PSY 101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Coronal Plane, Motor Cortex, Brainstem
Document Summary
Biology & the brain: neural communication, the nervous system, the endocrine system. Neurons are nerve cells that carry and integrate information. Incoming messages are received by the dendrites, synthesized in the cell body, travel down the axon in the form of an action potential and then released through the axon terminals. Action potential an electrical charge that travels down the axon. Action potentials are released through the axon terminals. Threshold the level of stimulation required to trigger an action potential. The effects of myelin on the communication of the action potential. Neurotransmitters chemical messengers that travel across the synapse and influence whether a neural impulse will be generated. Two kinds of neurotransmitters: agonists , antagonist . Endorphins natural, opiate-like neurotransmitters linked to the control of pain and pleasure. Drugs generally have one of two effects on your brain chemistry: mimic the effect of a neurotransmitter, block a neurotransmitter"s reuptake.
