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GLOSSARY
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         anatomy                          cerebellum                        instinct
         The study of the structure of    A part of the brain that helps control  An automatic feeling or action.
         living things.                   balance and movement.
                                                                            intellectual
         association                      cerebral cortex                   Anything to do with thinking.
         The process by which new memories   The entire wrinkly outer part of the
         are linked to memories already   brain that is responsible for sensory   intuition
         stored in the brain.             processing, memory, voluntary     Believing that you know something
                                          movement, and thinking.           without knowing why. This is
         atom                                                               sometimes called a “sixth sense.”
         The smallest particle of a substance.   cerebral
         Some substances such as oxygen   hemisphere                        limbic system
         contain only one type of atom, while  One half of the cerebral cortex,   A part of the brain that plays a role in
         others like water contain more than  or cerebrum.                  automatic body functions, emotions,
         one type of atom.                                                  and the sense of smell.
                                          cerebrum
         attention                        Another name for the cerebral     logic
         The first stage in committing     cortex, the cerebrum forms most   Sound reasoning that draws correct
         something to memory by focusing  of the human brain.               conclusions from basic facts.
         on the moment or on the task at hand.
                                          conditioning                      mimicry
         auditory                         A form of learning in which good or  Copying the appearance or behavior
         Having to do with hearing and sound.  bad experiences create an automatic  of another person.
                                          response to similar experiences.
         axon                                                               molecule
         The long fiber that extends from  conscious                         The smallest particle of a substance
         a nerve cell, or neuron. Nerve signals  Being mentally aware.      that can exist without breaking the
         pass down the axon in one direction,                               substance into its component atoms.
         away from the main body of the cell,  consciousness                A single water molecule, for example,
         to stimulate other cells.        A state of mental awareness.      consists of two hydrogen atoms and
                                                                            one oxygen atom.
         bacteria                         dendrite
         Microscopic organisms with a simple   A short fiber extending from a nerve   motor area
         single-celled structure. Some types  cell, or neuron, that picks up signals  The region of the brain responsible
         of bacteria can cause disease.   from other nerve cells.           for  voluntary (controlled) movement
                                                                            of the body.
         botany                           evolution
         The study of plants.             The process by which things change  nerve
                                          slowly into different forms, usually  A bundle of fibers extending from
         brain stem                       applied to living things.         nerve cells (neurons) that carries
         The region at the base of the brain                                nerve signals, or impulses, between
         where it joins the spinal cord.  frontal lobe                      the brain and other parts of the body.
                                          The front part of each cerebral
         Broca’s area                     hemisphere, which plays an important  nerve cell
         The part of the brain that controls  role in thinking.             A specialized cell, also known as a
         speech production.                                                 neuron, that carries nerve signals
                                          geology                           from and to all parts of the body
         cell                             The study of rocks.               and forms networks in the brain.
         The smallest unit of a living thing.
         Many living things such as bacteria  hair cell                     nerve impulse
         consist of only one cell, but the human  A cell equipped with a tiny flexible   An electrical signal that passes along
         body is made up of many cells,   “hair” that is attached to nerves.  the fibers extending from nerve cells
         specialized for different jobs.                                    (neurons) and carries coded information
                                          hormone                           to the brain or other organs.
         central nervous                  A substance released into the blood by
         system                           a gland that effects change in another  neuron
         The brain and spinal cord.       part of the body.                 A single nerve cell.


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