| A | B |
|---|
| behavioral neuroscience | the contemporary term for physiologicalpsychology, the study of the biological basis of behavior. |
| computerized tomography (CT) | A procedure that extracts the image of a two dimensional slice of tissue from the living organismfrom data obtained by multiple X-ray measurements. |
| cryoprobe | A probe that can produce a reversible brain lesionby lowering the temperature of brain tissue in its vicinity so that nerve cells are temporarily non-functional. |
| dualism | A philosophical theory that considers reality to consist of two irreducible modes, such as mind and brain. |
| electroencephalogram (EEG) | The recordof electrical activity produced (largely) by the brain that is obtained with electrodes placed on the scalp. |
| electrode | A conduction medium (usually metal or conductive fluids) used for electrical recording or stimulation of biological tissues. |
| electrocorticogram (ECoG) | A record of electricalactivity taken directly from the surface of the brain. |
| electron microscope | A device for viewing very small objects at very high magnification using an electron beam focused by electromagnetic fields instead of visible light focused by lenses, as in conventional microscopy. |
| empiricism | the philosophical theory that all knowledge originates in experience. |
| fibers of passage | nerve fibers (axons) that pass through a particular brain region and that neither originate nor terminate in that area. |
| fixation | in microscopy, the chemical hardening of tissue in preparing for staining. |
| functionalism | the study of the activity of an organism in its interactions with its environment. |
| Golgi silver stain | a preparation that completely stains very few cells, allowing these cells to be observed in their entirety. |
| histology | the study of the microscopic structure of tissues. |
| horseradish peroxidase | an enzyme obtained from the horseradish plant that is taken up by the end-feet of a nerve cell and transported within the axon back to the cell body; used to track neural pathways from their termination to their source. |
| lesion analysis | the study of the behavioral effects of damage to the nervous system |
| magnetic resonance imaging (MR) | a procedure for two- and three-dimensional brain imaging obtained by using radio frequency pulses and signals within a magnetic field, usually imaging the density of hydrogen atoms and their interactions with each other and their macromolecular environment. |
| magnetoencephalography (MEG) | the magnetic counterpart of electroencephalography, in which magnetic fields produced by brain electrical activity are recorded by magnetic sensors placed near the scalp. |
| microelectrode | a very small electrode used to record electrical activity of single cells. |
| micropipette | a fine, fluid-filled tube that may be inserted into living tissue. |
| microtome | a device for making thin, regular sections of embedded and fixed tissue. |
| mind-brain problem | the philosophical problem posed in relating mental processes to the activity of the brain. |
| model | a simplified but appropriate representation of a more complex system to which it is similar or analogous in some important aspects. |
| monism | the philosophical view that reality consists of one unified whole. |
| myelin stain | a preparation that selectively stains the myelin, allowing myelinated pathways to be observed. |
| neuroanatomy | the study of the structure of the nervous system. |
| neurochemistry | the study of the chemistry of the nervous system. |
| neuron | an information prcoessing cell of the nervous system, also called a nerve cell. |
| neurophysiology | the study of the function of nerve cells. |
| neuroscience | the multidisciplinary study of the nervous system and its function. |
| neurotoxin | a substance that is poisonous or destructive to nerve tissue. |
| Nissl stain | a preparation that selectively stains the cell bodies but not the processes of neurons; it is used to observe the distribution of cell bodies in the tissue. |
| patch clamp | the use of a micropipette to record the electrical activity of a small patch of cell membrane to which it is attached by suction. |
| psychoneural identity hypothesis | the view that mental and brain processes are one and the same. |
| stain | A chemical procedure that selectively colors particular features of sectioned tissue. |
| stereotaxic apparatus | a device that guides an electrode to a specific region of the brain, using coordinates relating brain structures to skull landmarks. |
| stereotaxic atlas | a collection of maps of brain structures and coordinates related to the landmarks employed by the stereotaxic apparatus. |
| psychobiology & biological psychology | Two other terms used for "behavioral neuroscience". |
