biopsychology Flashcards
what is brain plasticity?
ability of the brain to Mould and change throughout life through experience and learning
what occurs to our neurons as we grow older what is this known as?
we delete rarely used connections and strengthen frequently used ones ‘synaptic pruning’
describe draganskis research into brain plasticity. hint: medical students
scanned the brains of medical students pre and post exams, found learning induced structural changes in the posterior hippocampus and parietal cortex due to revising
what is brain trauma?
external force traumatically injures the brain
what is functional recovery?
healthy parts of the brain can compensate for the damaged parts and take over functions
what is spontaneous recovery?
functional recovery takes place straight after brain trauma
what are the 3 things that occur during recovery?
-axonal sprouting
-recruitment of homologous areas
- reformation of blood vessels
during recovery what is axonal sprouting?
new nerve endings grow connecting with other undamaged nerve cells to form new neural pathways
during recovery what is recruitment of homologous areas?
similar areas on the opposite side of the brain are drafted in to performing specific tasks
during recovery what is reformation of blood vessels?
there is an increase in blood flow through internal arteries in the brain, decreasing the amount of damage of function in the frontal lobes
describe this one strength of brain plasticity and functional recovery: animal studies
Rs supports neural plasticity. wiesel sewed one eye of a kitten shut+analysed its cortical response. found: visual cortex was still active receiving+processing info from the other eye.=compensatory activity in the brain
describe this limitation of brain plasticity and functional recovery: negative consequences
maladaptive/negative consequences of brain rewiring itself. 60-80% of amputees=known to develop phantom limb syndrome( continued sensation in missing limb)=unpleasant/painful sensations thought to be from cortical reorganisation in the somatosensory area
what is a biological rhythm?
a distinct pattern of biological change, conforming to cyclical time periods
what are biological rhythms influenced by?
our internal body clocks (endogenous pacemakers)
external influences (exogenous zeitgebers)
what is a circadian rhythm?
a biological rhythm that lasts 24 hours
what are the two circadian rhythms?
-sleep/wake cycle
- core body temperature
what is the sleep wake cycle governed by?
EP- free running body clock
EZ- daylight
in the absence of EZ how long does our sleep wake cycle last?
24-25 hours
describe the RS into the sleep/wake cycle- cavers
caver spent extended periods underground in caves in the alpes,texas deprived on natural light+time
what were the findings from the cavers RS into circadian rhythms?what do these findings show about the sleep/wake cycle?
when the caver emerged, he was asked the date and he thought he was down there for 45 days when he was down for 60 days, showing that sleep/wake cycle is just longer then 24 hours but is entrained by EZ
when is the core body temperature the lowest?
4.30pm (26)
when is core body temperature the highest?
6pm (38)
what is one limitation of circadian rhythms- hint: individual diffferences
individual differences-cycle lenghts can vary 13-65hours, as well as, morning people rise early and go bed early, evening people wake up later and go bed late, there is also age differences, therefore findings cant be generalised
give on strength of circadian rhythms- hint: RL application
in drug treatment, timing can affect them, to be most effective drugs must be released at optimal time. the risk of a heart attack is highest in the morning. this has prompted the development of drug development treatments that deliver the drug into the bloodstream at this time. RS into CR=medical benefits
