Chapter 5 Flashcards
1
Q
sensation
A
the detection of energy emitted or reflected by physical objects
2
Q
perception
A
when the brain figures things out and implements sensory info
3
Q
When you see an object, you are seeing
A
light photons
4
Q
Attention
A
The act of focusing on particular info
5
Q
Inattentional blindness
A
When you are too busy paying attention to one thing that you miss another thing in plain sight
6
Q
Explain the video and the fight study
A
Demonstrate inattentional blindness- gorilla was not noticed because you focused attention on counting basketball players, fight was not noticed because you were too busy focusing on counting the number of head touches
7
Q
blindsight
A
the ability to respond to visual information without consciously seeing it
8
Q
Explain the example of the man who managed to walk down the hall even though he was blind
A
Blindsight- he turned even though he couldn’t see anything, but due to blindsight, he was still able to process where objects were
9
Q
Subliminal perception
A
sensory signals responds but no consciousness (subtle or short)
10
Q
Sensory coding
A
translation of physical properties of stimuli into neural signals
11
Q
Trace the path of physical stimuli
A
perception cells -> neural impulse -> thalamus -> parietal cortex
12
Q
Sensory adaptation
A
Reduction/disappearance of sensory responsiveness when situation is unchanging; You do not experience the world as is, rather more so as the World is trying to give you usefulness Example: Granite city might smell at first, but over time, you get used to the smell
13
Q
If a light reflects no photons, it’s
A
invisible
14
Q
What if a light absorbs all photons?
A
it’s a black hole
15
Q
Hue is determined by
A
wavelength
16
Q
Brightness is determined by
A
amplitude - intensity or energy in light waves
17
Q
sclera
A
bounces light off
18
Q
cornea
A
transparent dome, responsible for 2/3 of focusing
19
Q
iris
A
determines the color of eyes, controls amount of light let in to retina and pupil
20
Q
lens
A
accountable for 1/3 of focusing by changing shape, lens get rigid with age, which is why older adults become farsighted
21
Q
But why are images in the eye upside down?
A
Photos hit upside down but your brain flips it back for you via perception: sensation is upside down
22
Q
Rod cells
A
no color, high sensitivity, located around outside
23
Q
Cone Cells
A
sensitive to color, low sensitivity, located around the center
24
Q
Describe how light is processed by eye:
A
light causes rod and cone cells to fire -> bipolar neurons -> ganglion cells -> axons wind together to form the optic nerve
25
Blindspot
Near fovea
26
Feature detectors
cells in visual cortex sensitive to specific features of the environment
27
Types of cones
3 types, RGB
28
Young-Helmholtz Trichromatic Theory
cones for RGB unless color blind; short cones -> blue medium cones -> green long cones -> red
29
Opponent-Process theory
The visual system treats pairs of colors as opposing on/off "switches" Red/Green Blue/Yellow Black/White (either on or off, one or the other)
30
Gestalt
See everything as a whole, see the world as it is useful
31
Law of Proximity
You see stimuli near each other as something
32
Law of Similarity
You see things that are similar as one object
33
Law of Closure
You tend to see forms enclosed and ignore gaps
34
Law of Good Continuation
When lines intersect, we group parts into one continual line with minimal changes
35
Famous Psychologists Behaviorists
Watson, Skinner
36
Learning is
how we adapt to our environment; a relatively permanent change in organism's behavior due to change (think dog and mud)
37
Behaviorist Movement deduced that
Learning is always the result of direct experience, should focus on only observable phenomena
38
The Black Box
inputs -> black box (mind) -> outputs
39
Classical conditioning
Linking two stimuli to make an association (end of class -> start packing bags) Basically, you pair a neutral stimulus (0.5 seconds apart works best conditioned stimulus before unconditioned stimulus) with an unconditioned stimulus to elicit an unconditioned response. Over time, the neutral stimulus on its own will elicit the unconditioned response, to which it will become a conditioned stimulus and the response the conditioned response.
