thalamic pacemaker

a group of nuclei in the thalamus that trigger waves of electrical activity in the cerebral cortex. Several thalamic nuclei have been found to initiate cortical discharges, including the intralaminar, midline, reticular, and ventralis anterior nuclei. Pacemaker neurons in the reticular nucleus excite cortical cells to fire synchronously in the pattern of slow-wave sleep.

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Psychology term of the day

May 8th 2024

biasing factor

a variable that serves to bias the valence of elaboration of attitude-relevant information. See also biased elaboration; multiple roles in persuasion.