| A | B |
|---|
| cerebr/o | cerebrum |
| cerebell/o | cerebellum |
| crani/o | skull |
| encephal/o | entire brain |
| esthesi/o | sensation |
| gangli/o | ganglion |
| gli/o | glue |
| gnos/o | knowing |
| kinesi/o | movement |
| lex/o | word or phrase |
| mening/o, meningi/o | meninges (membrane) |
| myel/o | spinal cord or bone marrow |
| narc/o | stupor or sleep |
| neur/o | nerve |
| phas/o | speech |
| phob/o | exaggerated fear or sensitivity |
| phren/o, psych/o, thym/o | mind |
| schiz/o | split |
| somat/o | body |
| somn/o, somn/i, hypn/o | sleep |
| spin/o | spine |
| spondyl/o, vertebr/o | vertebra |
| stere/o | three-dimensional or solid |
| tax/o | order or coordination |
| thalam/o | thalamus |
| ton/o | tone or tension |
| top/o | place |
| ventricul/o | ventricle |
| cata | down |
| -asthenia | weakness |
| -lepsy | seizure |
| -mania | condition of abnormal impulse toward |
| -paresis | slight paralysis |
| -plegia | paralysis |
| central nervous system (CNS) | brain and spinal cord |
| brain | portion of the central nervous system contained within the cranium |
| cerebrum | largest portion of the brain; divided in right and left halves known as cerebral hemispheres |
| frontal lobe | anterior section of each cerebral hemisphere; responsible for voluntary muscle movement and personality |
| parietal lobe | portion posterior to the frontal lobe; responsible for sensations such as pain, temperature, and touch |
| temporal lobe | portion that lies below the frontal lobe; responsible for hearing, taste, and smell |
| occipital lobe | portion posterior to the parietal and temporal lobes; responsible for vision |
| cerebral cortex | outer layer of the cerebrum consisting of gray matter; responsible for higher mental functions |
| thalamus | each of two gray matter nuclei deep within the brain; responsible for relaying sensory information to the cortex |
| gyri | convolutions of the cerebral hemispheres |
| suci | shallow grooves that separate gyri |
| fissures | deep grooves in the brain |
| cerebellum | portion of the brain located below the occipital lobes of the cerebrum; responsible for control and coordination of skeletal muscles |
| brainstem | region of the brain that serves as a relay between the cerebrum, cerebellum, and spinal cord; responsible for breathing, heart rate, and body temperature; the three levels are the mesencephalon, pons, and medulla oblongata |
| ventricles | series of interconnected cavities within the cerebral hemispheres and brainstem filled with cerebrospinal fluid |
| cerebrospinal fluid | plasma-like clear fluid circulating in and around the brain and spinal cord |
| spinal cord | column of nervous tissue from the brainstem through the vertebrae; responsible for nerve conduction to and from the brain and the body |
| meninges | three membranes that cover the brain and spinal cord, consisting of the dura mater, pia mater, and arachnoid mater |
| peripheral nervous system | nerves that branch out from the central nervous system inclulding nerves of the brain and spinal cord |
| cranial nerves | 12 pairs of nerves arising from the brain |
| spinal nerves | 31 pairs of nerves arising from the spinal cord |
| sensory nerves | nerves that conduct impulses from body parts and carry sensory information to the brain; also called afferent nerves |
| motor nerves; efferent nerves | nerves that conduct motor impulses from the brain to muscles and glands |
| autonomic nervous system (ANS) | nerves that carry involuntary impulses to smooth muscle, cardiac muscle, and various glands |
| hypothalamus | control center for the autonomic nervous system located below the thalamus |
| sympathetic nervous system | division of the autonomic nervous system that is concerned primarily with preparing the body in stressful or emergency situations |
| parasympathetic nervous system | division of the autonomic nervous system that is most active in ordinary conditions; it counterbalances the effects of the sympathetic system by restoring the body to a restful state after a stressful experience |
