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2012-11-15 01:18:23
ap psychology

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  1. located in the frontal lobe of the brain, this brain area is basically involved in controlling speech.  when it is damaged, people speak slowly and use simple sentences
    broca's area
  2. located in the temporal lobe of the brain, this brain area is basically involved with producing and understanding meaningful speech. When it is damaged, people find it difficult to understand speech and, most of the time, their own speech is meaningless.
    Wernicke's Area
  3. Latin for “brain.” It is the largest part of the brain as it is about 70% of the brain’s weight. It consists of two sides or hemispheres. The surface of the cerebrum is wrinkled with ridges and valleys.
  4. is the outer layer of the brain. This is the part of the brain that we usually refer to when we are talking about the brain. It is the part of the brain that make us uniquely human ----- the part of the brain that thinks ( cognitive skills ). It also deals with memory, language, emotions, complex motor functions and perception. Nearly 75% of it has no known function. Consequently, parts of it can be destroyed without a loss of general intellectual ability.
    cerebral cortex
  5. looks like the larger part of the brain ( the cerebrum ), under which it rests, but it is much smaller.  responsible for voluntary movement, balance, and coordination.  referred to as the automatic pilot in our bodies 
  6. is responsible for moving information from one side ( hemisphere ) of the brain to another.
    corpus callosum 
  7. this brain structure that relays sensory information ( seeing, hearing, smelling etc. ) to the appropriate part of the brain ( cerebral cortex ) for interpretation.
  8. the neural structure located below the thalamus that controls temperature, hunger, thirst and various aspects of emotion. It is very important in storing nutrients, initiation of feeding behaviors, sexual behavior, caring for offspring and aggression. Disturbances / damage to it can lead to / cause unusual eating and drinking behaviors.
  9. is a brain structure of the hindbrain and it is located at the top of the brain stem. It is involved in respiration, body movement, alertness and sleep. The pons is part of the Reticular Activating System.
  10. Stimulation of this part of the brain makes us alert. However, drugs such as alcohol, decreases the activity of this part of the brain, thus affecting our level of alertness and reaction time.
    reticular activating system
  11. seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, and touching are examples of these
    sensory processes
  12. walking, running, jumping and riding a bike are examples of these.
    motor processes
  13. which is attached to the spinal cord, controls largely unconscious but vital functions such as : heart rate, blood pressure, circulating blood, respiration, maintaining muscle tone and regulating reflexes such as : sneezing, coughing and salivating.
  14. the two main decisions are the brain and spinal cord
    central nervous system
  15. its main function is to transmit information from the CNS to the other parts of the body
    made up of neurons
    2 mains parts are: somatic nervous system & parasympathetic nervous system
    peripheral nervous system
  16. carry information to the cell body
  17. carry information away from the body
  18. casing or tubing which holds the myelin
    myelin sheath
  19. a chemical messenger that carries impulses across the gaps/synaptic gaps between neurons.  
    Chemicals that are stored in sacs in the axon terminals
  20. as thick as a thumb.  damage to it usually leads to paralysis
    spinal cord
  21. associated with emotion and motivation.  
    limbic system
  22. the neural center in the limbic system that plays a central role in emotions
  23. controls the activity of the other glands because it secretes many hormones that affect a wide range of behaviors. 
    pituitary gland
  24. threadlike structure that contain genes
  25. dendrites grow throughout our lives. If one part of the brain is damaged, dendrites sometimes make new connections in another part of the brain that would be able to take over the functions usually performed by the damaged part of the brain.
    brain plasticity
  26. involved with the control of muscles
    reduced levels of this causes Alzheimers
  27. involved primarily in motor behavior
    a deficiency causes Parkinson's disease
  28. when released make you happy
  29. a division of PNS that connects the CNS with sensory receptors, muscles, and skin
    enables us to feel hot/cold
    somatic nervous system
  30. division of PNS that regulates body functions such as respiration, digestion, heartbeat, and blood pressure
    autonomic nervous system
  31. activated when someone is going into action because of some stressful event
    prepares a person to run away
    sympathetic nervous system
  32. restores the body's energy level after a stressful action has taken pace. heart and respiration rate return to normal
    parasympathetic nervous system
  33. produces energy that fuels the activity of the cell
    cell body
  34. white, fatty substance that insulates and protects the axon
  35. junction between the axon terminals of one neuron, it must cross this
  36. the glands that secrete hormones into the blood stream
    endocrine system
  37. chemicals produced by the endocrine glands that regulate specific body functions
  38. the genetic transmission of traits from one generation to the next
  39. the basic building blocks of heredity

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