Psych 100 Chapter 4 Notes

Central Nervous system: Brain/Spinal Cord

Spinal Cord: A collection of neurons and supportive tissues running from the base of the
brain down the centre of the back protected by a column of Bones.
Peripheral Nervous System: All portions of the brain outside brain and spinal cord. Sensory
nerves carry messages from the receptors in skin/muscle and other sense organs to the
spinal cord which sends it to the brain.
Motor Nerves: Carry orders from the CNS to muscles/glands/internal organ. They enable us
to move and they cause glands to contract and secrete substances called hormones.
The Peripheral Nervous system has 2 subdivisions.
1. Somatic Nervous System: The subdivision of PNS that consists of nerves that are
connected to sensory receptors/helps sense the world and the skeletal muscles that
permit voluntary action. Bug/hot pan.
2. Automatic Nervous System: Subdivision of PNS that regulates the functioning of
blood vessels/glands/internal organs/glands/stomach/heart. Crush
The Automatic Nervous system has 2 subdivisions.
1. Sympathetic Nervous system: Subdivision of ANS that mobilises bodily resources
and increases the output of energy during emotion/stress and fight or flight
situations.
2. Parasympathetic Nervous system: Subdivision of ANS that operates in relaxed
states and conserve energy.
Neuron: a cell that conducts electrochemical signals/ the basic unit of nervous system with 171
billion cells.

Glias: Cell that support/nurture/insulate neurons and remove debris when neurons die. Enhances
the function and maintainace of neural connections and modify neural functioning.

Structure of neuron: 200 Types

1. Dendrites: little tree/acts like antenna receiving messages from other nerve cells and
transferring these messages to cell body.
2. Cell body: shaped like a sphere or pyramid and includes cell nucleus that contains dna and
control cell growth and reproduction.
3. Axon: attached to the cell body and transmits message saway to neuron/muscle/gllands.
Axon divide into branches called axon terminals.

Myelin sheath: a fatty insulation that may surround the axon of a neuron/prevents adjacent signals
from interfering

Stem cell Production:

Neurogenesis: the production of new neurons from immature stem cells.

Stem cell: immature cell that renew themselves and have potential to develop into new cells given
encouraging environment. Stem cells from early embroys can develop into any cell.

How neurons communicate?

Synapse: the site where transmission of a nerve impulse from one nerve cell to another occurs. Slow
in babies cause myelin sheath not developed.

Factors: which neuron/how many/rate of firing.

Chemicals:

Neurotransmitters: a chemical substance that is released by a transmitting neuron at the synpase

which alters the activitng of receiving neuron.

1. Serotonin: effects neurons involved in sleep/appetite/sensory perception/temperature

regulation/main suppression/mood
2. Dopamine: voluntary movement/attention/learning/memory/emotion/pleasure and
reward/response to novelty
3. Acetylochline: effects neurons involved in action/arousal/vigilance/memory/emotion.
4. Noreperiphrine: increasing heartrate/slowing intestinal activity during
stress/learning/memory/dreaming/waking from sleep

Hormones: produced in endocrine glands/far from origin/into bloodstream/promotes bodily

growth/aid digestion/regulate metabolism

1. Melatonin: secreated by pineal gland deep in brain that regulates daily rythums and promote
sleep.
2. Oxytocin: pituitary gland/promotes attachment, trust/ejection of milk during nursing
3. aAdrenal Homones: secreted by adrenal glands/organs above kidney/////outerpart releases
coristol that boost nergy/////inner part release adrenaline and nonpinephrine /increases
arousal/preps for action
4. Sex Hormones: estrogen promotes learning/progesterone/androgen

Neuromodulators: neurochemicals that modulate the functioning of neurons and neurotransmitters.

1. Serotonin transporter: collects released serotonin and back to sending neuron for recycling.
2. Endorphins: similar in structure and fucntion to opiates/pain reduction/pleasure/memory.

Mapping the Brain

Lesion Method: removing or disabling a brain structure to gain better understanding of its function.

Trancranial magnetic stimulation: method of stimulating brain cells using a powerful magnetic field
produced by wire coil placed on a persons head.

Trancranial direct current stimulation: technique applies a very small electric current to stimlate or
suppress activity in part of cortex.

5 Techniques of researchers:

EEG: recording of neural activity recorded by electroces.

ERP: Ec=vent related potiential/tecgnique that isolates the neural activity associated with specific
stimulus/ not where but when/study infants

PET: position emission topography/method of nalysing biochemical activities in brain by using

injections of glucose having radicoactive elemnts.
Points to Ponder:

1. Brain images are oversimplified and misleading

2. Scitnist need to quite the noise and receive signals

A tour through Brain.

Brain Stem: Part of brain at top of spinal cord cosisting of medulla and pons.

Pons: structur in brain cells controlling waking/dreaming/sleep

Medulla: structure in brain responsible for automatic functions/breathing/heartrate

Rericular activating system: dense network of neurons found in core of brain stems./arouses the
cortex and screens incoming info/attention comes from this

Crebellum: structre that regulates movement and balance/involved in aquiring reflexs and rembering
simple skills/helps in cognitive and emotional learning.

Thalamus: sensory relay station of brain/directs sensory messages higher up to areas incharge of
vision/sound/touch. Smell is an exception.

Hypothalamus: brain structure involved in emotion and drives vitals to survival/regulate

ANS/freeze/fight/flight/fuck

Pitutary Gland: mastergland/endocrine gland/releases hormones

These two also known as limbic systems/border between lower and upper brain/mainly involved
with emotion.

Small/Amygdala: fear center/evaluates sensory info/determones emotional importance/contributes

to decision either approach or withdraw a situation.

Seahorse/Hippocampus: brain structure involved in the storage of new info/retrieval of info on

recall/cars/birds/saliva

Cerebrum: Lar
2 Hemisspheres of Brain

Left side: Rational and analytical/ ability to speak and understand language/reading/identifying
objects/making symbolic gestures/describing event in order

Right Side: identifying faces/interpreting emotional expression on face and voice/understanding

music or art/handling problems requiring spatial visual.

Neuroplasticity: the brains ability to change and adapt in response to experience through
neurogeneis or by reorganising or growing new neural connections.

His and Her Brain

Men: Large Amygdala/ more neurons in the partial cortex/right amygdala gets input

Women: large frontal lobes/more cortical folds/left amygdala gets input

5 Cautions when comparing both brains.

1. Research can be used to justify sexism.

2. Many differneces are suppoused/ women talk more
3. Brain differnece deoesnt necessarily produce behavioural differences. /brain organised
differently but produce same results.
4. Differnece in brain don’t necessarily account for differnce in behaviour/empathy in women
5. Differnce could be result rather than cause of behavioural differnces.
6. Now you see it/now u dont