Chapter 2

For a typical neuron, what is the threshold potential?

-55 mV

A neuron's resting potential is _____ mV.

-70

After being shot in the head in Iraq, what type of glial cells defended Brandon's brain from infection and inflammation?

Microglia

_____ creates on and off switches for individual brain cells. Scientists can observe what happens when cells are manipulated.

Optogenetics

Are you a secretive person? How high is your self-esteem? According to 19th-century _____, the answers to these questions lie on the surface of the skull.

Phrenologists

_____ was an early approach to explaining the functions of the brain by trying to link the physical structure of the skull with a variety of characteristics

Phrenology

In a myelinated axon, the action potential hops from one node of _____ to the next.

Ranvier

How might someone summarize our current understanding of neurotransmitters?

Researchers have identified approximately 100 neurotransmitters, with many more yet to be discovered.

Ta'Mar is enrolled in a biological psychology course this semester. Last week he had the opportunity to a use recording electrode to observe the electrical activity of a segment of an axon during an action potential. How might Ta'Mar summarize his observations in a report?

The electrical charge of the neuron was negative, and then became briefly positive before returning to resting potential.

Low levels of _____ in the brain have been linked to Alzheimer's disease

acetylcholine

An advertisement for a new drug therapy is eye catching. The advertisement claims that the drug will counteract the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease. The drug potentially works by acting as a(n):

acetylcholine agonist.

Nicotine mimics acetylcholine and causes the same activation. In contrast, curare blocks acetylcholine receptors. Nicotine is an acetylcholine _____ while curare is an acetylcholine _____.

agonist; antagonist

Action potentials are:

all-or-none; they either happen or they don't.

After a brain injury, a class of glial cells called _____ restores the barrier between the brain and blood.

astrocytes

Chloe is majoring in psychology. She is about to graduate and has applied to several PhD programs. Chloe's interested in understanding how the brain and other biological systems influence human behavior. It is likely that Chloe plans to specialize in:

biopsychology.

Biological psychologists are interested in studying living brains. Unfortunately, the subjects of interest in this particular study have metal in their bodies that prevents them from being placed in a magnetic field. The subjects also indicated on their consent form that they are uncomfortable being injected with any substance. Which of these imaging techniques could be used?

computerized axial tomography (CAT)

As a graduate student in a psychology program, Amber will be assisting one of her professors in the laboratory. In preparation, Amber reads several research articles written by her professor. Amber finds that most subjects in the studies published by her professor have been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Based on this information, it seems likely that the research articles Amber should be reading are about

damage to myelination.

The majority of neurotransmitters migrate across the synaptic gap and latch onto receptor sites of the receiving neuron's:

dendrites

Ablation, a very early technique, studied the brain by:

destroying parts of a living animal brain to determine a loss of function.

If the goal of a neuroscience research project is to map neural connections, what technique will need to be included on the protocol application submitted to the Institutional Review Board (IRB)?

diffusion spectrum imaging (DSI)

The intricate pathways of myelinated axons in the brain can be seen using _____, which tracks the diffusion of water molecules in the brain.

diffusion spectrum imaging (DSI)

A technique called _____ records the brain's activity through scalp electrodes

electroencephalogram (EEG)

A technique called _____ records the brain's activity through scalp electrodes.

electroencephalogram (EEG)

Dr. Hernandez is attempting to diagnose a brain injury in a patient. In order to observe the function of her patient's brain using a(n) _____, Dr. Hernandez places electrodes on the patient's scalp to record electrical activity.

electroencephalogram (EEG)

Later in the course, students will learn about the different patterns of electrical activity in the brain that occur in the different stages of sleep and dreaming. Given that researchers studying sleep look at electrical activity in the brains of their subjects, what technique are they using?

electroencephalogram (EEG)

Dr. Lieu is the lead researcher on a project that uses a strong magnet to track blood-oxygen changes in participants' brains as they complete decision-making tasks. From the description, Dr. Lieu is using a technique called:

functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).

Although previously thought to simply keep things together, researchers now know that _____ defend the brain from infection and support communication between neurons.

glial cells

After an action potential, the neuron:

is restored to resting potential.

The chemicals that relay signals across the synapses between neurons are called

neurotransmitters.

The breaks between myelin segments are called:

nodes of Ranvier.

Brandon, who suffered head trauma while serving in Iraq, could only tie his shoe with his left hand. From this we know that Brandon's injury was:

on the left side of his brain.

In order to study the function of a brain, behavioral neuroscientists sometimes use _____, which involves injecting a radioactive tracer into the bloodstream of a patient.

positron emission tomography (PET)

Neurotransmitters that attach to receptors may be reabsorbed by the sending axon terminal in a process known as:

reuptake

The role of _____ is to protect and insulate the axon and to speed up the neural message.

the myelin sheath

Compared to action potentials in unmyelinated neurons, action potentials in myelinated neurons:

travel much faster