40
Pavlov's Dog experiment
dogs will salivate for other reasons by associating certain behavior with getting a treat
41
Unconditional stimulus
something that's never initially learned - drooling
42
Neutral stimulus
something one is not experienced to react in - ie bells
43
Neutral before unconditional stimulus will
eventually become a conditioned stimulus although conditioned response tends to be a little smaller
44
Watson & Little Albert
an unconditional stimulus was a loud noise which was correlated with the unconditional response of fear/crying; as a result he cried when he saw rats and furry things
45
Discrimination
If you can perceive a difference in two stimuli, you learn to respond to them differently
46
Classical conditioning works best when
the stimulus and response have the type of relationship that would lead you to believe that the stimulus caused the response, but there must be a delay
47
Garcia Effect
All stimuli are not created equal -> learning is constrained by our biology; I can't make you exactly fear a chair
48
Watson ended up
going into advertising and pairing products with other things that would make you feel good (ie scandy women and cars)
49
Thorndike's Law of Effect
rewarded behavior is likely to occur (ie whining)
50
Reinforcement (explain positive and negative)
Anything that strengthens behavior: positive reinforcement: add a pleasurable stimulus negative reinforcement: take away a bad stimulus such as seatbelt noise or headache
51
Describe an absolute threshold
The absolute threshold is the minimum quantity of stimulus needed to occur before sensation.
52
Describe a difference threshold
The difference threshold is the minimum quantity of stimulus needed for you to distinguish two different stimuli
53
Describe Weber's Law
Weber’s law says that the amount of stimulus for a difference threshold is a proportion rather than a fixed amount based on the amount of the initial stimulus, an initially large quantity of stimulus will need a larger quantity of stimulus for a difference in perception.
54
What are the four possible outcomes in a trial of a signal detection experiment? How could response bias affect these outcomes?
Create the matrix using the four terms signal/no signal detected/not detected
Response bias could affect these outcomes because each participant has a different absolute threshold, and it can take more or less stimulus for a participant to notice a signal or to miss a signal.
55
What is the difference between a monocular and a binocular depth cue?
The difference between a monocular and binocular depth cue is that a binocular depth cue is available from both eyes and contributes to bottom up processing. A monocular depth cue on the other hand is available from each eye alone (meaning you can still use these cues with one eye closed and provide organizational info for top down processing). Binocular depth cue is when eyes converge inwards, which uses binocular disparity to assess the distance. This is only useful for nearby objects however. Monocular depth, known as pictorial cues.
56
Top down processing
how our brains make use of information that has already been brought into the brain by one or more of the sensory systems. Top-down processing is a cognitive process that initiates with our thoughts, which flow down to lower-level functions, such as the senses
57
Bottom up processing
First comes the response in the body (eyes see the bowl and contents; nose smells chocolate, pickles, and hot sauce; stomach churns; face grimaces; head turns away). This leads to emotion (repulsion, disappointment) and the brain's cognition and directive for action (thinking, 'That's nasty,' and saying, 'No thank you.'). As you can see from the chart below, bottom-up processing starts with the body and ends in the brain.
58
Explain how “motion aftereffects” work.
Motion aftereffects occur when your eyes gaze at a moving image for so long that your direction specific neurons are fatigued and less sensitive. As a result, when you remove the stimulus and go back to a still image, the original moving image will move in the opposite direction, as all of your directional specific neurons that are not fatigued all fire at the same time. This proved that there are motion sensitive neurons in the brain.
59
In audition, what characteristics of the sound wave determine intensity and pitch?
The amplitude of the sound wave determines the intensity of the sound. A higher amplitude correlates to a greater intensity. Frequency contributes to the pitch of the sound. A higher frequency will correlate to a higher pitched sound.
60
How are sound waves converted into neural activity in the brain?
