The study of the evolution of behavior and the mind, using principles of natural selection. Fill in the blank: ________

The principle that the inherited traits enabling an organism to survive and reproduce in a particular environment will (in competition with other trait variations) most likely be passed on to succeeding generations. Fill in the blank: ________

Every nongenetic influence on our physical, behavioral, and mental traits and processes. Fill in the blank: ________

The genetic transfer of characteristics from parents to offspring. Fill in the blank: ________

The biochemical units of heredity. Fill in the blank: ________

The complete instructions for making an organism. Fill in the blank: ________

Refers to environmental factors that one experiences (in the womb and after birth), such as family interactions or education, that influence physical, behavioral, and mental traits and processes. Fill in the blank: ________

The discriminatory nineteenth and twentieth century movement that proposed measuring human traits and encouraging only those deemed “fit” to reproduce. Fill in the blank: ________

The purpose of such research is usually to assess the relative contributions of heredity and environment to some attribute. Fill in the blank: ________

A research design that investigates the relationships among genetic and environmental factors in the development of personality, behavior, or disorder by comparing the similarities of biological parent–child pairs with those of adoptive parent–child pairs. Fill in the blank: ________

Individuals who developed from a single fertilized egg that split in two, creating two genetically identical organisms. Fill in the blank: ________

Individuals who developed from separate fertilized eggs. They are genetically no closer than ordinary siblings, but they share a prenatal environment. Fill in the blank: ________

The study of the molecular mechanisms by which environments can influence genetic expression (without a DNA change). Fill in the blank: ________

The body's speedy, electrochemical communication network, consisting of all the nerve cells of the peripheral and central nervous systems. Fill in the blank: ________

The brain and spinal cord. Fill in the blank: ________

Bundled axons that form neural cables connecting the central nervous system with muscles, glands, and sensory organs. Fill in the blank: ________

A simple, automatic response to a sensory stimulus, such as the knee-jerk response. Fill in the blank: ________

The part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs (such as the heart). Its sympathetic division arouses; its parasympathetic division calms. Fill in the blank: ________

The division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy. Fill in the blank: ________

The sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system (CNS) to the rest of the body. Fill in the blank: ________

The division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body's skeletal muscles. Also called the skeletal nervous system. Fill in the blank: ________

The division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy. Fill in the blank: ________

A nerve cell; the basic building block of the nervous system. Fill in the blank: ________

The part of a neuron that contains the nucleus; the cell’s life-support center. Fill in the blank: ________

A neuron's often bushy, branching extensions that receive and integrate messages, conducting impulses toward the cell body. Fill in the blank: ________

______ is the segmented neuron extension that passes messages through its branches to other neurons or to muscles or glands.

______ is a fatty tissue layer segmentally encasing the axons of some neurons; it enables vastly greater transmission speed as neural impulses hop from one node to the next.

______ is 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.

______ are cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons; they may also play a role in learning, thinking, and memory.

______ are three types of neurons that work together in the spinal cord to create this: sensory neurons, motor neurons, and interneurons.

______ are neurons that carry incoming information from the body's tissues and sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord.

______ are neurons that carry outgoing information from the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands.

______ are neurons within the brain and spinal cord; they communicate internally and process information between the sensory inputs and motor outputs.

______ is a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon.

______ is a neuron's reaction of either firing (with a full-strength response) or not firing.

______ occurs between threshold and action potential. Polarity reverses, travels down the axon, relaying the signal.

______ is a neurotransmitter's reabsorption by the sending neuron.

______ is a disease of the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) characterized by inflammation and multifocal scarring of the protective myelin sheath of nerves, which damages and destroys the sheath and underlying nerve, disrupting neural transmission.

______ are chemical messengers that cross the synaptic gaps between neurons. When released by the sending neuron, they travel across the synapse and bind to receptor sites on the receiving neuron, thereby influencing whether that neuron will generate a neural impulse.

