Key Terms: Biological Bases of Behavior

The Neuron

• Parts

  • Soma

    • nucleus
    • organelles

  • Dendrites

  • Axon

  • Axon Terminals

    • vesicles

• Function

  • Resting Potential

    • -70 mV inside

  • Action Potential

    • rapid reversal of polarity
    • Na in, K out
    • all-or-none
    • non-decremental

  • Synaptic Communication

    • neurotransmitters
    • receptors
    • post-synaptic potential

Nervous System Structures and Functions

• Peripheral Nervous System

  • Somatic N.S.

    • skeletal muscles
    • skin & joints

  • Autonomic N.S.

    • internal organs & glands
    • sympathetic branch
    • parasympathetic branch

• Central Nervous System

  • Spinal Cord

  • Brainstem

    • vegetative nuclei
    • reticular formation
    • cerebellum

  • Forebrain

    • hypothalamus

      • motivation & drives

    • thalamus

      • relay station
      • "gatekeeper of consciousness"

    • basal ganglia

      • initiating movement

    • limbic system

      • septum
        • lesion causes "septal rage"
      • amygdala
        • lesion causes tameness
      • hippocampus
        • memory consolidation

    • cortex

      • frontal lobe
        • motor control
        • planning
      • parietal lobe
        • somatosensation
      • occipital lobe
        • vision
      • temporal lobe
        • audition