Sound waves are converted into neural activity in the brain by first having a sound go through the air and change the air pressure surrounding it. The air enters the outer ear through the auditory canal and vibrates off the eardrum. The eardrum then vibrates to the ossicles, which then sends it to the oval window. The over window contains the cochlea in which the center part is the basilar membrane. The pressure in the cochlea’s fluid causes the basilar membrane to oscillate, which hair cells pick up and send info to the auditory nerve to the thalamus and then to the primary auditory complex in the temporal lobe.
61
Temporal Coding
Used for low-frequency sounds, and involves the hair cells vibrating at the same frequency as the sound.
62
Place coding
Place coding is used for high-frequency sounds, and involves determining pitch of the sound by the location at which the hair cells along the basilar membrane code the sound. Higher frequencies will cause the hair cells to vibrate towards the outer or base part of the basilar membrane, while lower frequencies will cause the hair cells to vibrate towards the inner or tip part of the basilar membrane.
63
Describe the two different types of nerve fibers for pain.
There are two types of nerve fibers for pain: fast fibers for sharp immediate pain and slow fibers for chronic, dull, steady states of pain. An example would be when you touch a hot pan. Fast fibers are activated by the high temperature, while slow fibers are activated by the damage in skin through chemical changes in the skin. Fast pain recoils us from harmful objects while slow pain reminds us to avoid using that area.
64
Explain the gate control theory of pain.
The gate control theory of pain is that we experience pain when pain receptors are active and a neural gate to the spinal cord allows pain to travel up to the brain. Pain signals are transferred using small diameter nerve fibers. These fibers can be blocked at the spinal cord via the firing of larger sensory nerve fibers. This is why scratching an itch is so satisfying and rubbing an area before injections lessens the pain.
65
In vision, what is the process of accommodation?
Accommodation (Acc) is the process by which the vertebrate eye changes optical power to maintain a clear image or focus on an object as its distance varies. ...Accommodation acts like a reflex, but can also be consciously controlled.
66
Know the basics of eye anatomy and be able to identify the role each part of the eye plays in vision:sclera, cornea, iris, pupil, lens, retina, rods and cones, bipolar cells, ganglion cells, optic nerve, blindspot, fovea.
cornea - does 66% of light focusing - transparent dome
lens -> focuses the eye so it can focus on objects of various distances so a sharp image can be formed
sclera -> the white part of the eye protects eye from injury
Retina -> detects light sent by lens pupil and cornea to be sent to brain via signals
pupil - allows light into the eye will expand and contract
iris determines eye color does other 33% of focusing
fovea - > where vision is sharpest, located in the retina
retinal sense images upside down
rods/cones forward info to bipolar cells which talk to ganglion cells, the axons of ganglion cells form optic nerve
blindspot is where there are no photoreceptor cells
67
What is a feature detector?
Feature detectors are specialized cells in the brain specifically there to detect certain stimuli of the environment such as movement, shape, or angles.
68
Explain why afterimages occur.
After images occur because under the Opponent Process Theory, cone cells are sensitive to a particular length of wavelength and cannot detect colors of different lengths. Staring at one particular color once you move onto something white will suddenly trigger the opposite color, for your receptors are still used to that one color.
69
How does Locke’s notion of “Tabula Rasa” relate to the behaviorist movement?
Watson who founded Behaviorism believed that newborn humans were capable of learning anything. This was similar to Locke’s notion of “Tabula Rasa” or blank space, and that infants require all of their knowledge through sensory experiences. Watson believed that the environment and its effects on animals were the sole source of learning.
70
How does Locke’s notion of “Tabula Rasa” relate to the behaviorist movement?
Watson who founded Behaviorism believed that newborn humans were capable of learning anything. This was similar to Locke’s notion of “Tabula Rasa” or blank space, and that infants require all of their knowledge through sensory experiences. Watson believed that the environment and its effects on animals were the sole source of learning.
71
Nonassociative learning
a response to something in the environment after repeated exposure
72
Associative learning
linking two events that take place one after another
73
Observational behavior
acquiring or changing behavior after watching another individual conduct the behavior
74
Habituation
decrease in response after repeated exposure to a stimulus - ie living near an airport
75
Sensitization
increase in response after repeated exposure to a stimulus - ie smell something boring
76
Describe second order conditioning and give an example.
