Final answer:
An electrical signal produced by neurons is called an action potential. Neurons transmit these signals to other neurons across synapses using neurotransmitters after the action potential travels along their axons. The complex network of neurons allows for rapid and complex communication within the nervous system.
Step-by-step explanation:
The electrical signal produced by neurons is called an action potential, which is capable of traveling over long distances. Neurons are electrically excitable cells that can generate these action potentials, allowing signals to be transmitted quickly and effectively. When a neuron receives enough stimulation through dendrites or across synapses, it generates an action potential. This action potential travels down the neuron's long axon to a synapse with another neuron. At the synapse, neurotransmitters are released, which carry signals across the synapse to initiate a response in the next neuron.
Nerve cells, or neurons, have a unique structure with tendrils like dendrites and axons to make connections with other cells. This architecture, along with the myelination provided by glial cells, allows impulses to travel very rapidly through the axons. The complexity and ability of the nervous system to learn is partly due to the many connections each neuron has, enabling communication with tens of thousands of other cells.