| A | B |
|---|
| central nervous system | consists of the brain and the spinal cord |
| peripheral nervous system | made up of nerve cells that send messages between the central nervous system and all the parts of the body |
| neurons | run through our entire body communicating with each other |
| cell body | produces energy that fuels the activity of the cell |
| dendrites | thin fibers that branch out from the cell body |
| cerebral cortex | the bumpy, convoluted surface of the brain; the body's control and information processing center |
| corpus callosum | the nerve fibers that connect the left and right hemispheres of the cerebral cortex |
| axon | a long tubelike structure attached to a neuron that transmits impluses away form the neuron cell body |
| myelin | a white, fatty substance that insulates axons and enables rapid transimission of neural impulses |
| axon terminals | small fibers branching out from an axon |
| synapse | the junction between the axon terminals of the sending neuron and the dendrites of the receiving neuron |
| neurotransmitters | a chemical messenger that carries impulses across the synaptic gaps between neurons |
| spinal cord | the colum of nerves that trasmits messages between the brain and the musles and glands |
| somatic nervous system | system that trasmits sensory messages to the central nervous system |
| automomic nervous system | system that controls vital non voluntary body systems. |
