2: Brain and Cognitive Development Flashcards
Brain Structure
-what is the brain made of, and how are its pieces put together
Brain function
-what does the brain do
ventricles and cerebrospinal fluid
- fluid filled cavities inside the brain
- CSF acts a protective cushion, supplies nutrients, removes waste-products
subcortical structures
- below the cortex
- thalamus, midbrain, pons, medulla oblongata, spinal cord
cortex
- highly develop more in humans than in any other species
- major focus of cognition research
- consists of grey matter and white matter
- made of: skull, meninges (dura matter, arachnoid mater, pia mater)
white matter
-made of myelinated axons
grey matter
-made of cell bodies and dendrites
neurons
cell body (soma) –>dendrites –> axon –> axon terminals
dendrites
-receives information
axons
-where information travels
synapses
- neuron to neuron connection
- electrical signal within the axon turns into chemical signal (neurotransmitter) that travels across synapse
- part of neuron that release chemical signals
myelin
- white fatty substance
- helps info travel faster
the brain supports cognition and behavior … how do wee know this?
- when a person engages in a cognitive task, there is corresponding activity in the brain
- when the brain is impaired, cognition is also impaired
- when the brain is stimulated/activated, cognition can be ‘activated’
3 methods for revealing links btw brain and cognition
- EEG/ERP
- fNIRS
- fMRI
EEG/ERP
-electrical sensors detect changes in neural activity directly (measures ELECTRICAL SIGNALS from populations of firing neurons )