Психологія: Psycholo ...

1. The Neuron: The Basic Unit of Communication
2. The Nervous System and the Endocrine System
3. The Human Brain
4. Practicum: Maximizing Your Brain’s Potential

 Neuroscience—the scientific study of the nervous system. Scientific disciplines that contribute to neuroscience include biology, physiology, genetics, neurology, and biological psychology.

 

Neuron— an individual nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system Neuron cells are highly specialized to receive and transmit information from one part of the body to another. The human brain contains approximately 85 billion neurons.

Figure 1. –  The Parts of a Typical Neuron

Communication in and between neurons is an electrochemical process. In general, messages are gathered by the dendrites and cell body and then transmitted along the axon in the form of a brief electrical impulse called an action potential.     To learn more visit  https://slideplayer.com/slide/8444049/

 

Communication between neurons takes place at the synapse, the junction between two adjoining neurons. The fastest neurons in your body communicate at speeds of up to 450 km per hour.

Your ability to perceive, feel, think, move, act, and react depends on the delicate balance of neurotransmitters in your nervous system.

 

Table 2.1  Summary of Important Neurotransmitters

Hockenbury H. Don, Hockenbury E. Sandra Discovering Psychology. Worth Publishers; 6th edition, 2014. – p.52.

 

2. Two major communication systems in the body are the nervous system and the endocrine system.

The Nervous System - body’s speedy, electrochemical communication network consisting of nerve cells (up to 1 trillion neurons are linked throughout your body)

 

The human nervous system is divided into two main divisions: the central nervous system(CNS) and the peripheral nervous system(PNS).

Figure 2 – Nervous System Organization

The Endocrine System is the collection of glands that produce hormones that regulate metabolism, growth and development, tissue function, sexual function, reproduction, sleep, and mood, among other things.

The endocrine system is made up of the pituitary gland, thyroid gland, parathyroid glands, adrenal glands, pancreas, ovaries (in females) and testicles (in males).

 The endocrine system and the nervous system are directly linked by the hypothalamus in the brain, which controls the pituitary gland, a pea-sized gland just under the brain.. In turn, the pituitary releases hormones that affect the hormone production of several other endocrine glands.  

 See also https://moodle.znu.edu.ua/mod/resource/view.php?id=127822

3.The brain is a highly complex, integrated, and dynamic system of interconnected neurons.

Early Brain Growth 
During the first month of life, the number of connections or synapses, dramatically increases from 50 trillion to 1 quadrillion. If an infant's body grew at a comparable rate, his weight would increase from 8.5 pounds at birth to 170 pounds at one month old.

 

The two hemispheres of the cerebral cortex are specialized for different tasks.

How to boost brain power?

Ø      regular physical exercise

Ø      sleep, relaxation, positive emotions, healthy food

Ø      social interaction

Ø      to play a musical instrument, to be creative

Ø      to learn smth new (take a class in a field outside your college major or in a new area)

Ø      read, and read widely – “narrative journey”

Ø      try puzzles of all kinds—word, number, maze, or matching

Ø      practice goal achievements

Quizz Brain and neuroscience. 

True or False?

 1. We Use 10% Percent of our Brains                        

Research suggests that all areas of the brain perform some type of function. If the 10 percent myth were true, brain damage would be far less likely—after all, we would only have to worry about that tiny 10 percent of our brains being injured. The fact is that damage to even a small area of the brain can result in profound consequences for both cognition and functioning

2. People Are Right- or Left-Brained

The way you think isn’t decided by which side of the brain you use. Both sides work together on every mental task. So it’s a myth that logical thinkers use the left sides of their brains, and emotional and creative types rely on their right. Scientists do recognize that there is lateralization of brain function  - that is, certain types of tasks and thinking tend to be more associated with a particular region of the brain.

 

3. Adults Grow New Brain Cells Every Day

It was once thought that you were born with all your brain cells. But the truth is, there’s turnover. You do lose brain cells over time, but you also grow them (about 700 per day)  The process of forming new brain cells is known as neurogenesis. Certain habits, like exercising, can boost the number of brain cells you make. But many of these die within a week if they’re not used. That’s why engaging your brain and learning new skills can keep it healthy.

 

4. During Sleep The Brain Doesn’t Work 

While your body rests during slumber, your brain stays active. It runs many of your body’s functions, like breathing, and it sorts through the day’s information. It locks things you learn into memory. This process is called consolidation. It also clears out certain kinds of waste that may lead to dementia over time. 

 5. The brain usually stop developing at 20-30s

There’s a reason you have to wait until this age to make a good life-long decision. Teens and young adults think with their amygdala, the part of the brain ruled by emotion. Adults use the rational part of their brain, called the prefrontal cortex. It’s the area that makes you think about the long-term effects of certain actions.

 6. Humans Have the Biggest Brains    

The average adult has a brain weighing in at about 3 pounds (about 1.5 kg) and measuring up to about 15 centimeters in length. Whales have the largest brain of any animal. A typical sperm whale brain weighs about 7.8 kg (the elephant -5 kg). It also true about brain size in proportion to body size. The animal that holds the largest body size to brain ratios is the shrew, with a brain making up about 10 percent of its body mass.

 7. Brains Of Males And Females Differ 

Differences do exist in the brains of males and females, and the distinctive physiology may result in differences in the way their brains function. Scientists have discovered approximately 100 gender differences in the brain (Size, structural differences, chemistry, processing, etc No research, though, has demonstrated gender-specific differences in how networks of neurons become connected when we learn new skills. ). Understanding gender differences from a neurological perspective not only opens the door to greater appreciation of the different genders, it also calls into question how we parent, educate, and support our children from a young age. 

 https://curiosity.com/topics/is-there-a-difference-between-male-and-female-brains-curiosity/