Biopsychology - Booklet 3 - Ways of studying the brain

Question 1

What are the four ways of studying the brain?

Answer 1

-Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
-Electroencephalogram (EEGs)
-Event-related potentials (ERPs)
-Post - mortem examinations

Question 2

What is spatial resolution?

Answer 2

-The smallest feature that a scanner can detect, an important feature of brain scanning techniques

Question 3

What is temporal resolution?

Answer 3

-The accuracy of the scanner in relation of time: how quickly the scanner detects changes

Question 4

What are the spatial resolutions on the spec?

Answer 4

fMRI = 1-2mm
EEG/ERP = Superficial/General Regions Only

Question 5

What are the Temporal resolutions on the spec?

Answer 5

fMRI = 1-4 seconds
EEG/ERP = 1-10 ms

Question 6

What do fMRI measure?

Answer 6

Blood flow in the brain when a person performs a task

Question 7

How does an fMRI (basically) work?

Answer 7

-Active brain neurons use energy
-Energy requires glucose and oxygen
-Oxgyen released by active neurons, so haemoglobin becomes deoxygenated
-Deoxygenated blood has different magnetic quality
-fMRI detects different magnetic qualities to create 3D activation map

Question 8

What does an fMRI produce?

Answer 8

A 3 dimensional image called an activation map, showing which parts of the brain are active when doing processes.

Question 9

What are fMRI’s important for helping us understand?

Answer 9

Localisation of function

Question 10

What is an example of a use of an fMRI?

Answer 10

People could do a memory task and the fMRI would show which parts of the brain are active/ have a greater blood flow

Question 11

What are the evaluations of fMRI?

Answer 11

😊It is a safe way of measuring brain activity
😒Can sometimes give inaccurate measures of brain activity

Question 12

what do EEG scanners measure?

Answer 12

Electrical activity through electrodes attached to the scalp

Question 13

How do EEGs (basically) work?

Answer 13

-Information is processed in the brain as electrical activity (neurons firing)
-Small electrical charges detected by the electron
-These charges graphed over time, indicating a level of activity

Question 14

What does Amplitude and Frequency mean in an EEG?

Answer 14

Amplitude - The intensity or size of activity
Frequency - The speed or quantity of activity

Question 15

What are the two types of EEG patterns produced?

Answer 15

Synchronised - Recognisable waveform (alpha , beta, delta and theta)
Desynchronised - No pattern

Question 16

What can EEG be used to detect?

Answer 16

Illnesses like epilepsy and sleep disorders, as well as other brain activity diseases.

Question 17

What are alpha waves and theta/deta waves associated with?

Answer 17

Alpha - Light sleep
Theta/delta - Deep sleep

Question 18

What are the evaluations of EEGs?

Answer 18

😊A safe way of measuring brain activity
😒Lack of precision when measuring the activity

Question 19

Why are ERP and EEG similar?

Answer 19

ERP use similar equipment - electrodes attached to the scalp

Question 20

What happens in an ERG?

Answer 20

-Stimulus presented to participant, researcher looks for activity
-Stimulus is presented many time and an average response graphed

Question 21

What’s the key difference between EEGs and ERPs?

Answer 21

ERPs record response to a specific presented stimulus, or performance on a specific task

Question 22

What are researchers able to do with ERPs?

Answer 22

Isolate the brain activity that corresponds to the specific stimulus using statistical averaging

Question 23

How many times is the stimulus presented in ERP?

Answer 23

Typically about one hundred times, to filter out extraneous brain activity

Question 24

What are the evaluations of ERPs?

Answer 24

😊A more specific measurement of brain activity than EEGs
😒Not a helpful way of measuring all types of cognitive functions

Question 25

What are 4 key points to remember about each measurement?

Answer 25

-Function
-Invasive or not
-Causality
-Accuracy

Question 26

Which is the only invasive measurement?

Answer 26

Post-mortem examinations

Question 27

What should not be mentioned when talking about post-mortem studies?

Answer 27

Ethics, they’re taken consensually after death

Question 28

What is post-mortem examination?

Answer 28

Where researchers study the physical brain of a person who displayed a particular behaviour while they were alive

Question 29

What are two named examples of post-mortem examinations on the spec?

Answer 29

Broca and Wernicke

Question 30

What was found when Iverson examined the brains of deceased schizophrenic patients?

Answer 30

He found a higher concentration of dopamine, especially in the limbic system, compared to non-schizophrenics

Question 31

What do Post-Mortem studies allow?

Answer 31

A more detailed examination of anatomical and neurochemical aspects of the brain than would be possible other wise

Question 32

What are the three main features of a post-mortem examination?

Answer 32

-Looks at anatomy - physical changes
-Looks at neurochemical changes (neurotransmitters)
-After death - no ethics

Question 33

What do researchers do with brain in a post-mortem?

Answer 33

look at areas of damage in the brain to establish the cause of problems they had, they are also compared to healthy brains to see how they differ

Question 34

What are the evaluations of post-mortems?

Answer 34

😊Led important discoveries about the brain and particular functions it is linked with
😒Difficult to establish cause and effect