biopsychology advanced information

Question 1

what is functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)

Answer 1

technique for measuring brain activity while a person completes a task done by measuring brain oxygen levels.

Question 2

what are the strengths of fMRI

Answer 2

Does not rely on use of radiation

Depicts detail by the millimetre

Question 3

what are the limitations of fMRI

Answer 3

Poor temporal spacing

It is expensive

Question 4

what is an electroencephalogram (EEG)

Answer 4

Measures electrical activity from in brain cells

Question 5

what are the strengths of an EEG

Answer 5

extremely high temporal resolution

cheaper to carry out

Question 6

what are the limitations of an EEG

Answer 6

not useful for pinpointing exact source of neural activity

does not allow researchers to distinguish between adjacent cells

Question 7

what is an Event-related potential (ERPs)

Answer 7

Measures electrophysical response to a stimulus

Question 8

what is the strength of ERPs

Answer 8

more specificity to the measurement of neural processes

excellent temporal resolution

Question 9

what is the limitation of ERPs

Answer 9

background noise must be eliminated

difficult to confirm findings

Question 10

what are post-mortem examinations

Answer 10

when a corpse is investigated and the brain is opened to find the link to deficits

Question 11

what are strengths of post-mortem examinations

Answer 11

improve medical knowledge

help generate hypotheses

Question 12

what are the limitations of post-mortem examinations

Answer 12

Raise ethical issues because the patient cannot provide informed consent

observed damage may not link to the deficits under review

Question 13

describe a sensory neuron

Answer 13

carry nerve impulses from sensory receptors to spine and brain

long dendrites short axons

Question 14

describe a relay neuron

Answer 14

allows sensory and motor neurons to communicate

short dendrites short axon

Question 15

describe a motor neuron

Answer 15

carry nerve impulses from the spinal cord and the brain to effectors

short dendrites long axons

Question 16

describe broca’s area

Answer 16

left frontal lobe

responsible for speech production

Question 17

describe wernickes area

Answer 17

left temporal lobe responsible for speech production

Question 18

what are limitations of localisation of function

Answer 18

may be incorrect. many areas are involved in memory in brain.

Functional recovery. other areas can take over function. wouldn’t be possible if localisation

Question 19

what are strengths of localisation of function

Answer 19

case studies. wearing damages hippocampus lost memory. tulving found different areas for episodic and semantic

neurosurgery. OCD patients that have their cingulate gyrus cut . a third no longer suffered

Question 20

what is lateralisation

Answer 20

the fact some mental processes are mainly specialised to right or left hemisphere.

left hemisphere is language
right hemisphere is facial recognition.

Question 21

what are the strengths of lateralisation

Answer 21

hemispheric lateralisation increases processing capacity. hemisphere can do different tasks simultaneously.

Sperry split brain research. shows language is left hemisphere and recognition is right hemisphere.

Question 22

what is the split brain research

Answer 22

patients with cut corpus callosums focus on a dot in either left or right visual field.
picture is shown on right visual field can be described due to left hemisphere having language on left visual field it cannot be

Question 23

what are the strengths of split brain research

Answer 23

Good methodology. allows it to be standardised. still used today.

advanced understanding. useful in understanding the role of each hemisphere.

Question 24

what are the limitations of split brain research

Answer 24

evidence might be flawed. people with split brains not normal in first place. reduces ability to generalise

case study. reduces ability to create laws to explain humans. not scientific.

Question 25

What is the central nervous system

Answer 25

Made up of the brain and the spinal chord. Passes messages to and from the brain and connects nervous system to peripheral nervous system.

Question 26

What is the peripheral nervous system

Answer 26

Transmits messages to and from the central nervous system. It is made up of two parts: The autonomic nervous system and the somatic nervous system.

Question 27

What is the autonomic nervous system

Answer 27

Governs vital functions in the body such as digestion. Made up of sympathetic nervous system which prepares us for fight and flight and the parasympathetic nervous system which prepares us by calming us down after danger has passed and resuming normal bodily functions.

Question 28

What is the process of synaptic transmission

Answer 28

Information is passed down the axon of the neuron as an electrical impulse known as action potential. Once the action potential reaches the end of the axon it needs to be transferred to another neuron or tissue. It must cross over the synaptic gap between the presynaptic neuron and post-synaptic neuron. At the end of the neuron (in the axon terminal) are the synaptic vesicles, which contain chemical messengers, known as neurotransmitters. When the electrical impulse (action potential) reaches these synaptic vesicles, they release their contents of neurotransmitters to diffuse across the synaptic cleft. Neurotransmitters then carry the signal across the synaptic cleft. They bind to receptor sites on the post-synaptic membrane. If the neurotransmitter is excitatory it increases the chance of the post synaptic neuron firing. If it is inhibitory it reduces the chance of the posy synaptic neuron firing.

Question 29

How do hemispheres of the brain work in localisation of function

Answer 29

Brain is split into right and left hemisphere with some functions dominated by one hemisphere. The right hemisphere controls activity on the left side of the body whereas the left hemisphere controls activity on the right side of the body.