Unit Two: Biological Bases of Behavior

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Unit TwoBiological Bases of Behavior

• AP Psychology
• Ms. Egan

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The Biology Behind the Psychology

• Everything Psychological is ultimately
  Biological.
• What does this say to you?

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Neurons building blocks of the Nervous System
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Neural Communication

• Action potential a neural impulse
• Threshold minimum intensity needed to fire
  impulse
• Neuron firings are all-or-none responses
• Synapse gap between neurons (also called a
  synaptic gap or cleft)
• Neurotransmitters chemical messengers that bind
  to receptor sites on receiving neuron
• Reuptake sending neuron reabsorbs excess
  neurotransmitters

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Demonstrations

• Action Potential
• Synaptic Transmission

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Types of Neurons

• Sensory Neurons (afferent) 2 million
• Sends messages from sense organs ? brain
• Motor Neurons (efferent) 2-3 million
• Sends messages from brain ? muscles, organs,
  glands
• Interneurons Billions Billions
• Relay messages between sensory motor neurons
• Glial cells The forgotten cell
• Glue cells which help connections, insulate, and
  clean up

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Influence of Neurotransmitters

• Each neurotransmitter has a specific effect on
  behavior emotions
• Acetylcholine muscle action, learning,
  memory
• Dopamine movement, learning, attention,
  emotion
• Serotonin mood, hunger, sleep,
  arousal
• Norepinephrine alertness, arousal
• GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid)
  inhibitory neurotransmitter
• Glutamate excitatory neurotransmitter,
  memory
• Find a condition or disease associated with the
  blockage or increase in one of these
  neurotransmitters.

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Drugs Neurotransmitters

• Endorphins natural opiates released in
  response to pain or vigorous exercise
• Why not flood the brain with artificial opiates??
• Brain will stop producing natural ones
• Withdrawal symptoms
• Drugs affect communication at the synapse
• Agonist Molecule excites, mimics
  neurotransmitter
• Antagonist Molecule inhibits, blocks
  neurotransmitter

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Neuron FAQs

• 100 Billion neurons in the human body
• It would take you 3,171 years to count all the
  neurons (1 per second)
• 4-100 Microns wide (1 micron1/1000th of a
  millimeter)
• Your neurons are for life! You will have less
  and less as you get older

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The Nervous System

• Nerves neural cables containing many axon

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Endocrine System

• Slower than nervous system
• Uses hormones (another chemical messenger) to
  communicate
• Flow from tissues through bloodstream to other
  tissues
• Adrenal glands above kidneys secrete hormones
  to arouse body during stress
• Pituitary glands controlled by hypothalamus,
  regulates growth and controls endocrine glands

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The Brain

• How does our brain produce behavior and mental
  processes?

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Whats a brain good for anyway?

• Case Study Phineas Gage

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Case Study Phineas Gage

• Which part of the brain did Gage injure?
• Why did Gage feel no pain after the injury?
• What were the treatments given to Gage after
  the injury?
• What was the major change in Gage after the
  accident?
• What is localization of the brain?

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Studying the Brain

• Electroencephalogram (EEG)
• Measures brains electrical waves by attaching
  electrodes to the scalp
• Positron Emission Tomography (PET Scan)
• Injection of radioactive glucose (brain sugar)
  to detect where fuel goes under different
  situations
• Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
• Magnet aligns spinning atoms of brain to show
  tissue and brain anatomy
• Functioning MRI (fMRI)
• Shows brain function bloodflow

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Brain Structures

• Brain Map (BBC) OR 3-D Brain (PBS)
• Using the Brain Links, complete your brain
  concept map. Give an example of how each
  structure influences your behavior or emotions
• YOU SHOULD KNOW THE FOLLOWING!!!

Brainstem Pons Medulla Oblongata Midbrain Cere
brum Frontal Lobe Cerebral Cortex Parietal
Lobes Thalamus Occipital Lobes Temporal
Lobes Cerebellum Limbic System Amygdala Hypotha
lamus Pituitary Gland Hippocampus Corpus
Callosum
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Split Brain

• Each brain hemisphere serves a different purpose
• Vogel Bogen (1961)
• Stop seizures by splitting corpus collosum
• Sperry, Myers, Gazzaniga were successful with
  animals
• HE-ART

Split Brain Demo
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Right vs. Left Brain
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• We only use 10 of our brain
• Your brain does not grow new cells
• Some people are right-brained, others
  left-brained
• Brain damage cannot be repaired