Biological 2nd Year Flashcards
What was the aim of blakemore and coopers study
To investigate the biological and behavioural effects of a restricted visual experience
And to see if brain development can be affected by the environment
What was the sample of blakemore and coopers study
Kittens who had never seen daylight and had been kept in a dark room from birth to two weeks
Because cats and humans have similar brain structure and study would be unethical in humans
What was the procedure in blakemore and coopers study
Kept in completely dark room from birth
And then placed in a 46cm by 2m cylinder with either horizontal or vertical b&w stripes -randomly allocated
High contrast and variety of widths
Until 5 months
Wore collars limiting vision to 130 degrees to stop them seeing their bodies
At 5 months they were taken into a well lit room for several hours a week and observed
What were the findings from Blakemore and coopers study
Often bumped into stationary objects
Tracking of moving objects was jerky and only responded if it was moving in the same direction as the lines in the cylinder
No startle response
Didn’t stretch out paws to be put down only when they felt the table underneath them
Most disappeared after 10hrs however some visual defects were permanent eg bumping into stationary objects
What happened to the kittens at 7 months
2 were anaesthetised and had an electrode inserted into their visual cortex
In a normal cat their would be a balance of horizontal and vertical
In the kittens neurons were only active in response to the pattern they were reared in and showed little response to other images
What are the conclusions from Blakemore and coopers study
Early visual experience can modify perception impacting behaviour and biology
Brain has plasticity and changes in response to environment
What are the conclusions from Blakemore and coopers study
Early visual experience can modify perception impacting behaviour and biology
Brain has plasticity and changes in response to environment
What was the aim of magiures study
To find evidence to support the idea that the hippocampus is responsible for spatial memory
To investigate the impact experience has on structures of the Brain
What was the experimental sample in maguires study
16 licensed London taxi drivers
Age 32 -62
Right handed
Healthy general, psyiological and neurological profiles
What was the sample in the control condition of maguires study
50ps from mri scan centres
32-62
Right handed
Healthy
What was the research method in maguires study
Matched pairs
What was the procedure in maguires study
MRI was used to collect data to get images of brain and were analysed by a blind experimenter
VBM was used to measure volume in an area as it gave a 3d reading of structure in brain and calculate volume of grey matter
Pixel counting carried out by blind experimenter only 16ps used from control
What was the procedure in maguires study
MRI was used to collect data to get images of brain and were analysed by a blind experimenter
VBM was used to measure volume in an area as it gave a 3d reading of structure in brain and calculate volume of grey matter
Pixel counting carried out by blind experimenter only 16ps used from control
What were the findings from maguires study
VBM
higher volume of grey matter in posterior hippocampus of taxi drivers non taxi drivers had higher volume in anterior
PIXEL COUNTING
no difference between overall volume of taxi and non taxi drivers however non taxi drivers had more hippocampal volume in anterior and taxi drivers had more volume in the posterior hippocampus
What were the findings from maguires study
VBM
higher volume of grey matter in posterior hippocampus of taxi drivers non taxi drivers had higher volume in anterior
PIXEL COUNTING
no difference between overall volume of taxi and non taxi drivers however non taxi drivers had more hippocampal volume in anterior and taxi drivers had more volume in the posterior hippocampus
