Biopsychology Booklet 2 - The brain

Question 1

What is localisation of function in the brain?

Answer 1

The idea that different parts of the brain perform different tasks and are involved with different parts of the body.

Question 2

We can look at specific areas of the brain and see which functions they are linked to, what is this sometimes called?

Answer 2

Cortical specialisation

Question 3

What is the brain divided into?

Answer 3

Two symmetrical halves called the right and left hemisphere

Question 4

When some functions are found in only one hemisphere what is this called?

Answer 4

Hemispheric lateralisation

Question 5

Where is language usually lateralized?

Answer 5

To the left hemisphere

Question 6

The outer layer of both hemispheres is called what?

Answer 6

Cerebral cortex

Question 7

What is the motor area?

Answer 7

-Controls voluntary movement in the opposite side of the body, important for complex movements
-Different parts of motor area represent different parts of the body
-At the back of the frontal lobe in both hemispheres

Question 8

What is the somatosensory area?

Answer 8

-Receives sensory input from receptors in the skin
-Amount of somatosensory area devoted to each part of body is linked to how sensitive it needs to be
-Found at front of the parietal lobe in both hemispheres

Question 9

What is the visual area?

Answer 9

-receives input directly from the eyes, each eye sends info to the opposite hemisphere of the brain
-Damage to this leads to blindness
-In the occipital lobe in both hemispheres

Question 10

What is the auditory area?

Answer 10

Receives input directly from the ears, it analyses speech info. Each ear sends info to opposite hemisphere
-Damage can lead to hearing loss
-Found in front of the temporal lobe in both hemispheres

Question 11

What is language centre 1?

Answer 11

Brocas area:
-Responsible for producing language
-Damage results in motor aphasia and inability to speak/write
-Found in the left frontal lobe

Question 12

What is language centre 2?

Answer 12

Wernicke’s area:
-Responsible for understanding language
-Damage can result in sensory aphasia and lead to nonsense words
-At the top of the temporal lobe

Question 13

How to remember all 6 areas?

Answer 13

Brainy
Mice
Seem
Very
Weirdly
Aggressive

Question 14

What are the evaluations of localisation of function in the brain

Answer 14

😀Research to support: Peterson
😀Research to support: Clive Wearing
😀Research to support: Phineas Gage
😖Evidence to contradict: Lashley
😖research evidence to contradict
😖Small samples

Question 15

What happened in Sperry (1968)

Answer 15

Studied a group of 11 people undergoign treatment for epilepsy, cut the corpus collosum, operation done to control seizures, allowed Sperry to see if two hemispheres specialized for functions

Question 16

How does information pass through hemispheres of the brain?

Answer 16

Through the Corpus Collosum

Question 17

Patients could not name an object that was shown to their left visual field but could select a matching object from a grab bag using the left hand. They could not say what the object was as the info only went to their right hemisphere. What does this tell us?

Answer 17

That the right hemisphere is important for recognising objects and for understanding

Question 18

Patients were asked to match a face that they were shown with a selection of other faces. What were the results?

Answer 18

-When presented to the right visual field and the left hemisphere, struggled to identify
-When presented to left visual field and right hemisphere they selected correct face

Question 19

What are the evaluations of Hemispheric lateralisation and split-brain research?

Answer 19

😀Research evidence to support: Peterson
😀Further research through Sperry’s work
😀Sperry establish a useful and controlled procedure
😖Only used 11 patients
😖Individual differences

Question 20

What is brain plasticity?

Answer 20

The brain has the ability to change and adapt throughout life as a result of experience and new learning

Question 21

What is synaptic pruning?

Answer 21

As we get older synaptic connections that aren’t used anymore are deleted and those used a lot are strengthened

Question 22

What did Maguire (2000) find?

Answer 22

Studied London Taxi Drivers, found they had more grey matter in the hippocampus compared to the control group, also found the longer they’d been in job the more differences there were, showing experience influence brain structure

Question 23

What is functional recovery?

Answer 23

After the brain experiences trauma, due to injury for example, the unaffected areas of the brain can adapt to compensate for damaged areas.

Question 24

What would happen after functional recovery occurs?

Answer 24

Healthy brain areas take over the functions of those areas that are damaged, destroyed or even missing. Occurs quickly but slows down, patients then need therapy to recover.

Question 25

What does age have to do with functional recovery?

Answer 25

It is easier to recover from trauma when you are young

Question 26

What did Teuber find?

Answer 26

Soldiers who were under the age of 20 with brain damage recovered better than those over the age of 20

Question 27

What is neural reorganisation?

Answer 27

When the functions that are lost due to damage are transferred to undamaged areas. For example, the right hemisphere may attempt to take on some language functions if the left was damaged

Question 28

What is neural regeneration?

Answer 28

When new neurons grow to compensate for the damage and/or when new connections between neurons are made

Question 29

What is axonal sprouting?

Answer 29

Brain forms new synaptic connections close to the area of damage

Question 30

What are the evaluations of Plasticity and Functional Recovery of the brain after trauma?

Answer 30

😀Research: Bezzolla
😀Research: Hubel and Wiesel
😀Practical application: neurorehabilitation
😖Huge differences between people
😖BP can have negative effect on people (amputee)

Question 31

What did Bezzolla find?

Answer 31

The brains of participants aged 40 to 60 changed after golf training, more activity in motor cortex