Bio- Studying The Brain Flashcards

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1
Q

What are the four ways in which you can study the brain

A
  • FMRI
  • EEG
  • ERPS
  • post mortem
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2
Q

What is a FMRI

A
  • show 3D scans providing structural and functional information if the brain
  • show changes in brain activity
  • do this by using a very strong magnetic field and radio waves
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3
Q

What happens with the different types of blood in a FMRI

A
  • more oxygenated blood flows to active areas - supply neurons with oxygen and glucose
  • molecules in the oxygenated blood respond differently to the magnetic field
  • more active areas can be identified
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4
Q

What are the uses of an FMRI scan

A
  • used to research about the brain- participants can carry out tasks to identify what parts are active when doing different tasks
  • used to diagnose a medical problem- can show damaged and diseased areas
  • study abnormal activity
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5
Q

Evaluation of FMRI

A

:)provide a non-invasive way of studying the brain

:( very expensive to buy and use
:( can be a problem for people with clastriphobia as they need to lie down in an enclosed space for a while
:( poor temporal resolution (don’t show changes over time accurately)

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6
Q

What are EEGs

A
  • show the overall electrical activity of the brain
  • picks up signals of many neurons
  • multiple electrodes are placed on the scalp and the electrical activity of the brain is record for a period of time
  • produced a pattern of waves that can represent different levels of arousaland consciousness- stages of sleep
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7
Q

What are the uses of EEGs

A
  • used in sleep studies
  • used to study conditions like depression and Sz- abnormal wave patterns compared to others
  • abnormal EEGs identified in patients with eating disorders
  • potential to be used as a diagnostic tool
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8
Q

Evaluation of EEGs

A
\:) non-invasive 
\:) cheaper to carry out then FMRI 
\:) good temporal validity 
\:( bad spatial resolution 
- hard to work out which part of the brain the waves originated from
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9
Q

What are ERPS

A
  • can look at how a EEGs wave pattern changes in response to a stimulus
  • if a specific stimulus is presented it produces a specific change
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10
Q

What are the uses of ERPS

A
  • used a lot in memory research given them clues about information processing
  • can show how differences in ERPS can be when you have a psychic disorder
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11
Q

What are post mortems

A
  • involve dissecting the brain of a person who has died

- allows us to physically look at the internal structure of the brain

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12
Q

What are the uses of post mortems

A
  • if a person when they were alive had a medical condition a post mortem could show up any structural abnormalities that could explain their condition
  • provide evidence for localisation of function in the brain
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13
Q

Evaluations of post mortem

A
  • :( person has to dead before it can be carried out, won’t benefit from it
    :( do give us information but they don’t allow cause and effect to be established
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