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Psychology303 > Chapter 2 - Cognitive Neuroscience > Flashcards

Chapter 2 - Cognitive Neuroscience Flashcards

1
Q

cognitive neuroscience

A

the study of the physiological basis of cognition

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2
Q

levels of analysis

A

the idea that a topic can be studied in many different ways. For example, this book on cognitive psychology explains the behavioral and physiological experiments.

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3
Q

neurons

A

small units of the brain that create and transmit information about what we experience and know.

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4
Q

nerve net

A

a complex pathway for conducting signals uninterrupted through the network.

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5
Q

neuron doctrine

A

the idea that individual cells transmit signals in the nervous system, and that these cells are not continuous with other cells. Discovered by Spanish physiologist Ramon y Cajal.

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6
Q

cell body

A

the metabolic center of the neuron

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7
Q

dendrites

A

branch out from the cell body and receive signals from other neurons.

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8
Q

axons

A

long processes that transmit signals to other neurons

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9
Q

synapse

A

the gap between the end of a neuron’s axon and the dendrite or cell body of another neuron.

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10
Q

neural circuits

A

a group of interconnected neurons

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11
Q

receptors

A

specialized neural structures that respond to environmental stimuli such as light, mechanical stimulation, or chemical.

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12
Q

microelectrodes

A

small wires that are used to record electrical signals from single neurons.

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13
Q

recording electrode

A

when used to study neural functioning, a very thin glass or metal probe that can pick up electrical signals from single neurons.

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14
Q

reference electrode

A

used with a recording electrode to measure the difference between the two. Reference electrodes are placed where the electrical current remains constant so that any changes can be recorded.

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15
Q

resting potential

A

the difference in charge between the inside and outside of a nerve fiber when the fiber is at rest (no other electrical signals are present).

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16
Q

nerve impulse

A

an electrical response that is propagated down the length of an axon; also called an action potential.

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17
Q

action potential

A

propagated electrical potential responsible for transmitting neural information and for communication between neurons. Action potentials travel down a neuron’s axon.

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18
Q

neurotransmitter

A

a chemical released at the synapse in response to incoming action potentials.

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19
Q

principle of neural representation

A

states that everything a person experiences is based not on a direct contact with stimuli but representations in the person’s nervous system.

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20
Q

retina

A

the layer of neurons that lines the back of the eye.

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21
Q

visual cortex

A

the area at the back of the brain that receives signals from the eye.

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22
Q

feature detector

A

neurons that respond to specific stimulus features such as orientation, movement, and length.

Discovered in the 1960s by David Hubel and Thorsten Wiesel.

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23
Q

hierarchical processing

A

processing that occurs in a progression from lower to higher areas of the brain.

24
Q

sensory code

A

refers to how neurons represent various characteristics of the environment.

25
Q

specificity coding

A

the idea that an object could be represented by the firing of a specialized neuron that responds only to that object.

26
Q

population coding

A

the representation of an object by the pattern of firing of a large number of neurons.

27
Q

sparse coding

A

when a particular object is represented by a pattern of firing of only a small group of neurons, with the majority of neurons silent.

28
Q

localization of function

A

one of the basic principles of brain organization that states specific functions are served by specific areas of the brain.

29
Q

cerebral cortex

A

a layer of tissue about 3mm thick that covers the brain.

30
Q

neuropsychology

A

the study of the behavior of people with brain damage

31
Q

Broca’s area

A

an area of the left frontal lobe that is specialized for speech/language production.

Proposed by Paul Broca in 1861.

32
Q

Wernicke’s area

A

an area of the temporal lobe responsible for language comprehension.

33
Q

occipital lobe

A

the lobe at the back of the brain that is devoted primarily to analyzing incoming visual information.

34
Q

temporal lobe

A

lobe on the side of the brain responsible for language, memory, hearing, and vision.

35
Q

parietal lobe

A

lobe at the top of the brain responsible for sensations caused by stimulation of the skin and also some aspects of visual information.

36
Q

frontal lobe

A

lobe at the front of the brain that serves higher functions such as language, thought, memory, and motor functioning.

37
Q

prosopagnosia

A

a condition caused by damage to the temporal lobe that is characterized by an inability to recognize faces.

38
Q

double dissociation

A

occurs if damage to one area of the brain causes function A to be absent while function B is present, and damage to another area causes function B to be absent while function A is present.

39
Q

magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

A

creates images of structures in the brain. A standard technique for detecting tumors and other brain abnormalities.

40
Q

functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)

A

a brain imaging technique that measures how blood flow changes in response to cognitive activity.

41
Q

brain imaging

A

makes it possible to determine which areas of the brain are active during cognitive processes.

42
Q

voxels

A

​small cube-shaped areas of the brain about 2 or 3 mm on a side. Voxels are not brain structures but are small units of analysis created by the fMRI.

43
Q

fusiform face area (FFA)

A

an area in the temporal lobe that contains many neurons that respond selectively to faces. The same part of the brain that is damaged in cases of prosopagnosia.

44
Q

parahippocampal place area (PPA)

A

An area in the temporal lobe that contains neurons that are selectively activated by pictures of indoor and outdoor scenes.

45
Q

extrastriate body area (EBA)

A

an area in the temporal cortex that is activated by pictures of bodies and parts of bodies, but not faces or other objects.

46
Q

distributed representation

A

the idea that specific cognitive functions activate many areas of the brain.

47
Q

neural network

A

groups of neurons or structures that are connected together.

48
Q

diffusion tensor imaging (DTI)

A

a technique based on detection of how water diffuses along the length of nerve fibers, for tracing nerve pathways and determining connections

49
Q

Camillo Golgi

A

developed a staining technique in which a thin slice of brain tissue was immersed in a solution of silver nitrate; fewer than 1 % of the cells were stained.

50
Q

Ramon y Cajal

A

a Spanish physiologist who used two techniques, the Golgi stain and a newborn animal brain. A newborn brain is less dense, and the Golgi stain only affects less than 1% of the tissue; these characteristics made it possible for Cajal to discover that the nerve net is not continuous.

51
Q

Edgar Adrian

A

in the 1920s, he was able to record electrical signals from single sensory neurons; awarded the Nobel Prize in 1932. He discovered that each action potential travels all the way down the axon without changing its height or shape.

52
Q

David Hubel

A

alongside Thorsten Wiesel found that each neuron in the visual area of the cortex responded to a specific type of stimulation presented to a small area of the retina.

53
Q

Charles Gross

A

discovered that the neurons in the temporal lobe responded to complex stimuli and neurons in another area of the temporal lobe responded to faces

54
Q

Paul Broca

A

proposed, in 1861, that an area of the left frontal lobe is specialized for speech/language production. This area is now called Broca’s area.

55
Q

Carl Wernicke

A

identified, in 1879, an area of the temporal lobe responsible for language comprehension. This area is now called Wernick’s area.

56
Q

Doris Tsao and coworkers

A

found that 97% of the neurons within a small area in the lower part of a monkey’s temporal lobe responded to pictures of faces but not to pictures of other types of objects.

57
Q

Alex Huth and coworkers

A

were able to determine what kinds of stimuli each voxel responds to using a fMRI and having subjects view film clips of various objects and actions.

Psychology303 (7 decks)

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