Unit Notes 2.1.docx

Unit 2.1 Notes -- Neurons 1. Define Plasticity a. Brains ability to change, especially during childhood, by reorganizing after damage, or by building new pathways based on experience 2. Neuron Structure b. Dendrite i. Receive messages and extend them to the...

Unit 2.1 Notes -- Neurons 1. Define Plasticity a. Brains ability to change, especially during childhood, by reorganizing after damage, or by building new pathways based on experience 2. Neuron Structure b. Dendrite i. Receive messages and extend them to the cell body c. Axon ii. Neuron extension that sends messages to other neurons, muscles, or glands d. Action Potential iii. A nerve impulse: a brief electrical charge that travels down a neuron e. Myelin Sheath iv. Cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons; they also play a role in learning, thinking, and memory f. Synapse v. The junction between the axon tip of a sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron 3. Neuron Communication g. Threshold vi. Level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse h. Refractory Period vii. In neural processing, a brief resting pause occurs after a neuron has fired; subsequent action potentials cannot occur until the axon returns to its resting state i. All-or-Nothing Response viii. A neuron's reaction of either firing or not firing j. Neurotransmitters ix. Neuron-produced chemicals that cross the synaptic gap to carry messages to other neurons, muscles, or glands k. Reuptake x. A neurotransmitter's reabsorption by sending neurons 4. Neurotransmitters l. Acetylcholine xi. Enables muscle action, learning, and memory xii. With Alzheimer's disease, ACH-producing neurons deteriorate m. Dopamine xiii. Influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion, stimulates the hypothalamus (reward center) xiv. Oversupply linked with Schizophrenia, undersupply linked with tremors and Parkinson's, anxiety disorders n. Serotonin xv. Affects mood, hunger, sleep, emotional state, and arousal xvi. Undersupply linked to depression o. Norepinephrine xvii. Helps control alertness and arousal xviii. Undersupply can depress mood, oversupply linked with anxiety p. GABA xix. Helps to offset excitatory, messages, and regulate daily sleep-wake cycles xx. Brain's major inhibitory neurotransmitter xxi. Undersupply linked to seizures, tremors, and insomnia q. Glutamate xxii. A major excitatory neurotransmitter, involved in memory, learning xxiii. Helps messages move across the synapse xxiv. Oversupply can overstimulate the brain, producing migraines and seizures r. Endorphins xxv. Influences the perception of pain, pleasure, and stress reduction xxvi. Like opiates xxvii. Oversupply of opiate drugs can suppress the body's natural endorphin supply Unit 2.2 Notes -- Neurons 1. Nervous System -- body's speedy, electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous system a. Nerves i. Bundled axons that form neural cables connecting the central nervous system with the muscles, glands, and sense organs b. Peripheral Nervous System ii. The sensory and motor neurons connecting the central nervous system to the rest of the body c. Central Nervous System iii. Brain and spinal cord 2. Three Types of Neurons d. Sensory neurons iv. Neurons that carry messages from the body's tissues and sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord e. Motor neurons v. Neurons that carry outgoing information form the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands f. Interneurons vi. Neurons within the brain and the spinal cord; communicate information between sensory inputs and motor outputs 3. Peripheral Nervous System g. Somatic vii. Controls the skeletal muscles h. Autonomic viii. Controls the glands and muscles of the internal organs ix. Sympathetic 1. Arouses body, mobilizing energy x. Parasympathetic 2. Calms the body, conserving energy 4. Endocrine System: the body's "slow" chemical communication system; a set of glands that secrete hormones into the bloodstream. i. Hormones -- chemical messengers that are manufactured by the endocrine glands, travel through the bloodstream, and affect other tissues. j. Pituitary Gland -- the most influential endocrine gland. Under the influence of the hypothalamus, the pituitary regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands. Unit Notes 2.4: Consciousness and Attention 1. Consciousness: our awareness of ourselves and our environment. 2. Sequential Processing: the processing of one aspect of a problem at a time. 3. Parallel Processing: the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously: the brain's natural mode of information processing. 4. Attention a. Selective attention: focusing conscious awareness on a specific stimulus 5. Inattentional Blindness: failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere 6. Change Blindness: failing to notice changes in the environment 7. Points to Remember b. We don't see the world as it is, but as it is useful to us c. Our attention can only be in one place at one time Unit Notes 2.5: Sleep & Dreams 1. Circadian Rhythm: internal biological clock; regular bodily rhythms that occur on a 24-hour cycle. 2. Sleep Stages a. Rem sleep: rapid eye movement sleep; a recurring sleep stage during which vivid dreams b commonly occur. Also known as paradoxical sleep, because the muscles are relaxed but other body systems are active. b. Alpha waves: relatively slow brain waves of a relaxed, awake state. c. Delta waves: large, slow brain waves associated with deep sleep. 3. Why do we sleep? d. Protects -- no bad things happen e. Helps recover -- muscles, growth, neural pathways f. Helps us restore and rebuild fading memories of the day's experience g. Feeds creative thinking h. Supports growth 4. Sleep deprivation i. Linked to depression j. Suppressed immune system k. Decreased ability to focus and perform tasks l. Waight gain i. Increases the hunger-arousing hormone and decreases its hunger suppressing hormone. ii. Decreases metabolic rate m. Increases cortisol, a stress hormone n. Enhances limbic brain responses 5. Sleep disorders o. Insomnia iii. Reoccurring problems in falling and staying asleep p. Narcolepsy iv. Sleep disorder in which a person has uncontrollable sleep attacks, sometimes lapsing directly into REM sleep q. Sleep apnea v. Sleeping person repeatedly stops breathing until the blood oxygen is so low the person awakens just long enough to draw a breath 6. Healthy sleep habits r. Stick to a schedule s. Avoid stimulation an hour before bed vi. Blue light vii. Caffeine t. Avoid naps u. Keep bedroom temp cool v. Avoid substance abuse w. If you cannot fall asleep, do something else until you get tired again. 7. Dreams x. Why do we dream? viii. Satisfy wishes ix. File memories x. Develop and preserve neural pathways xi. Make sense of neural static xii. Reflect cognitive development