Module 1 Lesson 5 - 1
Completion requirements
Lesson 5 — The Basic Units of the Nervous System: The Neuron and the Reflex Arc
Get Focused
What happens if you accidentally touch a hot stove, step on a tack, or have your knee tapped by a doctor with a little hammer? In any such cases, you have an immediate response such as retracting your hand, moving your foot quickly, or swinging your leg
without even trying to do so.
These immediate "no-brainer" responses are exactly that. Your brain is not involved in these responses. You did not think about the response to such a stimulus. Instead, your spinal cord responded immediately to a communication of danger to your body. This is termed a reflex arc.
Why is your initial reaction so fast? Why do you become aware that the stove was hot and respond afterwards?
In this lesson, you will study the structure and function of neurons. These specialized cells of the nervous system make possible for you to see a person across the room, hear laughter, and smell a fragrance. You will examine how the neuron's design can aid the speed of communication and how changes in its structure can result in interruption of communication.
You will learn about three types of neurons and how each performs specific functions in the neural pathways. Sensory neurons communicate messages from the body to the CNS. Interneurons process information and communicate messages through motor neurons to effectors to produce a response.
In this lesson, you will examine the features of a neural pathway called the reflex arc to understand how this communication pathway produces extremely rapid responses that protect and enable the survival of your body.
These immediate "no-brainer" responses are exactly that. Your brain is not involved in these responses. You did not think about the response to such a stimulus. Instead, your spinal cord responded immediately to a communication of danger to your body. This is termed a reflex arc.
Why is your initial reaction so fast? Why do you become aware that the stove was hot and respond afterwards?
In this lesson, you will study the structure and function of neurons. These specialized cells of the nervous system make possible for you to see a person across the room, hear laughter, and smell a fragrance. You will examine how the neuron's design can aid the speed of communication and how changes in its structure can result in interruption of communication.
You will learn about three types of neurons and how each performs specific functions in the neural pathways. Sensory neurons communicate messages from the body to the CNS. Interneurons process information and communicate messages through motor neurons to effectors to produce a response.
In this lesson, you will examine the features of a neural pathway called the reflex arc to understand how this communication pathway produces extremely rapid responses that protect and enable the survival of your body.
This lesson will help you to respond accurately to the following focusing questions:
- What are the structures and functions of the neuron? How do they support communication?
- What are the components of the reflex arc?
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