Chapter 1: Introduction and History Flashcards
phrenology
The practice, initiated by Franz Josef Gall (1758-1828), of divining mental traits from patterns of convexities and concavities on the skull.
construct validity
The extent to which there is a principled basis for asserting the existence of a psychological, or physiological, construct.
typically developed
Refers to individuals who do not have a neurological or psychiatric diagnosis. In the context of studies of developmental disorders (e.lg. autism spectrum disorder or fragile X syndrome), this term is often preferred to the synonym “normal,” to avoid the pejorative connotations of the label “abnormal.”
neurons
The cells in the brain that generate electrical and chemical signals that control all other systems of the body. The typical neuron has four distinct regions: dendrites, cell body, axon, and synaptic terminals (see Chapter 2).
localization of function
The idea that a behavioral or cognitive function can arise from a discrete (i.e. “localized”) anatomical region of the brain.
mass action
The idea that behavioral and cognitive functions cannot be understood as arising from discrete anatomical regions of the brain.
craniotomy
Surgical procedure of removing a portion of the cranium (skull) in order to expose a portion of the underlying brain tissue.
lesion
Used as a noun, it refers to either damage or an abnormality. It is a general term, in that it does not specify either the nature or the cause. Thus, a region of dead or otherwise compromised tissue can be referred to as a lesion regardless of whether it was caused by viral encephalitis (swelling), by anoxia (deprivation of oxygen, such as could happen as a result of a stroke), or by the experimental injection of ibotenic acid, a chemical that kills the soma of neurons, but not fibers of passage (see Chapter 2 for definitions). (Note that each of these causes would produce a different pattern of damage.) For use as a verb, see definition of neuropsychology and Methodology Box 1:1.
neuropsychology
The careful analysis of the behavior consequences resulting from damage to a particular brain structure. Neuropsychology can either be conducted by experimentally producing a surgical lesion in an animal, or by observing the effects on behavior of brain damage incurred by humans (see Methodology Box 1.1).
anatomical specificity
This refers to the degree to which a particular effect on behavior is attributable to only a particular anatomical region. See “Methodology Box 1.1 on Neuropsychology, neurophysiology, and the importance of anatomical specificity.”
cerebral hemisphere
The “cerebrum” is the largest part of the brain (in volume), sitting atop the brainstem. It is divided into two roughly symmetrical halves, each referred to as a hemisphere.
high-level cognition
An informal, but widely used classification for most mental functions other than sensory perception, motor control, and some aspects of memory and attention. Examples include language, problem solving, reasoning, and meta-cognition (thinking about thinking).
seizure
An incidence of abnormal brain functioning that can last from seconds to minutes, and can occur as an isolated event or as a chronic condition of repeating seizures (i.e. epilepsy). Positive manifestations of seizure can include the perception of flashing light or the uncontrolled, involuntary jerking of a limb; negative manifestations can be transient blindness or paralysis. Seizures result from stereotypical, abnormal patterns of activity in brain cells (neurons).
somatotopy
This word derives from soma (Greek for body) and -topy (of or pertaining to a place). The principle of somatotopy is that adjacent parts of the body (for example, the upper lip and the nose) are represented in adjacent parts of the brain. Note that the “map” created by a somatotopically organized portion of cortex need not bear close physical resemblance to the parts of the body being represented - there are frequently distortions and discontinuities.
topographic organization
The principle that adjacent parts of some aspect of the world outside the brain are represented in adjacent parts of the brain. Thus, somatotopy is one example of topographic organization. Other examples include the representation of the visual field, as projected onto the retina, by the visual cortex (“retinotopy”), the representation of sound in a continuous map from low to high frequencies (“tonotopy”), and the representation of geometric space (“grid cells” of the entorhinal cortex).
