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- Glossary
Theory of emotions
Emotions still pose many questions for researchers today: Are there primary and secondary emotions? Are there universal emotions? Are there connections between individual emotions? Different theories of emotion seek answers to questions like these.
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- Glossary
Empathy
The term "empathy" comes from the ancient Greek word for "passion." Today, empathy is understood as the ability to put oneself in another person's shoes and understand their feelings, thoughts, and actions. In neuroscience, empathy is supported by mirror neurons, among other things: nerve cells that show similar activity when observing an action as when performing it.
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- Glossary
Terminal button
The end of an axon (long, fiber-like extension) of a nerve cell is called a terminal bouton if it is the presynaptic part of a synapse. The terminal bouton is a spherical thickening containing vesicles (small sacs) that store neurotransmitters (chemical messengers in the brain).
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Endorphins
Abbreviation for endogenous morphines, i.e., morphines produced by the body itself. They play an important role in suppressing and alleviating pain. They are also involved in euphoria (feelings of elation).
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Engram
An engram, also known as a memory trace, is a neural representation of memory content. It is believed that learning processes are based on structural changes in the synaptic connections between neurons.
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Epigenetics
Biologists use the term "epigenetics" to describe all processes that influence the genetic activity of an organism without changing the sequence of DNA building blocks. This occurs, for example, when the cell chemically modifies certain sections of the genetic material, thereby permanently or temporarily deactivating them. For example, although women have two X chromosomes in every cell of their body, one of them is so tightly packed that it does not become active.
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Epiphysis
The epiphysis (pineal gland) is an unpaired component of the epithalamus (part of the diencephalon). It is a gland that secretes melatonin. Among other things, the epiphysis controls the "internal clock."
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- Glossary
Episodic memory
Episodic memory is a form of declarative long-term memory. It includes one's own biography, i.e., important experiences and events from the past, including their location in space and time, as well as the feeling of having had the experience oneself.
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- Glossary
Epithalamus
A part of the diencephalon (midbrain) located behind the thalamus (the largest part of the midbrain). It includes the habenulae and the epiphysis, among other structures.
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- Glossary
Threshold potential
In order for an action potential to be triggered, the membrane potential at the axon hillock of a neuron must exceed the threshold value of approximately –50 mV (relative to the resting potential of –70 mV). This is the threshold potential. If the depolarization remains below this threshold, no action potential is triggered.
