PSYC100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Peripheral Nervous System, Central Nervous System, Blood Sugar
Document Summary
Central nervous system: thinking, feeling, acing: neural networks-brain"s neurons work in clusters together. Spiral cord-informaion highway connecing peripheral nervous systems to the brain. Informaion travels to and from the brain by way of spinal cord: relexes-automaic responses to simuli (pain relex, sensory neurons to interneurons in your spinal cord) The endocrine system: endocrine system-a communicaion system that secretes hormones, hormones-chemical messengers that travel through the bloodstream and afect other issues, including the brain. Inluence interest in sex, food, and aggression: endocrine & nervous system. Both produce molecules that act on receptors elsewhere. Hormones take several seconds or more to travel from gland to target issue: adrenal glands-on top of kidneys & release epinephrine & norepinephrine (adrenaline & noradrenaline in ight-or-light response) Increase heart rate, blood pressure, blood sugar, surge of energy: pituitary gland-most inluenial endocrine gland; pea-sized structure located in the core of the brain where it is controlled by an adjacent brain area, hypothalamus.
