| A | B |
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| operational definition | a statement of the procedures (operations) used to define research variables; a definition that tells you how we are measuring the phenomenon we are studying |
| theory | an explanation using an integrated set of principles that organizes and predicts observations |
| hypothesis | a testable prediction, often implied by a theory |
| falsifiability | scientific principle that it must be possible to disprove a hypothesis |
| parsimony | scientific principle that the explanation for an observation is not needlessly complicated. For example, if I can explain two findings about brain activity with one cognitive mechanism, that is usually better than suggesting that two cognitive mechanisms exist. |
| independent variable (IV) | the experimental factor that is manipulated; the variable whose effect is being studied. |
| dependent variable (DV) | the outcome factor; the variable that may change in response to manipulations of the independent variable |
| random assignment | assigning participants to experimental and control conditions by chance, thus minimizing preexisting differences between those assigned to the different groups |
| mean | the arithmetic average of a distribution, obtained by adding the scores and then dividing by the number of scores |
| single-blind procedure | an experimental procedure in which the participants do not know whether they have been assigned to an experimental or a control condition |
| double-blind procedure | an experimental procedure in which both the research participants and the research staff are ignorant (blind) about whether the research participants have received the treatment or a placebo. Commonly used in drug-evaluation studies. |
| replication | repeating the essence of a research study, usually with different participants in different situations, to see whether the basic finding extends to other participants and circumstances |
| Hawthorne effect | an observer effect, in which the research participants alter their behavior because they know they are being observed |
| scientific method | a method of discovery that involves collecting empirical observations and the disproving and refinement of hypotheses |
| confounding variable | a variable not the independent or dependent variable that can affect the outcome of an experiment |
| random sample | a sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion |
| control condition | the condition of an experiment that contrasts with the experimental condition and serves as a comparison for evaluating the effect of the treatment |
| selection bias | an unintended influence on the outcome of an experiment because only certain members of the population are selected, or select themselves, to participate. For example, a poll conducted on Facebook might have a selection bias if people who use social-networking sites are different from the general population |
| third variables | see confounding variable, above; a variable different from those being studied that still affects the outcome of the study |
| Axon | The extension of a Nueron, ending in branching terminal fibers, through which messages pass to other nuerons or to muslces or glands |
| dendrite | the bushy branching extensions of a neuron that recieve messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body |
| Cell Body | Known as the Soma and contains the nucleus of the cel |
| Nuerotransmitter | chemical messangers that traverse the synaptic gaps between nuerons. When released by the sending neuron, neurotransmitters travel across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the recieving neuron, thereby influencing whether that neuron will generate a neural impusle |
| synaptic cleft | junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the revieving neuron. |
| action potential | A nueral impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon. The action potential is generated by the movement of positively charged atoms in and out of channels in the axons membrane |
| axon hinock | anatomical part of a neuron that connects the cell body (the soma) to the axon. |
| nodes of ranvier | are the gaps (approximately 1 micrometer in length) formed between the myelin sheaths generated by different cells. |
| myelin sheath | A layer of fatty tissue segmentally encasing the fibers of many nuerons; enabkles vastlygreater transfmission speed of nueral impulses as the impulse hops from one node to the next |
| dendritic spines | is a small membranous protrusion from a neuron's dendrite that typically receives input from a single synapse of an axon. Dendritic spines serve as a storage site for synaptic strength and help transmit electrical signals to the neuron's cell body |
| vissyl stain | uses basic aniline to stain RNA blue, and is used to highlight important structural features of neurons. The Nissl substance (rough endoplasmic reticulum) appears dark blue due to the staining of ribosomal RNA, giving the cytoplasm a mottled appearance. Individual granules of extranuclear RNA are named Nissl granules (ribosomes). DNA present in the nucleus stains a similar color. |
| gogli stain | Golgi's method stains a limited number of cells at random in their entirety. Dendrites, as well as the cell soma, are clearly stained in brown and black and can be followed in their entire length, which allowed neuroanatomists to track connections between neurons and to make visible the complex networking structure of many parts of the brain and spinal cord. |
| hippocampus | belongs to the limbic system and plays important roles in long-term memory and spatial navigation. |
| pyramid cell | One of the main structural features of the pyramidal neuron is the triangular shaped soma, or cell body, after which the neuron is named. With proper connections, pyramidal cells take part in the circuitry responsible for vision guided motor function. |
| granule cell | tiny neurons (a type of cell) that are around 10 micrometres in diameter. Granule cells are found within the granular layer of the cerebellum, layer 3, inner most layer. erebellar granule cells account for nearly half of the neurons in the central nervous system. Granule cells receive excitatory input from mossy fibers originating from pontine nuclei. |
| glial cell | non-neuronal cells that provide support and nutrition, maintain homeostasis, form myelin, and participate in signal transmission in the nervous system. In the human brain, there is roughly one glia for every neuron with a ratio of about two neurons for every three glia in the cerebral gray matter. |
| purkinje cell | some of the largest neurons in the human brain (Betz cells being the absolute largest)[1], with an intricately elaborate dendritic arbor, characterized by a large number of dendritic spines. Purkinje cells are found within the Purkinje layer in the cerebellum |
| motor nueron | Nuerons located in the central nervous system |
| sensory nueron | neurons that are activated by sensory input (vision, touch, hearing, etc.), and send projections into the central nervous system that convey sensory information to the brain or spinal cord. Unlike neurons of the central nervous system, whose inputs come from other neurons, sensory neurons are activated by physical modalities such as light, sound, temperature, chemical stimulation, etc. |
| internueron | Connects sensory and motor nuerons they are always located in the central nervous system |
| excicatory connection | Nerve impulse which transverses and tells a cell to initiate the cell polarization so that the process continues |
| inhibatory connection | Neurotransmittion which conncects to a skill and |
| opponent processes | a color theory that states that the human visual system interprets information about color by processing signals from cones and rods in an antagonistic manner. The three types of cones have some overlap in the wavelengths of light to which they respond, so it is more efficient for the visual system to record differences between the responses of cones, rather than each type of cone's individual response. |
| leisioning | Temporarily shutting down a cell in order to study the effects of the stopped cell on the brain |
