The Brain: Structure and Function
The lobe of the brain that controls memory, emotions, and problem solving.
What is the Frontal Lobe?
This is the part of the neuron that contains the nucleus and organelles.
What is the Cell Body or Soma?
This is a special kind of photoreceptor neuron that is responsible for color vision.
What are the Cones?
The first step in the Scientific Method.
What is Formulating the Research Question?
The initial detection of environmental stimuli.
What is sensation?
The concept that the whole is greater than the individual parts.
What is Gestalt Theory?
This acts as a relay station for all (98%) sensory input, crucial for perception.
What is the Thalamus?
These are the chemical messengers that transmit messages across the synapse.
What are the neurotransmitters?
This is the opening in the eye that adjusts in size, based upon light intensity and emotional response.
What is the Pupil?
A testable prediction.
What is a hypothesis?
The psychological process that interprets sensory information.
What is perception?
The brain like to group items together that are close to one another.
What is proximity?
Transmits visual information from the eyes to the brain via the optic nerve.
What is the Optic Chiasm?
This insulates the axon to speed up signal transmission.
What is the function of the myelin sheath?
This bundle of nerve fibers transmits visual information to the brain.
What is the Optic Nerve?
"Could violent cartoons cause aggressive behavior in children?"
What is an example of a research question?
Decreased sensitivity to constant stimulus over time.
What is sensory adaptation?
Even if parts are missing, the brain perceives a complete image.
What is Closure?
Connects the two hemispheres of the brain, allowing them to communicate through nerve fibers.
What is the Corpus Callosum?
This is where the decision is made for a signal to become an Action Potential, before it travels down the Axon.
What is the Axon Hillock?
This converts sound vibrations into neural signals in the ear.
What is the Cochlea?
Researchers do this after testing the hypothesis through collecting data.
What is analyze the results?
The minimum level of stimulus energy needed for detection.
What is the absolute threshold?
An example of this concept is seeing birds flying in the same direction.
What is Common Fate?
One controls higher order functioning such as learning, memory, and reasoning; while the other consists of myelinated axons connecting the brain regions for rapid information transmission.
What are the functions of the gray matter (Cerebral Cortex) and the white matter in the brain?
Neurons communicate through synapses by releasing chemical neurotransmitters from one Axon Terminal of a neuron, to the receiving Dendrites of another.
What is the process of neuron communication?
This affects a person's perception of colors, due to the malfunction or absence of specific types of Cones in the Retina.
What is Color Blindness?
A researcher actively seeks information to contradict evidence that supports their hypothesis.
What is reduce Confirmation Bias?
Only a small amount of information can be processed by the nervous system at a time.
What is the Gate Theory of Pain?
The brain likes smooth and continuous patterns over abrupt or disjointed ones.
What is the Principle of Continuity?