BRAIN STORY FINAL PAPER PRACTICE
QUESTIONS WITH VERIFIED ANSWERS
PACKAGE
●● cell body
Answer: the part of a neuron that contains the nucleus; the cell's life-
support center. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 82)
●● dendrites
Answer: a neuron's often bushy, branching extensions that receive and
integrate messages, conducting impulses toward the cell body. (Myers
Psychology for AP 3e p. 82)
●● axon
Answer: the neuron extension that passes messages through its branches
to other neurons or to muscles or glands. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e
p. 82)
●● myelin sheath
Answer: a fatty tissue layer segmentally encasing the axons of some
neurons; enables vastly greater transmission speed as neural impulses
hop from one node to the next. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 82)
,●● glial cells (glia)
Answer: cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect
neurons; they also play a role in learning, thinking, and memory. (Myers
Psychology for AP 3e p. 82)
●● action potential
Answer: a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an
axon. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 83)
●● threshold
Answer: the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse.
(Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 83)
●● refractory period
Answer: (1) in neural processing, a brief resting pause that occurs after a
neuron has fired; subsequent action potentials cannot occur until the
axon returns to its resting state. (2) in human sexuality, a resting period
that occurs after orgasm, during which a person cannot achieve another
orgasm. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e pp. 83, 420)
●● all-or-none response
Answer: a neuron's reaction of either firing (with a full-strength
response) or not firing. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 83)
, ●● synapse
Answer: the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the
dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron. The tiny gap at this
junction is called the synaptic gap or synaptic cleft. (Myers Psychology
for AP 3e p. 85)
●● neurotransmitters
Answer: chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between
neurons. When released by the sending neuron, neurotransmitters travel
across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron,
thereby influencing whether that neuron will generate a neural impulse.
(Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 85)
●● reuptake
Answer: a neurotransmitter's reabsorption by the sending neuron.
(Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 86)
●● endorphins
Answer: "morphine within"—natural, opiate-like neurotransmitters
linked to pain control and to pleasure. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p.
88)
●● agonist
Answer: a molecule that increases a neurotransmitter's action. (Myers
Psychology for AP 3e p. 88)
QUESTIONS WITH VERIFIED ANSWERS
PACKAGE
●● cell body
Answer: the part of a neuron that contains the nucleus; the cell's life-
support center. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 82)
●● dendrites
Answer: a neuron's often bushy, branching extensions that receive and
integrate messages, conducting impulses toward the cell body. (Myers
Psychology for AP 3e p. 82)
●● axon
Answer: the neuron extension that passes messages through its branches
to other neurons or to muscles or glands. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e
p. 82)
●● myelin sheath
Answer: a fatty tissue layer segmentally encasing the axons of some
neurons; enables vastly greater transmission speed as neural impulses
hop from one node to the next. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 82)
,●● glial cells (glia)
Answer: cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect
neurons; they also play a role in learning, thinking, and memory. (Myers
Psychology for AP 3e p. 82)
●● action potential
Answer: a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an
axon. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 83)
●● threshold
Answer: the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse.
(Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 83)
●● refractory period
Answer: (1) in neural processing, a brief resting pause that occurs after a
neuron has fired; subsequent action potentials cannot occur until the
axon returns to its resting state. (2) in human sexuality, a resting period
that occurs after orgasm, during which a person cannot achieve another
orgasm. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e pp. 83, 420)
●● all-or-none response
Answer: a neuron's reaction of either firing (with a full-strength
response) or not firing. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 83)
, ●● synapse
Answer: the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the
dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron. The tiny gap at this
junction is called the synaptic gap or synaptic cleft. (Myers Psychology
for AP 3e p. 85)
●● neurotransmitters
Answer: chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between
neurons. When released by the sending neuron, neurotransmitters travel
across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron,
thereby influencing whether that neuron will generate a neural impulse.
(Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 85)
●● reuptake
Answer: a neurotransmitter's reabsorption by the sending neuron.
(Myers Psychology for AP 3e p. 86)
●● endorphins
Answer: "morphine within"—natural, opiate-like neurotransmitters
linked to pain control and to pleasure. (Myers Psychology for AP 3e p.
88)
●● agonist
Answer: a molecule that increases a neurotransmitter's action. (Myers
Psychology for AP 3e p. 88)