Second order conditioning refers to when you pair a second neutral stimulus with the conditioned stimulus and pair the two stimuli until the second neutral stimulus elicits the conditioned response as well. An example would be in Pavlov’s study where after Classical conditioning was utilized to allow the dogs to have the bell become a conditioned stimulus, a black square was also presented with the bell without the presence of meat, and eventually, the black square on its own caused the dog to drool as well.
77
Spontaneous recovery
when a previously extinguished conditioned response emerges after presentation of the conditioned stimulus. It will fade quickly unless the cs is paired again with the us.
78
Stimulus generalization
occurs when stimuli similar but not exact to the unconditional stimuli also elicit the conditioned response
79
What is the “blocking effect”? How is it different from second order conditioning?
amin indicated that having a conditional stimulus that can predict an unconditional stimulus is sufficient. If an animal learns a conditional stimulus is a predictor of an unconditional stimulus, a pigeon learns that a light reliably predicts the onset of some painful stimulus such as a shock, then the pigeon will no longer become conditioned to another conditional stimulus or learn that any other conditional stimulus predicts that unconditional stimulus. So, our little pigeon friend will not learn that a bell predicts the onset of the shock the same way the light did. Once the pigeon learns one reliable association with the CS, it essentially "blocks" further associations.
This is different from second order conditioning because second order conditioning pits a second conditional stimulus to associate and trigger the conditioned response, while Kamin says through the blocking effect that only one conditional stimulus is sufficient if it can help predict an unconditional stimulus.
80
Explain Rescorla’s cognitive perspective on classical conditioning and the Rescorla-Wagner Model.How does counterconditioning work?
Rescorla’s perspective on classical conditioning was that According to the Rescorla-Wagner model, an animal learns an expectation that some predictors (which are potential conditional stimuli) are better than others. The strength of the conditional stimulus to unconditioned stimulus association is determined by the extent to which the unconditional stimulus is unexpected or surprising. The difference between expected and actual outcome is called prediction error. A positive prediction error strengthens the association between the conditioned stimulus and unconditioned stimulus when after a stimulus appears, something better than expected happens. For example, an electric can opener is used to open a can of dog food. The dog will associate the sound of the can opener with the appearance of food. That is, the dog will now wag its tail and be happy when it hears that sound as it expects to be fed. When the opener breaks and there’s no longer a sound but the dog still receives food due to a manual can opener, there is a large positive prediction error.
81
Blocking
Blocking is similar to second order conditioning, but involves a different process. In blocking, a previously conditioned stimulus is presented at the same time as the new stimulus, followed by the unconditional stimulus. There will be no conditioned response to the new conditioned stimulus, as the original conditioned stimulus is already reliably predicting the unconditioned stimulus, so the new stimulus is blocked.
82
Describe the difference between primary and secondary reinforcers.
Primary reinforcers are reinforcers that are necessary for survival and satisfy biological needs, such as food or water. Secondary reinforcers are reinforcers that serve as reinforcers but do not satisfy biological needs. These reinforcers are established through classical conditioning, such as money, which is really only paper but is associated with all sorts of unconditional stimuli such as food and power.
Operant conditioning - learning process in which an action’s consequences determine the likelihood of that action being repeated - started with William James working with Thorndike - took inspiration from Darwin
83
Skinner and operant box; what is shaping
Animals might take a while in Skinner’s box, so you can use shaping - which reinforces behaviors that are similar to desired behavior
84
What is the Premack Principle?
The Premack Principle states that a reinforcer’s value could be determined by the amount of time a person, when free, willingly engages in a specific behavior associated with the reinforcer. For instance, more children would rather eat ice cream over vegetables. Reinforcer’s value can also vary with context. If you’re hungry, food will have higher value. According to Premack’s principle, a more-valued activity can be used to reinforce the performance of a less-valued activity. For example, “eat your spinach and you’ll get ice cream.” Finish your homework and you can go outside, etc.
