Threshold | The level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse | |
| 97451120 | Hypothalamus | a neural structure lying below (hypo) the thalamus; it directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperative) helps govern the endocrine system via the pituatiary gland, & is linked to emotion & sexual behavior. | |
| 97451121 | Neurotransmitters | Chemical messangers that traverse the synaptic gaps between neurons. When released by the sending neurons, neurotransmitters travel across the synapse & bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron, thereby influencing whether that neuron will generate a neural imulse. | |
| 97451122 | Cerebral Cortex | The intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells that covers the cerebral hemispheres; the body's ultimate control & information processing center | |
| 97451123 | PET Scan | A visual display of the brain activity that detects where a radioactive form of glucose goes while the brain performs a given task. | |
| 97451124 | Amygdala | Influences agression & fear. 2 almond-shaped neural clusters that are components of the limbic system & are linked to emotion | |
| 97451125 | MRI | A technique that uses 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. | |
| 97451126 | Glial Cells | Cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, & protect neurons. | |
| 97451127 | Aphasia | Impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damage either to Broca's Area (impair speaking) or to the Weirnick's Area (impairs understanding). | |
| 97451128 | Parietal Lobes | The portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head & toward the rear; includes the sensory cortex | |
| 97451129 | Nerves | Neural "cables" containing many axons. These bundled axons, which are part of the peripheral nervous systm, connect the central nervous system which muscles, glands & sense organs. | |
| 97451130 | EEG( Electroencephalogram) | 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. | |
| 97451131 | CT Scan (Computed Tomography) | A series of x-ray photographs taken from different angles & combined by computer into a composite representation of a slice through the body. | |
| 97451132 | Frontal Lobes | The portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forehead; involved in speaking & muscle movements, & in making plans & judgements. | |
| 97451133 | Nervous System | The body's speedy, electro chemical communication system, consisting of all the nerve cells of the periperal & central nervous system | |
| 97451134 | Endorphins | "morphine within" natural opiate-like neurotransmitters linked to pain control & to pleasure. | |
| 97451135 | Sensory Cortex | The area of the fron of the parietal lobes that registers & processes body sensations. | |
| 97451136 | Interneurons | Central nervous system neurons that internally communicate & intervene between the sensory inputs & motor outputs. | |
| 97451137 | Reflex | A simple, automatic, in-born response to a sensory stimulus, such as a knee jerk response. | |
| 97451138 | Brainstem | The oldest part & central part of the brain, beginning where the spinal chord swells as it enters the skull; responsible for automatic survival functions. | |
| 97451139 | Motor Cortex | An area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movement. | |
| 97451140 | Occipital Lobes | The portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the head; includes the visual areas, which receive visual information fromt eh opposite visual field. | |
| 97451141 | Acetylcholine | A neurotransmitter that, among its functions, triggers muscle contraction. It is the best understood neurotransmitter messenger at every juncture. | |
| 97451142 | Neuron | A nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system | |
| 97451143 | Automatic Nervous System | The part of the peripheral nervous system that controls glands & the muscles of the internal organs (such as the heart). Its sympathetic division arouses; its parasympathetic division calms. | |
| 97451144 | Somatic Nervous System | The division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body's skeletal muscles Also known as: Skeletal Nervous System | |
| 97451145 | Peripheral Nervous System | The sensory & motor neurons that connect the central nervous system to the rest of the body. | |
| 97451146 | Thalamus | the brain's sensory switchboard, located at the top of the brainstem; it directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the corterx & transmits replies to the cerebellum & medulla. | |
| 97451147 | 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, & speaking. | |
| 97451148 | Sympathetic Nervous System | The division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations. | |
| 97451149 | Sensory Neutrons | Neurons that carry incoming information from the sense receptors to the central nervous system | |
