Biospychology A Level Flashcards
Define localisation
Different areas of the brain are responsible for different functions
What are the 4 lobes
Frontal
Parietal
Occipital
Temporal
What are the 4 cortexes
Motor
Somatosensory
Primary visual
Primary auditory
What is Broca’s area
- responsible for language production left frontal Hemisphere
- If Broca’s area is damaged, then you would have problems speaking fluently
- Broca’s patient Tan could only say the word ‘Tan’- he couldn’t poduce normal speech
- This is also reffered to as Brocas aphasia (absence of)
What is wernickes area
•responsibie for language comprehension
• If Wernicke’s area Is damaged, then you will be able to speak fluently, but Will not make sense
-you will also struggle to understand words which are said to you
-also Called wernicke’s aphasia
Define lateralisation
One hemisphere of the brain being responsible for particular physical and psychological functions
Define hemispheric lateralisation
sensory processing and motor
control are housed
contralaterally so damage to the left hemisphere e.g. by a Stroke, will affect
the right side of the body. language is based In the left, hemisphere
What did sperry do
The sample was Il patient who had undergone commisurotomy as a treatment for epilepsy
Sperry did not sever the corpus callosum
of the epiletic patients himself he was merely an opportunist. He used an experiment to compare their functioning to people without epilepsy who nas not undergone the procedure
How did sperry do his study
- the patients were asked to focus on a dot in the middle of the screen
- one eye was covered and word/s flashed up for 1/10 of a second
What was sperrys findings
if Information (words) was presented to the right Visual field, the infomation wouid be processed controlaterly by the left hemisphere. Because the language centres are present in the left hemisphere The patient would be able to say the word he has seen.
But If Information was presented to the left Visual field It would be processed
contralacerally by the right hemisphere and the patient would not be able to say the word he had seen as the language centres are only in
the left hemisphere and this information could not be passed across the Corpus callosm
Define functional recovery
When the brain cells are damaged the brain re-wires itself overtime to gain some function to other points of the brain.
What are stem cells and how do they work
Unspecified cell that have the potential to become other cells
1) implanted into the brain to directly replace dead or dying cells
Or
2) the transplanted cells release growth factors that rescue the injured cells
What is the supportive research for stem cells with evaluation
Tajiri Got rats with brain damage and injected some of them with stem cells therapy, a clear improvement compared to those that had not received stem cells.
Limitations
Can’t extrapolate due to rats
Other factors like age haven’t been considered
Factors like education
What is plasticity - give example
The brains ability to change and adapt as a result of experience. This plays an important role in the brain development and behaviour
E.g as people gain new experiences some nerve pathways get stronger and those that aren’t usually die. The brain adapts by developing new connections and pushing away the weak ones.
What research into plasticity is there
Research into video games has shown evidence and plasticity within the brain.
Kunn et al- compares a control group with a group that played super Mario for at 30 mins a day for 2 months.
The findings found a significant change in the grey matter near the cortex, hippocampus and cerebellum. Those area are involved with spatial navigation, strategic planning, working memory and motor preformance - skills needed to play the game
