BIOPSYCHOLOGY FINAL STUDY GUIDE 2026
SOLVED ITEMS PREMIUM REVIEW
◉ neuron. Answer: a nerve cell; the basic building block of the
nervous system.
◉ dendrites. Answer: the bushy, branching extensions of a neuron
that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body.
◉ axon. Answer: the neuron extension that passes and electrical
messages through its branches to other neurons or to muscles or
glands.
◉ myelin sheath. Answer: a layer of fatty tissue segmentally
encasing the fibers of many neurons; enables vastly greater
transmission speed of neural impulses as the impulse hops from one
node to the next.
◉ action potential. Answer: a neural impulse; a brief electrical
charge that travels down an axon.
◉ refractory period. Answer: a period of inactivity after a neuron
has fired.
, ◉ threshold. Answer: the level of stimulation required to trigger a
neural impulse.
◉ all-or-nothing response. Answer: a neuron's reaction of either
firing or not firing.
◉ synapse. Answer: the junction between the axon tip of the sending
neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron.
◉ neurotransmitters. Answer: chemical messengers that cross the
synaptic gaps between neurons.
◉ reuptake. Answer: a neurotransmitter's reabsorption by the
sending neuron.
◉ endorphins. Answer: "morphine within"—natural, opiate-like
neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure.
◉ Agonist. Answer: A chemical that mimics the action of a
neurotransmitter.
◉ Antagonists. Answer: Chemical substances that block or reduce a
cell's response to the action of other chemicals or neurotransmitters.
SOLVED ITEMS PREMIUM REVIEW
◉ neuron. Answer: a nerve cell; the basic building block of the
nervous system.
◉ dendrites. Answer: the bushy, branching extensions of a neuron
that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body.
◉ axon. Answer: the neuron extension that passes and electrical
messages through its branches to other neurons or to muscles or
glands.
◉ myelin sheath. Answer: a layer of fatty tissue segmentally
encasing the fibers of many neurons; enables vastly greater
transmission speed of neural impulses as the impulse hops from one
node to the next.
◉ action potential. Answer: a neural impulse; a brief electrical
charge that travels down an axon.
◉ refractory period. Answer: a period of inactivity after a neuron
has fired.
, ◉ threshold. Answer: the level of stimulation required to trigger a
neural impulse.
◉ all-or-nothing response. Answer: a neuron's reaction of either
firing or not firing.
◉ synapse. Answer: the junction between the axon tip of the sending
neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron.
◉ neurotransmitters. Answer: chemical messengers that cross the
synaptic gaps between neurons.
◉ reuptake. Answer: a neurotransmitter's reabsorption by the
sending neuron.
◉ endorphins. Answer: "morphine within"—natural, opiate-like
neurotransmitters linked to pain control and to pleasure.
◉ Agonist. Answer: A chemical that mimics the action of a
neurotransmitter.
◉ Antagonists. Answer: Chemical substances that block or reduce a
cell's response to the action of other chemicals or neurotransmitters.