| 97451150 | Central Nervous System | The brain and spinal chord. | |
| 97451151 | Parasympathetic Nervous System | The division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy | |
| 97451152 | Action Potential | A neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon. The action potential is generated by the movement of (+) charged atoms in & out of channels in the axon's membrane | |
| 97451153 | Reticular Formation | A nerve network in the brainstem that plays an important role in controlling arousal | |
| 97451154 | Motor Neurons | Neurons that carry outgoing information from the central nervous systm to the muscles & glands. | |
| 97482777 | Gender Schema Theory | The theory that children learn from their cultures a concept of what it means to be male & female & that they adjust their behavior accordingly | |
| 97482778 | Social Learning Theory | The theory that we learn social behavior by observing & imitatin & by being rewarded or punished | |
| 97482779 | DNA | A complex molecule containing the genetic information that makes up the chromosomes. It has 2 strands "forming a double helix" held together by bonds between pairs of nucleotides | |
| 97482780 | Culture | The enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes & traditions shared by a large group of people (transmitted from 1 generation to the next) | |
| 97482781 | Gender Typing | The Acquistion of a traditional role (either masculine or feminine) | |
| 97482782 | Gender Identity | one's sense of being male or female | |
| 97482783 | Role | A set of expectations (norms) about social position, defining, how those in the position should behave. | |
| 97482784 | Testosterone | The most important male sex hormone. Both male & females have it. In men it stimulates growth of sex organs in the fetus & the development of sexual characteristics in puberty. | |
| 97482785 | Y-Chromosome | The sex chromosome only found in males. When paired with an X from the mother a boy child is created | |
| 97482786 | X-Chromosome | The sex chromosome found in both men & women. Females have 2. Males have 1. | |
| 97493749 | Gender Role | A set of expected behaviors for males & females. | |
| 97493750 | Memes | Self-replicating things such as: ideas, fashions, & innovations that are passed from person to person (cultural mutations). | |
| 97493751 | Personal Space | The buffer zone we like to maintain around our bodies. | |
| 97493752 | Norm | An understood rule for accepted & expected behavior "Proper Behavior." | |
| 97493753 | Molecular Genetics | The subfield of biology that studies molecular structure & function of genes. | |
| 97493754 | Interaciton | The dependence of the effect of 1 factor (ie. environment) on another (ie. heredity) | |
| 97493755 | Heritability | The portion of variation among individuals that we can contribute to genes. The trait may vary, depends on the range of populatiosn & environments studied. | |
| 97493756 | Temperament | A person's characteristic emotional reactivity & intensity | |
| 97493757 | Identical Twin | Twins develop from: 1 fertilized egg that splits in 1/2 and then creates 2 genetically identical organisims. | |
| 97493758 | Fraternal Twins | Twins develop from: 2 separate eggs. They are genetically no closer than brothers & sisters, just shared fetal environment. | |
| 97493759 | Environment | Every non-genetic inflluence; from prenatal nutrition to the people & things around us. | |
| 97493760 | Behavior Genetics | The study of the relative power & limits of genetic & environmental influences on behavior. | |
| 97493761 | Gender | In psychology, the characteristics, whether biologically or socially influenced, by which people define female or male. | |
| 97493762 | Evolutionary Psychology | The stydy of the evolution of behavior & the mind, using principles of natural selection. Natual selection has favored genes that designed both behavioral tendencies & information processing systems that solved adaptive problems faced by ancestors = survival & spread of genes. | |
| 97493763 | Mutation | A random error in gene replication that leads to a change in the sequence of nucleotides; the source of all genetic diversity. | |
| 97493764 | Natural Selection | The principle that, among the range of inherited trait variations, those that lead to increased reproduction & survival will most likely be passed on to succeeding generations. | |
| 97493765 | Genome | The complete instructions for making an organism, consisting of all the genetic material in its chromosomes. Has 3 million weakly bonded pairs of nucleotides organized as coiled chains of DNA. | |
| 97493766 | Genes | The biochemical units of heridity that make up the chromosomes; a segment of DNA capable of synthesizing a protein. | |
| 97493767 | Chromosomes | Threadlike structures made of DNA molecules tha contain the genes. |
