PILLAR 1: BIOLOGICAL - BRAIN & BEHAVIORCourse Definition/Facts(1) Definition in your own words, (2) Applied example, or(3) Use of the term in a unique, personal sentenceThe Nervous SystemPlasticity - That ability of the nervous system to adapt and change throughout life- Experience allows for the formation of new connections making new paths for processingThe ability of the nervous system to change its activity in response to intrinsic or extrinsic stimuli by reorganizing its structures, functions, or connections.Ex: an area of the brain that is devoted to movement of the left leg.Central Nervous System - Interprets and initiates behavior- Brain + spinal cordComprised of the brain and the spinal cord, receives sensory information from the nervous systems and controls the body’s responses.Sentence: Messages from the brain are carried by the central nervous system.Peripheral Nervous System - Collects information from the environment and sends to brain (afferent nerves)- Carries out behaviors (efferent nerves)- Autonomic : involuntary function- Somatic : voluntary motor action- Sympathetic : active during times of danger or stress- Parasympathetic : active during normal functioning; calms stress responsesThe division of the nervous system containing all the nerves that lie outside ofthe central nervous system.Sentence: Brain cells can give rise to all previous cells types including the peripheral nervous system and smooth muscle. Neural Networks - Interconnected webs of neurons that integrate sensory input and motor output - Characteristic networks or patterns of firing that are createdthrough experienceA technique for modeling the neural changes in the brain that underlie cognition and perception in which a large number of simple hypothetical neural units are connected to one another.Ex: in the case of facial recognition, the brain might start with “is it female or male?”Neurons - Cells specialized for information processingA nerve cell that is the basic building block of the nervous system.Sentence: Sleep is not exhaustion of the neuron in the sense that prolonged activity has reduced its excitability to zero.Glial cells - Cells that support “life” functionsof neurons; provide nutritional benefit to keep neurons aliveCells which are non-neuronal and are located within the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system that provides physical and metabolic support to neurons.Ex: microglia, radial cells, ependymal cells© 2021-22 GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY – PSYCHOLOGY 1101: INTRODUCTION TO GENERAL PSYCHOLOGYDendrite - Part of the neuron that receives information from other neurons or the sensory system- “listens”Tree-like extensions at the beginning of a neuron that help increase the surface area of the cell body.Sentence: Each neuron has 128 basal dendritic segments.Axon - Part of the neuron that sends electrical messages- “speaks”The long thin, hollow, cylindrical extension of a neuron that normally carries anerve impulse away from the cell body. Sentence: Axons are in effect the primary transmission lines of the nervous system, and as bundles they help make up nerves.Myelin Sheath - Layer of fatty tissue surrounding the length of the axon- Important in retaining the electrical signal within the axonA substance which is found on neurons within the central nervous system andthe peripheral nervous system. Sentence: Myelin sheath is the protective layer that wraps around the axons of neurons to aid in insulating the neurons. Synapse - Empty space between two neurons where they “connect”the small gap between two neurons, where nerve impulses are relayed by a neurotransmitter from the axon of a presynaptic neuron to the dendrite of a postsynaptic neuron.Sentence: Synapses are also important within the brain, and play a vital role in the process of memory formation. Action Potential (Electric Signaling)- Signal caused by the movement of positive ions across the axon membrane through sodium-potassium channels (movement of Na+ from outside to inside the axon and then back out again)- All-or-nothing principle: once an electrical impulse is initiated (reaching a required charge threshold) it moves all the way down an axon at the same intensityAn action potential occurs when a neuron transmits an electrical charge downits axon, which terminates in the release of chemical signals in the form of neurotransmitters.Sentence: Each action potential takes just a few milliseconds, also called spikepotential.Neurotransmitters (Chemical Signaling)- Chemicals that must cross the synapse in order for a signal to betransmitted from one neuron to another- Excitatory : activates or speeds upsignaling to a post-synaptic neuron; causes the signal to be transmitted from one neuron to A chemical messenger that carries, boosts, and balances signals between neurons and target cells through out the body. Ex: amino acids, peptides, purines.© 2021-22 GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY – PSYCHOLOGY 1101: INTRODUCTION TO GENERAL PSYCHOLOGYthe next- Inhibitory : deactivates or slows down signaling to a post-synapticneuron; can stop a signal from being transmitted to the next neuronBrain StructuresHindbrain - The lowest (in position) and rear part of the brain and evolutionarily oldest- Supports life functions; includes medulla, pons and cerebellumThe hindbrain coordinates functions that are fundamental to survival, including respiratory rhythm, motor activity, sleep, and wakefulness.Sentence: The hindbrain is composed of the medulla, the pons, and the cerebellum.Medulla - Cardio and respiratory function- Reflex responsiveness- Automatic survival functionsThe medulla is a structure of the brain located in the brain stem.Sentence: The medulla is primarily responsible for breathing, heart rate, blood pressure, and coughing.Pons - Respiration, consciousness and sleep a part of the brainstem lying between the midbrain and the medulla oblongata, appearing as a swelling on the ventral surface of the brainstem.Sentence: It consists of bundles of transverse, ascending, and descending nerve fibers and nuclei, including facial nerve nuclei.Cerebellum - Balance and fine tuning of movement (motor coordination)The cerebellum is a major structure of the hindbrain that is located near the brainstem.Sentence: This part of the brain is responsible for coordinating voluntary movements.Thalamus - Sensory relay- “Intersection” and integration point for all sensory systemsThe thalamus is a
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