Neuroscience & Behavior
Terms
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- hypothalamus
- a neural structure, right below the thalamus. directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temp).
- Sympathetic nervous system
- Part of the autonomic that arouses the body. Speeds up heart rate, dilates pupils.
- sensory cortex
- The area at the parietal lobes that registers and processes body senses.
- Acetylcholine(ACh)
- Neurotransmitter, triggers muscle contraction. Used whenever the body moves.
- reticular formation
- a nerve network in the brainstem that plays am important role in controlling arousal.
- Parasympathetic nervous system
- PArt of the autonomic that calms the body, conserving energy.
- Broca's area
- An area of the frontal lobe, usually in the left, that directs the muscle movements involved in speech.
- Central nervous system
- The Brain and the spinal cord.
- Frontal lobes
- The portion of the cerebral cortex lying just behind the forehead, involved in speaking, and muscle movements and making plans, and judgements. Sets us apart from animals.
- Interneurons
- Cental nervous system neurons that internally communitcate and intervene between the sensory inputs and motor outputs.
- Temporal lobes
- The protion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears. REcieves auditory information.
- Dopamine
- Neuro-chemical influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion. excess activity at dopamine receptors had been linked with Schizophrenia.
- Limbic system
- associated with emotions such as fear aggression and drives such as those for food and sex. Includes the hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus.
- Neurostransmitters
- Chemical messangers that cross the synaptic Gap. Released by the axon, and bind to receptor sites on the recieving neuron.
- Cerebellum
- attached to the rear of the brainstem. "the little Brain" Coordinates voluntary movement and balance.
- Synapse or Synaprtic gap or Cleft
- The seperation between the axon terminal of one neuron, and the dendrite or cell body of the recieveing neuron.
- Right Hemisphere (brain)
- Visual area. uses left eye. controls movements on the left side of the body.
- Threshold
- The minimum level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse.
- Lesion
- Tissue destruction. A Brain lesion is naturally or experimentally caused destruction of brain tissue.
- Norepinephrine
- helps control alertness and arousal.
- Occipital lobes
- the protion of the cerebral cortex lying at the back of the head. Includes visual information.
- Serotonin
- Affects mood, hunger, sleep, and arousal. Prozac and similar antidepressant drugs raise serotonin levels.
- Glial cells
- cells in the nervous system that are not neurons but that support, nourish, and protect neurons.
- Peripheral nervous system
- The sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system to the rest of the body.
- Corpus callosum
- The large band of neural fibers connecting the 2 brain hemispheres and carrying messages between them.
- Endorphins
- Natural opiate neurotransmitters linked to pain control and pleasire.
- Cerebral cortex
- The intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells that covers the cerebral hemispheres.
- Action Potential
- A neural impulse, a brief electrical charge that travels down the axon. Generated by the positive charge of atoms.
- Motor cortex
- An area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements.
- Myelin Sheath
- A layer of fatty tissue, insulating the axons of some neurons and helps speed their impulses.
- Amygdala
- 2 almond-shaped neural clusters that are components of the limbic system and are linked to emotion.
- Sensory neurons
- Neurons that carry incoming information from the sense receptors to the central nervous system.
- Medulla
- The base of the brainstem. Controls heartbeat amd breathing.
- Axon
- The Extension of a neuron ending in branching terminal fibers through which messages are sent to other neurons or to muscles or glands.
- Parietal lobes
- The part of the cerebral cortex lying attop of the head and to the rear, includes the sensory cortex.
- Autonomic nervous system
- Part of the peripheral that controls the glands and muscles of the internal organs (such as the heart)
- aphasia
- impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere gamage either to Broca's areal or to Wernicke's area.
- Motor neurons
- Neurons that carry outgoing info. from the central nervous system to the muscles and glands.
- Thalamus
- Above the brainstem. The brains sensory switch board. directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla.
- Neurons
- A nerve cell; The basic building block of the nervous system.
- Left Hemisphere (brain)
- Usually most dominant. Controls speech, and the right side movements with the body. Uses right eye visual field.
- Somatic nervous system
- Division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the bodys skeletal muscles.
- WErnicke's area
- A brain area involved in language comprehension and expression, usually in the left temporal lobe.
- Dendrites
- Bushy, Branchy extension of a neuron that receives messages and conducts impulses toward the cell body.
- Brainstem
- The oldest part and central core of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord swells as it enters the skull; the brainstem is responsible for automatic survival functions.
- Split brain
- a condition in which the 2 hemispheres of the brain are isolated by cutting the connecting fibers between (mainly those of the corpus callosum) between them.
- 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.