Biopsychology Flashcards
What is Broca’s area?
An area in the frontal lobe of the brain, usually in the left hemisphere, related to speech production
What is localisation of function?
Refers to the belief that specific areas of the brain are associated with specific cognitive processes
What is the motor cortex?
A region of the brain responsible for the generation of voluntary motor movements
What is the somatosensory cortex?
A region of the brain that processes input from sensory receptors in the body that are sensitive to touch
What is Wernicke’s area?
An area in the temporal lobe of the brain important in the comprehension of language
When did interest in the localisation of function begin?
In the early nineteenth century there was a growth of interest in the theory
Where is the motor cortex located?
In the frontal lobe of the brain, along a bumpy region known as the precentral gyrus
Is the motor cortex found on both hemispheres?
Yes
The motor cortex on one side of the brain controls the muscles on the opposite side of the body
What do different parts of the motor cortex do?
Different parts of the motor cortex control different parts of the body
How are the parts of the motor cortex that control different parts of the body arranged?
The regions are arranged logically next to one another
e.g. the region that controls the actions of the foot is next to the region that controls the leg and so on
Where is the somatosensory cortex located?
In the parietal lobe of the brain, along a region known as the postcentral gyrus
What is the postcentral gyrus?
It is an area of the cortex dedicated to to processing of sensory info related to touch
What sensations does the somatosensory cortex produce and how?
It uses sensory info from the skin to produce the sensations of touch, pain, pressure and temperature
It then localises these to specific body regions
Is the somatosensory cortex found on both hemispheres?
Yes
The cortex on one side of the brain receives sensory info from the opposite side of the body
What are the two main language centres?
- Broca’s area
- Wernicke’s area
Who is Broca’s area named after?
Paul Broca
He was a French neurosurgeon who treated a patient who could only pronounce the syllable ‘Tan’
What was wrong with the patient that Broca studied?
He was able to understand spoken language, he was unable to speak or express his thoughts through writing
How many patients did Broca study, and what were they like?
8 more after the original patient who all had similar language deficits, along with lesions in their left frontal hemisphere
How did Broca discover that the ‘language centre’ was located in the posterior portion of the frontal lobe of the left hemisphere?
He studied patients with damaged right frontal hemispheres and they did not have the same language issues as the patients with a damaged left frontal hemisphere
What have scientists discovered in Broca’s area that is strange?
The area is believed to be critical for speech production, however scientists found evidence of activity in the same area when people performed cognitive tasks that have nothing to do with language
What were the two regions of Broca’s area that Fedorenko et al. found?
- One selectively involved in language
- Another involved in responding to demanding cognitive tasks
When was Wernicke’s area discovered?
Shortly after Broca’s area was discovered
Who discovered Wernicke’s area?
Carl Wernicke, a German neurologist discovered the area that was involved in understanding language
Where is Wernicke’s area located?
The posterior portion of the left temporal lobe
How were Wernicke’s patients different to Broca’s?
Broca’s patients could understand language but not speak
Wernicke’s patients couldn’t understand language but they could speak
What was Wernicke’s theory about language centres?
He proposed that language involves separate motor and sensory regions located in different cortical regions
The motor region, located in Broca’s area is close to which area of the brain?
The one that controls the mouth, tongue and vocal cords
The sensory region, located in Wernicke’s area is close to which regions of the brain?
The regions responsible for auditory and visual input
The input from theses regions is thought to be transferred to Wernicke’s area where it is recognised as language & associated with meaning
What runs between Broca’s area and Wernicke’s area?
A neural loop - it is named the arcuate fasciculus
At one end lies Broca’s area which is responsible for the production of language and at the other end lies Wernicke’s area which is responsible for the processing of spoken language
What is the name of the neural loop that runs between Broca’s area and Wernicke’s area?
Arcuate fasciculus
Where is the primary visual centre located in the brain?
It is located in the visual cortex in the occipital lobe of the brain
Where does visual processing begin?
In the retina, at the back of the eye, where light enters and strikes the photoreceptors (rods and cones)
Nerve impulses from retina are transmitted to the brain via optic nerve
Where do nerve impulses from the retina travel to?
Some travel to areas of brain involved in coordination of circadian rhythms
Majority terminate in the thalamus - acts as a relay station - passing on info to the visual cortex
Where is the visual cortex located?
It spans both hemispheres
Right hemisphere receives its input from the left-hand side of the visual field and vice versa
What do the different areas in the visual cortex do?
They process different types of info, i.e. colour, shape or movement
What is the role of the auditory centre in the brain?
It is concerned with hearing
Where is the auditory centre in the brain mainly located?
It mostly lies in the temporal lobes on both sides of the brain
Where we find the auditory cortex
What is the route of the auditory pathways in the brain?
They begin in the cochlea - in the inner ear
Pass through the brain stem
Then the thalamus
Finally reaches the auditory cortex
What is the role of the cochlea in the process of a sound reaching the brain?
It is located in the inner ear - sound waves are converted to nerve impulses
The impulses travel via the auditory nerve to the auditory cortex in the brain
What is the role of the brain stem in the process of a sound reaching the brain?
In the brain stem basic decoding takes place
i.e. the duration of a sound
What is the role of the thalamus in the process of a sound reaching the brain?
It acts as a relay station and carries out further processing of the auditory stimulus
What is the role of the auditory cortex in the process of a sound reaching the brain?
The sound has been largely decoded by this stage
In this stage it is recognised as may result in an appropriate response
What is hemispheric lateralisation?
Refers to the fact that some mental processes in the brain are mainly specialised to either the left or right hemisphere
What is split-brain research?
Research that studies individuals who have been subjected to the surgical separation of the two hemispheres of the brain as a result of severing the corpus callosum
What does the term brain lateralisation mean?
It refers to the fact that two halves of the human brain are not exactly alike
Each hemisphere has functional specialisations & some are localised primarily in one half of the brain
Give 2 examples of functions that are specialised to one side of the brain?
Left hemisphere is dominant in language & speech
Right hemisphere excels at visual-motor tasks
