Psychology 101 Chapters 1-6

Front 1

hindsight bias

Back 1

the tendency to believe, after learning the outcome, that one would have foreseen it. (I-knew-it-all-along phenomenon)

Front 2

difference between theory and hypothesis

Back 2

theory: an explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes observations and behaviors
hypothesis: a testable prediction, often implied by a theory

Front 3

sensory neurons

Back 3

tissues to brain

Front 4

motor neurons

Back 4

brain to tissues

Front 5

interneurons

Back 5

within brain

Front 6

action potential

Back 6

a neural impulse, a brief electrical charge that travels through down an axon

Front 7

threshold

Back 7

the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse

Front 8

synapse

Back 8

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

Front 9

neurotransmitters

Back 9

chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between neurons

Front 10

reuptake

Back 10

a neurotransmitters reabsorption by the sending neuron

Front 11

sympathetic nervous system

Back 11

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

Front 12

parasympathetic nervous system

Back 12

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

Front 13

ACh

Back 13

function: enables muscle action, learning and memory
malfunctions: with alzheimer's disease ACh producing neurons deteriorate

Front 14

dopamine

Back 14

function: influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion
malfunction: excess dopamine=schizophrenia. starved of dopamine=parkinson's disease

Front 15

serotonin

Back 15

function: affects mood, hunger, sleep, and arousal
malfunction: undersupply= depression

Front 16

norepinephrine

Back 16

function: helps control alertness and arousal
malfunction: undersupply can depress mood

Front 17

GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid)

Back 17

function: major inhibitory neurotransmitter
malfunction: undersupply leads to seizures, tremors and insomnia

Front 18

glutamate

Back 18

function: a major excitatory neurotransmitter; involved in memory
malfunction: oversupply=overstimulates brain, migraines and seizures

Front 19

medulla

Back 19

the base of the brainstem; controls heartbeat and breathing

Front 20

reticular formation

Back 20

a nerve network in the brainstem that plays an important role in controlling arousal

Front 21

thalamus

Back 21

brains sensory switchboard. receives information from all senses except smell and routes it to the higher brain regions that deal with each sense

Front 22

cerebellum

Back 22

the "little brain" at the base of the brainstem, functions include processing sensory input and coordinating movement output and balance

Front 23

limbic system

Back 23

neural system associated with emotions and drives

Front 24

amygdala

Back 24

2 lima bean sized neural clusters in the limbic system; linked to emotion

Front 25

hypothalamus

Back 25

neural structure lying below the thalamus; directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature) helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland and it is linked to emotion and reward

Front 26

glial cells

Back 26

cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons