Synaptic Ping Pong
Jeff Muyst, Nolan Renz, Christopher Losche, Heather Tropiano, Mike Pisano



taken from: http://www.usm.maine.edu/psy/broida/101/neuron.JPG

A neuron is a special cell located in the nervous system. The nervous system is the part of the body that allows us to use our five senses such as smelling something sweet, tasting a salty pretzel, hearing a loud bang, touching a soft pillow, and seeing one another.

A neuron sends a signal  from places like our skin and eyes to our brain so that we can perceive what we are  touching or what we are seeing. A neuron works by receiving signals from other neurons that "talk" to each other.  The neurons "talk" by sending chemicals called neurotransmitters from the end of one neuron's "synaptic terminal" to the beginning of another neuron's "dendrites".

The neurotransmitters can send one of two kinds of signals: EXCITATORY signals or INHIBITORY signals.
Excitatory signals tell the other neuron to continue to send the signal.
Inhibitory signals tell the other neuron to stop sending the signal.

If enough neurotransmitters are "excitatory", the neuron will reach a threshold and then send a signal to the next neuron. If not enough neurotransmitters are excitatory or if there are a lot of "inhibitory" neurotransmitters, the neuron will not send the signal.