PSYC 375 Chapter Notes - Chapter 3: Somatic Cell, Neurodegeneration, Axon Hillock

• School: University of Calgary
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 375
• Professor: Simon Spanswick

Document Summary

Golgi was examining nervous system cells, concluding the nervous system is composed of a network of interconnected fibers , a nerve net . Cajal studied chick embryos" brain tissue, assuming they would be simpler and easier to understand than an adult"s, concluding the nervous system is made up of discrete cells . Cajal"s neuron hypothesis/theory - that neurons are the nervous system"s functional units. The functional unit of the nervous system is the neuron. Neuron is composed of three parts - dendrites, cell body, and axon. Information flows along the neuron in one direction. Dendrites - branching extensions; collect information from other. Axon - main root; carries messages to other neurons. Neuron has one axon, and many dendrites neurons. To produce most behaviors, neurons work together in groups of hundreds to thousands. Thus, it"s important to know how a single neuron functions but how neurons interconnect and influence one another.