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| Cerebral cortex | The coiled, outer layer of the brain's cerebral hemispheres. |
| Corpus callsoum | A mass of nerve fibres which connects the two cerebral hemispheres, enabling the exchange of information and coordination of their activities. |
| Cerebral hemispheres | Two almost symmetrical halves of the brain. Separated by a longitunindal fissure from the front to the back, but connected by the corpus callosum and other nerve fibres. |
| Association areas | A general term used to describe parts of the cerebral hemisphere other than those that have specialised functions. |
| Frontal lobe | Located in the upper forward half of each hemisphere, contains the primary motor cortex, and is also associated with higher mental abilities. |
| Primary motor cortex | A strip of neural tissue at the rear of the frontal lobe that is specifically involved in controlling bodily movements through its control of skeletal muscles. |
| Broca's area | A specialised area of the brain located in the left hemisphere that controls muscles involved in the production of speech and supplies this information to appropriate motor cortex areas. |
| Temporal lobe | Primarily involved with hearing, but also plays an important role in memory and other mental processes. |
| Primary auditory cortex | Receives and accesses sounds from both ears. |
| Wernicke's area | A specialised area in the left cerebral hemisphere which is involved with comprehending the sounds of human speech. |
| Occipital lobe | Primarily involved in receiving and processing visual information. |
| Primary visual cortex | Receives and processes visual information from the eyes. |
| Parietal lobe | Receives and processes sensory information from the body and skin senses as well as other sensory areas in the brain. |
| Primary somatosensory cortex | A strip of neural tissue that receives and processes sensory information from the skin and body, enabling perception of bodily sensations. |
| Hemispheric specialisation | Specialisation and dominance or greater control of certain functions by each of the cerebral hemispheres of the brain. |
| Left hemisphere | Specialises in verbal functions (use or recognition of words) and analytical functions (logical reasoning), controls right side of body, and the temporal lobe in the left cerebral hemisphere is involved with comprehending the sounds of human speech. |
| Right hemisphere | Specialises in non-verbal functions (spatial and visual thinking), recognising faces/patterns/tunes, appreciating music/art, creativity, fantasy, controls left side of body. |
| Case study | An in-depth study of some behaviour or phenomenon of interest in a particular individual, group or situation. Usually involves individual, brain-damaged patients. |
| Electrical stimulation of the brain (ESB) | Using an electrode to deliver a precisely regulated electrical current to the brain, thereby stimulating a specific brain structure or area into activity. May also be used to block (inhibit) activity. |
| Electroencephalogram (EEG) | A device used to detect, amplify and record electrical activity in the brain. |
| Computerised tomography (CT) | Produces a computer-enhanced image of a cross-section of the brain from x-rays taken from different angles. |
| Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) | Uses magnetic fields and radio waves to vibrate atoms in the brain's neurons to produce a very detailed computer-generated image of the brain. |
| Positron emission tomography (PET) | Provides computer-generated images of the 'working brain' by tracking blood flow and radioactive substance around the brain (through glucose usage by active neurons). |
| Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) | Provides computer-generated images of the 'working brain' by detecting changes in oxygen levels in the blood flowing through the brain. Based on the standard MRI. |
| Nervous system | Responsible for everything we think, feel and do. |
| Central nervous system (CNS) | Consists of the brain and spinal cord. |
| Peripheral nervous system (PNS) | All parts of the nervous system that lie outside the CNS. It links the CNS to the rest of the body. |
| Somatic nervous system | Comprises a network of sensory nerves that carry information received by the sensory receptors in the body to the CNS and motor nerves that carry information from the CNS to control voluntary movements of skeletal muscles. |
| Autonomic nervous system (ANS) | Comprises a network of nerves that connects the CNS with internal organs and glands, providing feedback to the brain about their activities. Many of its functions are usually self-regulating. |
| Sympathetic nervous system | Activates the nerves, glands and visveral muscles (blood vessels, heart and intestines) in times of stress or threat. |
| Parasympathetic nervous system | Keeps the systems of the body functioning efficiently and also restores the body to a state of calm by reversing the direction of the bodily changes activated by the sympathetic nervous system. |
| Arousal | An organism's overall state of alertness and readiness for action. |
| Fight-flight response | An automatic reaction to the sympathetic nervous system that prepares the body to deal with a sudden threat by either confronting it (fight) or running away (flight). |
| Polygraph | Measures physiological responses such as galvanic skin response (GSR), heart rate, blood pressure and breathing rate. |
| Stress | An unpleasant state of physiological tension which can be brought on by either internal or external factors (stressors), and which is perceived as exceeding a person's resources or their ability to cope. |
| Stressors | An event that produces stress. May be a physical stimulus or psychological in nature. |
| Psychological effects of stress | Anger, depression, helplessness, anxiety and/or psychosomatic illness including asthma, migraines, ulcers and skin eruptions. |
| Physiological effects of stress | Immune system dysfunction including common cold, headaches, menstrual discomfort, stomach ulcers, diabetes, asthma, chronic back pain, ulcerative colitis, arthritis, heart disease, cancer and multiple sclerosis. |
| General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS) | The total mobilisation of an organism's resources and defence systems in response to stress. |
| GAS Stage 1 | Alarm reaction: body goes into a (temporary) state of shock before rebounding (countershock). |
| GAS Stage 2 | Resistance: the body's resistance to a stressor develops and rises above normal. |
| GAS Stage 3 | Exhaustion: the effects of the stressor can no longer be dealt with and the organism becomes weak and vulnerable to physical and psychological illness. |
