AP Psychology: Module 9 and 10

testis / ovaries

secretes male/female sex hormones

What are the three types of neurons?

sensory neuron, motor neuron, interneurons

Brain and neural networks

spinal cord, reflexes, and interneurons

What are the two main parts in the Autonomic Nervous system?

sympathetic nervous system and parasympathetic nervous system

Endocrine system

the body's "slow" chemical communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream.

Central nervous system(CNS)

the brain and spinal cord

cell body(soma)

the cell's life-support center

Parasympathetic nervous system

the division of autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving energy.

Sympathetic nervous system

the division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body mobilizing its energy in stressful situations

Somatic nervous system

the division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body's skeletal muscles. Als called the skeletal nervous system

Resting potential

the electrical potential of a neuron or other excitable cell relative to its surroundings when not stimulated or involved in passage of an impulse.

Synapse

the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron.

Threshold

the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse

Phrenology

the nineteenth-century theory that bumps on the skull reveal a person's abilities and traits

Autonomic nervous system (ANS)

the part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs

Biopsychology

the scientific study between biological(genetic, hormonal, neural) and our behavior, psychological process

Synaptic gap/cleft

the space between neurons at a nerve synapse across which a nerve impulse is transmitted by a neurotransmitter.

all or nothing principle

the strength by which a nerve or muscle fibre responds to a stimulus is independent of the strength of the stimulus(Neuron communication)

How is psychology simultaneously biological?

thinking , feeling, and acting without a body

How do Neurons communicate with each other?

through synapses and neurotransmitters

Dopamine

Influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion

inhibitory

pushing a neuron's brake

excitatory

pushing neuron's accelerator

What are neurons?

- Nerve cells -The basic building block of the nervous system - Perform three basic task: Receive, carry, and pass to next neuron

Dendrite

receives messages from other cells

Thyroid

regulates metabolism

Steps in Neuron communication

1)Neurotransmitters plug into receptor 2)Sodium channels open 3)Voltage of greater than -55 go through depolarization 4)Positive action potential 5)Releases neurotransmitters

Neurotransmitters

A chemical messenger that travels across the synapse from one neuron to the next(Can influence whether the second neuron will generate an action potential or not)

Glutamate

A major excitatory neurotransmitter; involved in memory

GABA(gamma-aminobutyric acid)

A major inhibitory neurotransmitter

Hypothalamus

A neural structure lying below the thalamus, direct several maintenance activities, helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland and is linked to emotion and reward

Adrenal glands function

A pair of endocrine glands that sit just above the kidneys and secrete hormones that help arouse the body in times of stress

What releases epinephrine and norepinephrine?

Adrenal gland

Serotonin

Affects mood, hunger,sleep, and arousal

What is the difference between and an excitatory and an inhibitory neuron?

An excitatory neurons is defined as a neuron that triggers a positive change in the membrane of a postsynaptic neuron it connects to. An inhibitory neuron triggers a negative change in the membrane of a postsynaptic neuron it connects to.

What are we?

Biopsychosocial systems

Autonomic Nervous system

Controls our glands and muscles of the internal organs

Acetylcholine

Enables muscle action, learning, and memory

Adernal gland hormones

Epinephrine and norepinephrine

Norepinephrine

Helps control alertness and arousal

What do biological psychologists do?

Make discoveries about the interplay of our biology and our behavior and mind at an exhilarating pace.

How do neurotransmitters influence behavior?

Nerve cells communicate messages by secreting neurotransmitters, Each neurotransmitter can directly or indirectly influence neurons in a specific portion of the brain, thereby affecting behavior.

pituitary gland hormone

Oxytocin

Pancreas

Regulates the level of sugar in the blood

Nervous system

The body's speedy, electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous systems

Pituitary gland function

The endocrine system's most influential gland, Under the influence of hypothalamus, growth and controls other endocrine glands

Depolarization

The inward flow of sodium ions increases the concentration of positively charged cations in the cell, where the potential of the cell is higher than the cell's resting potential

nature of the endocrine system

These hormones regulate the body's growth, metabolism (the physical and chemical processes of the body), and sexual development and function.

neurotransmitters

They help promote sleep, alertness, learning, memory (lock and key)

How do drugs and other chemicals alter neurotransmission?

When flooded with opiate drugs such as heroin and morphine, the brain may stop producing its own natural opiates. When a drug is withdrawn, the brain may then be deprived of any form of opiate, causing intense discomfort. Drugs and other chemicals affect the brain chemistry at synapse, her by their exciting or inhibiting neurons firing.

Spinal cord

a long, thin, tubular structure made up of nervous tissue, that extends from the medulla oblongata in the brainstem to the lumbar region of the vertebral column

Action potential

a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon.

Reuptake

a neurotransmitter's reabsorption by the sending neuron.

Refractory period

a period of inactivity after a neuron has fired

Reflexes

a simple, automatic response to a sensory stimulus, such as the knee-jerk response

How do neurons communicate?

action potential and synapses. Neurons communicate with each other via electrical events called 'action potentials' and chemical neurotransmitters. At the junction between two neurons (synapse), an action potential causes neuron a to release a chemical neurotransmitter.

How are neural impulses generated?

action potential, resting potential, depolarization, refractory period, threshold

sympathetic

arouses and expends energy(fight or flight systems)

What part of the Nervous system are reflexes in?

autonomic nervous system( involuntary action)

Antagonist

blocks neurotransmitter from opening receptor site

Nerves

bundled axons that form neural cables to link the CNS with the body's sensory receptors, muscles, and glands

How do neurons make contact?

by sending chemical messages to one another

parasympathetic

calms the body down, conserving energy (rest and digest systems)

Sensory neurons

carry incoming information from sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord

Motor neurons

carry outgoing information from the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands

What are the parts of a neuron?

cell body(soma), dendrites, axon, Myelin sheath

Hormones

chemical messengers that are manufactured by the endocrine glands travel through the bloodstream and affect other tissues ( they influence our interest in sex, food, and aggression.)

Neurotransmitters

chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between neurons. When released by sending neurons, neurotransmitters travel across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron, thereby influencing whether that neuron will generate a neural impulse.

ions

have a charge, positive or negative they create electricity

Parathyroid

in the neck; controls the calcium levels in your body, and normals the bone growth

Myelin sheath

insulator, covers the axon of some neurons, helps speed neural impulses

Biological psychology

investigate the links between biological activity and our thinking and behavior tiny cells, organize forms of the body

Axon

long cable like, emits electrical current, passes messages away from the cell body to other neurons, muscles, or glands

Peripheral nervous system(PNS)

made up of sensory and motor neurons and connect to CNS

Agonist

mimics neurotransmitter, opening receptor site

What gland is controlled by the hypothalamus?

pituitary gland

interneurons

process information in the brain's internal communication