Brain & Behaviour Flashcards
What is the brain responsible for?
Driving behaviour
Controling behaviour
Ending behaviour
What does understanding the brain allow us to understand?
Behavioural differences in life stages
Behavioural differences in breeds
Effects of early experiences on behaviour
Why behaviour may turn into dysfunctional behaviour
What are the 3 main regions of the brain?
Hindbrain
Midbrain
Forebrain
During embryonic development what develops into the 3 regions of the brain?
Neural tube
What develops from the forebrain during embryonic development?
The 2 cerebral hemispheres
What is the surface of the cerebral hemispheres known as?
Cortex
In different animals how is the cortex different?
In different animals the cortex are wrinkled differently
What is the cortex subdivided into?
Sensory cortex
Motor cortex
What are the ridges of the cortex’s wrinkles known as?
Gyri
What are the crevices of the cortex’s wrinkles known as?
Sulci
True or false
The number of gyri and sulci are specific/different for each species
True
Each species has a set number of gyri
Each species has a set number of sulci
How are the gyri and sulci formed in each species?
How each gyri and sulci is formed is also specific/different for each species
Why is the brain wrinkled?
The reason the brain has a wrinkled surface is to increase surface area
The more neurones in a given region the more important the role of that region is to the animal
Do all animals have a wrinkled brain?
Not all animals have a wrinkled cortex
How wrinkled a cortex is depends on the species
Why does cortex wrinkles vary between species?
The brain is an energetically expensive organ
The brain uses a lot of energy
The brain is about 2% of an individual’s body weight but how much of the bodies oxygen does the brain use?
20% of the bodies oxygen
20% of the bodies blood flow will be in the brain
Due to the high energy costs of the brain what will happen to a part of the brain which isn’t needed anymore?
Due to the high energy costs if an animal does not need a specific brain area for a specific brain function it will disappear as the species evolves
This is to reduce unnecessary energy costs
What are the 2 main types of behaviour produced by the brain?
Involuntary behaviour
Voluntary behaviour
What parts of the brain control involuntary behaviour?
Hindbrain
Midbrain
What parts of the brain control voluntary behaviour?
Forebrain & hindbrain
Voluntary behaviour is mainly controlled by the forebrain
Give examples of types of involuntary behaviour
Non-motivated behaviour
Involuntary reflex behaviour
True or false
The hindbrain and midbrain that controls involuntary behaviour are evolutionaryly ancient
True
What 3 reasons do we know that the hindbrain and midbrain are evolutionaryly ancient
They’re found in some of the oldest fish
They’re very similar across all species in functions
They are barely affected by developmental processes
Involuntary behaviour has some learning via what?
Motor learning
What are the things that become involuntary behaviour known as?
Motor sequences
What are motor sequences?
Motor sequences are sequences of events that happen very rapidly one after the other
Motor learning produces a fluid production of rapid sequences
Involuntary behaviour can be modified by inputs from the forebrain leading to involuntary behaviour modifications via what 3 ways?
Habituation
Sensitisation
Associative learning
True or false
Each brain region is connected to the others and can alter their functions if necessary
True
True or false
The hindbrain is mostly the same in all vertebrate animals
True
What are the 3 main subregions of the hindbrain?
Medulla
Pons
Cerebellum
Give examples of unlearnt Reflex actions that the medulla coordinates?
Swallowing
Sneezing
Vomiting
What does the hindbrain s medulla control with its ‘vital centres’?
Heartbeat
Breathing
Blood pressure
What can happen if the hindbrain medulla is damaged?
If the hindbrain’s medulla is damaged it can result in unconsciousness
What does the pons mediate?
Startled reflex
Grasping
What varies in the involuntary actions controlled by the hindbrain’s medulla and pons?
The involuntary actions controlled by the hindbrain’s medulla and pons vary on whether or not we can override or ignore them
They also vary on what degree you can override the involuntary behaviour
Define startle
Startle = Feeling or showing sudden shock or alarm
What part of the brain controls the startle response?
The hindbrain’s pons
The startle response is an indicator used for what?
Startle responses are a type of indicator we can use to measure an animals anxiety levels to assess its welfare
The startle response is automatic but what modulates it?
The startle response is automatic but modulated by input from the forebrain’s amygdala activating
What does it mean that startle responses are invariant and rigid in the way animals express them?
Startle responses are usually the same/similar startle responses seen in all vertebrates
Give an example of an involuntary action?
In human neonates you can see involuntary walking/stepping reflexes even though they haven’t learnt to walk yet
Those reflexes will disappear when their forebrain is developed enough to inhibit the reflexes
Neonates = an infant less than 4 weeks old
What are the 2 main functions of the hindbrain’s cerebellum?
Control postural reflexes
Sequence learning & production