PSYCH261 Chapter Notes - Chapter 2.2: Cathode Ray Tube, Membrane Potential, Resting Potential
28 Sep 2018
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Psych 261 textbook chapter 2 reading summary. Electrode: a conductive medium that can be used to apply electrical stimulation or to record electrical potentials. Microelectrode: a very fine electrode, generally used to record activity of individual neurons, made of metal or glass. Membrane potential: the electrical charge across a cell membrane; the difference in electrical potential inside and outside the cell. Oscilloscope: a laboratory instrument that is capable of displaying a graph of voltage as a function of time on the face of a cathode ray tube, used to see changes in membrane potential. Resting potential the membrane potential of a neuron when it is not being altered by excitatory or inhibitory postsynaptic potentials; approximately -70 mv in the giant squid axon. Depolarization: reduction (toward zero) of the membrane potential of a cell from its normal resting potential. Hyperpolarization: an increase in the membrane potential of a cell, relative to the normal resting potential.
