PSYC 2 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Multiple Sclerosis, Epilepsy, Saltatory Conduction
Document Summary
Everything your brain does is the result of/form of information processing: Brain senses, perceives and understands the world; learns and remembers; feels emotions. Human brain size: ~3 lbs (from 300 grams in infancy growing to 13400-1400 grams) Made up of neurons: bulb like cell bodies, long nerve fiber, carries electrical signals. Are important units that process information using electrical signals. Multipolar: usual type (dendrite,cell body axon); human brain has most of this type. Bipolar: cell body only has 2 things sticking out. 3 stages of computation (function of a neuron: input: receive signals (dendrite, evaluation: process those inputs (soma, output: transmit signals to other cells (axon) Nervous system: chain of neurons (sensory neurons interneurons motor neurons) Output: neuron pass to axon only if excited enough to overcome threshold. Neuron at rest: positive outside, negative inside (-70mv) Key ions: na+, k+, cl-, a- (organic anion)
