Biological Influences on Behaviour

Fissure= A lengthy depression marking off an area of the brain. Separates one half from the
other
Hemisphere= One half of the two halves of the brain; controls the opposite side of body
Corpus Callosum= A large bundle of nerve fibres that transfers information from one half of
the brain to the other
Lobe= Major division of the brain- there are 4
Frontal lobe= Division of the brain that contains the motor strip and the frontal association
area
Parietal lobe= Area of the brain that contains the sensory strip- area behind the frontal lobe
Motor strip= Band running down the side of the frontal lobe that controls all bodily
movements (called motor functions)
Sensory strip= Band running down the side of the parietal lobe that registers and provides all
sensation. Person feels sensation based on the specific area that the electricity hits
Occipital lobe= Area of the brain that interprets visual information (making out what we see)
-The brain sits in fluid like a shock absorber, giving it room to move back and forth and
sideways.
-Seeing stars when you’re hit is a result of the blow sent the brain sloshing backward,
crashing the occipital lobe into the skull. The collision stirred up the electrical system of this
visual area, and it made these strange images.
Temporal lobe= Area of the brain responsible for hearing and some speech functions
-Multiple lobes and strips fired at one time
Frontal Association Area= The forward portion of the brain that engages in elaborate
associations or mental connections; it plays an important part in integrating personality and
in forming complex thoughts.
Interprets what is going on, tells us what to do and how to feel
-Plays big part in our personalities and our social control
-Makes sense of the environment, so if someone has it injured and a person is loading, then
cocking and then pointing the gun at them, they understand each act by itself, but is not able
to put them together
-The size of the frontal lobe area likely represents how intelligent a species is. 7% in dogs,
15% in chimpanzees, and 30% in humans
Dominance= Either the right or left hemisphere is dominant in each individual; hence one of
them is preferred and controls the majority of actions performed. When dealing with smaller
movements, such as writing, one hemisphere has dominance, controlling this
If the right hemisphere is dominant, then the person will be left handed and vise versa
-Even identical twins can have different dominance because whatever programs this
dominance in the brain is very complex. If the shift is not complete, the individual becomes
ambidextrous (instructions get “stuck” in the middle)
-Left hemisphere handles verbal or speech material. Right hemisphere deals with objects in
space, art, music and some mathematical reasoning, as well as emotional material- why left
handed people are more artistic, go into acting, are good at maths and music
-Both hemispheres work together most of the time
-left hemisphere people prefer structure, while right hemisphere people don't
Cerebral cortex= The unit that covers the lower brain and controls mental processes such as
thought. Takes up over ⅔ of the brain’s nerve cells (having around 100 billion of them)
-Some believe that the possible amount of different connections the brain can make is
greater than the number of particles in the universe.
Lower brain= Basic “animal” units common to animals and humans that regulate basic
functions such as breathing
Most human responses (except automatic behaviours) the cortex influences the animal-like
lower units, and they, in turn, influence the cortex
Thalamus= The portion of the lower brain that functions primarily as a central relay station
for incoming and outgoing messages from the body to the brain and the brain to the body.
Ex) when you want to move your finger, brain sends message to the thalamus, which then
sends it to the correct place on the motor strip
Cerebellum= The portion of the lower brain that coordinates and organises bodily
movements for balance and accuracy
Knows how to get us places we go often without thinking
When someone throws a ball at you, your cerebellum calculates the speed and where it will
line up, then sends a message through the thalamus to the motor strip; then your hands will
automatically go up to the correct place to catch the ball
Hypothalamus= The portion of the lower brain that regulates basic needs (hunger, thirst) and
emotions such as pleasure, fear, rage and sexuality. Size of pea
Reticular activating system/reticular formation/RAS= The alertness control centre of the
brain that regulates the activity level of the body. Alerts how awake or sleepy we are.
If lots of things are going on, many impulses arrive from the body and brain and alertness
increases. If something boring is happening, or dull, then your RAS notices little change,
therefore your RAS is slowed down and will put you to sleep
A major blow to the head causes such an overload of the RAS circuits that they shut off
completely for a time, causing the individual to go unconscious.

-Nerves need to be kept separate because if you think of one thing, it’ll trigger you doing
another
Neuron= a nerve cell, which transmits electrical and chemical information (via
neurotransmitters) throughout the body
Dendrite= the part of the nerve cell that receives information from the axons of other nerve
cells
Axon= the part of the neuron that carries messages away from the nerve cell to the
dendrites on another nerve cell
Synapse= the junction point of two or more neurons; a connection is made by
neurotransmitters to continue electrical impulses up to the brain
Vesicles= bubble like containers of neurotransmitters, located at the end of an axon. Inside
has thousands of chemical messengers that are a specific shape, so the brain knows what it
is to be activated
Neurotransmitters= Chemicals in the endings of nerve cells that send information across the
synapse
-Each receptor is designed to accept only a specific type of chemical molecule
Acetylcholine= Neurotransmitter that regulates basic bodily processes such as movement. If
you want to move your arm, the acetylcholine will fire every nerve cell in sequence as your
arm moves, causing all the muscles in the arm to expand and contract
Some food poisonings can shut down the release of Ach causing paralysis
Dopamine= a neurotransmitter involved in the control of bodily movements. Parkinson's
disease is a lack of dopamine, therefore affecting the body’s ability to control movement.
Also relates to alzheimer’s
Endorphins= Neurotransmitters that relieve pain and increase our sense of wellbeing
-Some dendritic receptors are designed so that when a neurotransmitter arrives, the cell
turns off. Alcohol molecules resemble a neurotransmitter that the body uses to shut off cells.
Cells turn off in the RAS, making the person tired; in the speech area, making them slur; in
the cerebellum, causing them to eventually fall over
-All nerve impulses to the body from the brain and from the brain to the body must enter and
leave the spinal cord
Spinal cord= The part of the body that functions as an automatic “brain” in its own right and
is a relay station for impulses to and from the higher brain
Reflex= An automatic behaviour of the body involving movement that is activated through
the spinal cord without using the higher brain
-Spinal neurons are short, direct, and very powerful to get us out of messes when we don’t
have time to think- almost as if it’s a reflex
-spinal cord could operate by itself- how a chicken runs with its head chopped off- since it’s
in charge of certain parts