______ is an internal chemical that communicates a message that makes an action potential more likely.

______ is primarily involved in processing smooth and coordinated gross motor movements and in attention, learning, and reinforcing effects of several often-abused drugs.

______ is found in neurons in the autonomic nervous system (ANS). It governs sympathetic arousal by activating the heart and blood vessels, thus giving rise to the “fight or flight” syndrome as well as other excitatory actions.

______ is the most abundant inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain. It is associated with calming effects.

______ causes the contraction of smooth muscle and dilation of blood vessels, and that acts as a potent neurotransmitter especially in the transmission of signals from pain receptors.

______ are chemical messengers that are manufactured by the endocrine glands, travel through the bloodstream, and affect other tissues.

______ is a hormone that at an increased level allows you to experience satiety.

______ is a hormone that is involved in the regulation of circadian rhythms.

______ is a brief resting pause that occurs after a neuron has fired; subsequent action potentials cannot occur until the axon returns to its resting state.

______ is during this phase in neural transmission there are more negative ions inside the cell membrane than outside.

______ is the level of stimulation required to trigger a neural impulse.

______ is an autoimmune disorder in which the body produces antibodies against acetylcholine receptors, causing faulty transmission of nerve impulses at neuromuscular junctions.

What is the term for an internal chemical that communicates a message that makes an action potential less likely?

What neurotransmitter plays a role in the regulation of mood; control of eating, sleep, arousal; the regulation of pain; and control of dreaming?

What is the most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain that stimulates receptors associated with learning and memory, as well as many sensory and motor functions?

What are natural, opioid-like neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure, often referred to as 'morphine within'?

What neurotransmitter causes contraction of the skeletal muscles, helps regulate heart muscles, promotes arousal in the brain, and transmits messages between the brain and spinal cord?

What is the body's 'slow' chemical communication system, consisting of a set of glands and fat tissue that secrete hormones into the bloodstream?

What hormone increases blood sugar by influencing the breakdown of glycogen to glucose, dilates or constricts specific blood vessels, increases rate and strength of heartbeat, stimulates respiration, and/or dilates respiratory passages, and is pivotal for fight or flight response?

What is the hunger hormone that signals when you are hungry and communicates to your brain that you need to eat?

What hormone plays a role in labor, lactation, and social bonding?

What is a chemical substance that alters the brain, causing changes in perceptions and moods?

What is a disorder characterized by continued substance use despite significant life disruption?

What is a molecule that inhibits or blocks a neurotransmitter's action called?

What type of drug excites neural activity and speeds up body functions?

What is a stimulant that reduces drowsiness and enhances problem-solving and physical abilities, but at high doses can result in tremors and anxiety?

What is a potent psychomotor stimulant associated with a sense of euphoria and blocks the reuptake of dopamine?

What are powerful synthetic stimulants that speed up the body's central nervous system?

What is a stimulant and mild hallucinogen which creates an increase in energy, elevated emotions and social connectedness?

What drugs and their derivatives depress neural activity, temporarily lessening pain and anxiety?

What drug relieves pain and causes a sense of euphoria, is derived from morphine but is more powerful, and has a high potential for physical/psychological dependence?

What is an everyday term for compulsive substance use (and sometimes for dysfunctional behavior patterns, such as out-of-control gambling) that continue despite harmful consequences?

What is a molecule that increases a neurotransmitter's action called?

What type of drug prevents the process of reuptake, thus enhancing the effects of the neurotransmitter?

What type of drugs reduce neural activity and slow body functions?

What commonly used depressant can cause slowed reaction times, slurred speech, and lowered inhibition?

What are psychedelic drugs that distort perceptions and evoke sensory images in the absence of sensory input?

What is the primary psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, associated with mild memory impairment and distortions in time perception?

What hallucinogen can cause experiences ranging from euphoric, to detachment, to panic?

What is the term for the diminishing effect with regular use of the same dose of a drug, requiring the user to take larger and larger doses before experiencing the drug's effect?

Fill in the blank: ________ is the discomfort and distress that follow discontinuing an addictive drug or behavior.