Bezawit Moges

Chapter 2 Vocab.

1. Biological Psychology: a branch of psychology concerned with the links

between biology and behavior.
2. Neuron: a nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system.
3. Dendrite: the bushy, branching extensions of a neuron that receive
messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body.
4. Axon: extension of a neuron, ending in branching terminal fibers, through
which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles or glands..
5. Meylin Sheath: 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.
6. Action Potential: a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down
an axon.
7. Threshold: the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse.
8. Synapse: the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the
dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron.
9. Neurotransmitters: chemical messengers that traverse the synaptic gaps
between neurons.
10. Acetylcholine: a neurotransmitter that enables learning and memory and also
triggers muscle contraction.
11. Endorphins: “morphine within”- natural, opiate like neurotransmitters linked
to pain control and to pleasure.
12. Nervous System: the body’s speedy, electrochemical communication network,
consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous systems.
13. Central Nervous System: the brain and spinal cord.
14. Peripheral Nervous System: the sensory and motor neurons that connect the
central nervous system (CNS) to the rest of the body.
15. Nerves: neural “cables” containing many axons; connect the central nervous
system with muscles, glands, and sense organs.
16. Sensory Neurons: neurons that carry incoming information form the sense
receptors to the central nervous system.
17. Interneurons: central nervous system neurons that internally communicate
and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs.
18. Somatic Nervous System: division of the peripheral nervous system that
controls the body’s skeletal muscles; also called the skeletal nervous system.
19. Autonomic Nervous System: the part of the peripheral nervous system that
controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs (such as the heart).
20. Sympathetic Nervous System: the division of the autonomic nervous system
that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations.
21. Parasympathetic Nervous System: the division of the autonomic nervous
system that calms the body, conserving its energy.
22. Reflex: a simple, automatic, inborn response to a sensory stimulus, such as
the knee-jerk response.
23. Neural Networks: interconnected neural cells.
24. Endocrine System: the body’s “slow” chemical communication system; a set
of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream.
25. Hormones: chemical messengers, mostly those manufactured by the
endocrine glands that are produced in one tissue and affect another.
26. Adrenal Glands: a pair of endocrine glands just above the kidneys; secrets
the hormones epinephrine (adrenaline) and nor epinephrine (noradrenaline), which
help to arouse the body in times of stress.
27. Pituitary Glands: the endocrine system’s most influential gland: under
influence of the hypothalamus it regulates growth and controls other endocrine
glands.
28. Lesion: tissue destruction; a naturally or experimentally caused destruction
of brain tissue.
29. Electroencephalogram: an amplified recoding of the waves of electrical
activity that sweep across the brains surface; waves measured by electrodes placed
on the scalp.
30. PET Scan: a visual display of brain activity that detects where a radioactive
form of glucose while the brain performs a given task.
31. MRI: 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.
32. FMRI: a technique for revealing blood flow and, therefore, brain activity by
comparing successive MRI scans; shows brain function.
33. Brainstem: the oldest part and the central core of the brain, beginning
where the spinal cord swells as it inters the skull; is responsible for automatic
survival functions.
34. Medulla: the base of the brainstem; controls heart beat and breathing.
35. Reticular Formation: a nerve network in the brainstem that plays an
important role in controlling arousal.
36. Thalamus: the brain’s sensory switchboard, located on top of the brainstem;
directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies
to the cerebellum and medulla.
37. Cerebellum: the “little brain” attached to the rear of the brainstem;
functions include processing sensory input and coordinating movement output and
balance.
38. Limbic System: a doughnut-shaped system of neural structures at the
border of the brainstem and cerebral hemisphere; associated with emotions such as
fear and aggression and drives such as those for food and sex.
39. Amygdala: two lima bean-sized neural clusters that are components of the
limbic system and are linked to emotion.
40. Hypothalamus: a neural structure lying below the thalamus; directs several
maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature), helps govern the
endocrine system via the pituitary gland, and is linked to emotion.
41. Cerebral Cortex: the intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells that
covers the cerebral hemisphere; the body’s ultimate control and information
processing center.
42. Glial Cells: cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect
neurons.
43. Frontal Lobes: the portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the
forehead; involved in speaking and muscle-movements and in making plans and
judgment.
44. Parietal Lobes: the portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the
head and toward the rear; receives sensory input for touch body position.
45. Occipital Lobes: the portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the
head; includes the visual areas, which receive visual information form the opposite
visual field.
46. Temporal Lobes: the portion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the
ears; includes the auditory area, each of which receives auditory information
primarily from the opposite ear.
47. Motor Cortex: an area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls
voluntary movements.
48. Sensory Cortex: the are at the front to the parietal lobes that registers and
processes body touch and movement sensations.
49. Association Areas: area of the cerebral cortex that are involved in primary
motor or sensory functions; rather, they are involved in higher mental functions
such as learning, remembering, thinking, and speaking.
50. Aphasis: impairment of languages, usually cause by left hemisphere damage
either to Broca’s area (impairing speaking) or to Wernicke’s area (impairing
understanding).
51. 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.
52. Wernicke’s Area: controls language reception-a brain area involved in
language comprehension and expression; usually in the left temporal lobe.
53. Plasticity: the brains capacity for modification, as evident in brain
reorganization following damage (especially in children) and in experiments on the
effects of experience on brain development.
54. Corpus Callosum: the large band of neural fibers connecting the two brain
hemisphere and carrying messages between them.
55. 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.