Hormones= help messages stay in the system for longer. Chemical regulators that control
bodily processes such as emotional responses, growth, and sexuality
Glands= units in the body that contain the hormones
Endocrine system= made up of all the glands and their chemical messages
-Hormones work like neurotransmitters in that they have a special molecular structure that
must match the structure of a receptor
Pituitary gland= The master gland of the body that activates other glands and controls the
growth hormones. Has two jobs; 1)send messages that will start other glands going and 2)
decide how tall or short we will be
Growth hormone= The hormone controlled by the pituitary gland that regulates the growth
process
-Environment, complications (growing too tall or staying too short), and diet can impact the
pituitary
Thyroid gland= The gland that controls and regulates the speed of bodily processes, called
metabolism
Metabolism= the speed at which the body operates or the speed at which it uses up energy
People with quick thyroid have more energy than a slower one
Slow thyroids are related to suicides, since thyroids slow down in may for the summer, and
this is the time with the most suicides
Adrenal glands= The glands that cause excitement in order to prepare the body for an
emergency or for some important activity
Adrenaline= the chemical that prepares the body for emergency activity by increasing blood
pressure, breathing rate, and energy level. Sends out chemicals that make the blood clot
easier incase we get cut, we sweat, blood pressure goes up, muscles tense and sugar gets
dumped into bloodstream for energy
Gonads= The sex glands that make sperm or eggs for reproduction
-Sex drive is started by hormones, but is continued throughout our lives by the cerebral
cortex, making it a social, symbolic behaviour. Cortex can cause feelings of love, comfort,
warmth and respect during sex, but also anxiety, fear and psychological pain
Twilight state= relaxed state just before we’re about to fall asleep. When our minds wander
and images come up
REM sleep= Rapid eye movement sleep when we dream. Brain fires, blood pressure goes
up, breathing and heartbeat are rapid and body paralyzed
Have REM period every 90 minutes
Cannot wake them during this state unless you call their name or make lots of noise.
Sleepwalking doesn't happen during REM
Dreams last 5 to 40 minutes. Each REM is longer than the last
Beta waves= rapid brain waves; appear when a person is awake
Alpha waves= stage 1; fairly relaxed brain waves occurring just before going to sleep
Delta waves= slow, lazy, deep sleep brain waves
-By the time you reach delta, you’re an hour into sleep, then go in reverse of the stages
-REM and beta waves are similar and high. Shows dreams cost as many brain waves as
being awake
NREM sleep= non-rapid eye movement sleep; sleep involving partial thoughts, images, or
stories, poor organisation- brain is still active- when body rests

Theories of why we have dreams:

-used to get the brain re-organized after a day’s work. Dreams keep the brain busy with old
material while it is being recharged
-To help work out unsolved problems, and when we awake we have solutions. People
believe this because when we are stressed, REM lasts longer
-brain is trying to make sense of the bits and pieces of information that are appearing while
we are cleaning out the material, so it makes up a story, mashing random things together
-True reason is all our memories, thoughts and actions are controlled by electrical impulses
within the brain. Electrical burst occur throughout the night causing the dream, and come
from deep within the brain at regular intervals (every 90 minutes)
-Dream can trigger a memory that we have forgotten or deal with something that we had not
paid much attention to
-50% of our dreams are in colour while the other half are in black and white
-Nightmares only occur once a week for 5% of the population. Nightmares are more frequent
when an individual is not getting enough sleep, missing REM periods for days or drinking too
much alcohol
REM rebound= Increase in the number of dreams after being deprived of them- increase
chances of nightmares
Incubus attack= a horrible dream occurring during NREM when the body is not prepared for
it- vivid and real. Usually ends up in sweats and the person springing awake and feeling
terrified.
More common in young children because they are connected with a maturing brain
-Infants use so many chemicals while growing that they are in REM sleep 75% of the time so
they can be restored
-Older people don’t need as much deep sleep

-After 11 hours of sleep our brains become groggy, and we do poorly on tasks requiring high
alertness
-When random electrical pulses hit areas controlling body movements, they cause walking or
talking and usually occurs during NREM
Insomnia is caused by getting out of the normal circadian cycle or taking drugs or drinking
before bed
-Insomnia pills don’t work long term since they block REM sleep
Narcolepsy= Disorder in which a person falls instantly into sleep no matter what is going on
in the environment
Sleep apnea= Breathing stops while someone is asleep and person keeps waking up
Hypnosis= a state of relaxation in which attention is focused on certain objects, acts or
feelings