Biological Psychology

• Endogenous circannual rhythm means "generated from within"
• Circannual rhythm is derived from the Latin words circum, meaning "about," and annum, meaning "year"
• Endogenous circadian rhythms last about a day
• Circadian rhythms come from circum, meaning "about," and dies, meaning "day"
• A disruption of circadian rhythms due to crossing time zones is known as

  jet lag
• The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) is located in the hypothalamus.
• The stimulus that resets the circadian rhythm is referred to by the German term, meaning “time-giver.”

  zeitgeber
• A small branch of the optic nerve, known as the

  retinohypothalamic
• retinohypothalamic path to the SCN comes from a special population of retinal ganglion cells that have their own photopigment, called


  melanopsin
• an endocrine gland located just posterior to the thalamus.

  pineal gland
• The pineal gland releases the hormone _____ which influences both circadian and circannual rhythms

  melatonin