85
Continuous reinforcement
behavior is reinforced every time it occurs, usually used for faster learning
86
intermittent reinforcement
when reinforcement is scattered more randomly. This is known as partial reinforcement
87
Interval Schedule
Based on a set unit of time, reinforced every
88
variable interval
when reinforcement is provided after the passage of time, but the time is not regular - you cannot predict when it will happen. Think pop quizzes
89
Fixed ratio schedule
occurs after a certain number of responses have been made. An example would be factory workers being paid based on how many items they have made in a day
90
Variable ratio schedule
reinforcement is provided after an unpredictable number of responses. Games of chance implement this. Think of a casino.
91
Describe latent learning and the distinction between acquisition and performance.
Latent learning is that takes place without reinforcement. For example, latent learning occurs when a person learns something simply by observing it. When most people drive for the first time, the do not need to be told that rotating the steering wheel turns the car. They already know the steering wheel turns the car. Tolman argued that reinforcement has more impact on performance than on learning.
There is a difference between acquisition and performance of a behavior. Reinforcement has more impact on the performance than on learning and latent learning focuses more on acquisition or actually learning.
92
Describe how Tolman’s studies of rats in mazes helped to clarify this distinction.
Tolman ran his experiment in three groups of rats. One group of rats was put through trials running in a maze with a goal box that never has any food reward as reinforcement. A second group of rats is put through trials in a maze with a goal box that always has food reinforcement. A third group of rats is put through trials in a maze that only has food reinforcement only after the first 10 trials. Rats that were regularly reinforced showed improved performance over time compared with rats that did not receive reinforcement. Rats that were not given anything for the first 10 trials but stuff after learned dramatically after food was given. Rats may learn a path through a maze but not reveal their learning. They do not display the learning because the maze running behavior has not been reinforced - known as latent learning.
93
How do these ideas challenge traditional behaviorist assumptions? (also discussed some in class)
Reinforcement is no longer so much a requirement for behavior to occur, as latent learning can cause learning in the absence of reinforcement. Not all learning behavior is displayed due to latent learning, so not all beliefs can be focused on behavior as behaviorism stated.
94
What role do dopamine and the nucleus accumbens play in learning?
Dopamine release sets the value of a reinforcer in operant conditioning. Drugs that block dopamine’s effects disrupt operant conditioning. This is why drugs that enhance dopamine activation, such as cocaine and amphetamines increase the reward value of stimuli. When hungry rats are given food, they experience an increased dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens, a structure part of the limbic system. The greater the hunger, the greater the dopamine release. More dopamine is released under deprived conditions, which is why food tastes better when you are hungry and water more rewarding when you are thirsty. Certain cues signal rewards, which produce dopamine activity.
95
What is vicarious learning?
Bandura - preschool children into two groups: one watched a film of an adult playing with a doll while the other watched a film of an adult attacking Bobo. When the children were allowed to play with the doll, the group that watched the aggressive adults were more than twice as likely to act aggressively towards the doll.
A factor that determines whether observers imitate a model is whether the model is reinforced for performing the behavior. In another study Bandura showed children a film of adults angrily playing with Bobo, but this time there were 3 endings: for one, a control condition, the adult experienced no consequences for the behavior. In the second version, the adult was rewarded with candy. In the third version, the adult was punished by being spanked and reprimanded. The children who observed the model being rewarded were most likely to be aggressive towards the doll then the children in the control group. Those who saw the model being punished were less likely. Through vicarious learning, people learn about an action’s consequences by watching others being rewarded or punished for the action.
96
Modeling
the imitation of observed behavior; we are more likely to imitate the actions of models who are attractive, have high status, and are somewhat similar to ourselves
97
Describe (in general terms) the behaviorist movement.
The behaviorist movement was a period of thought in psychology which said that learning is from direct experience from one’s environment. Behaviorists only studied observable phenomena which was opposite to other schools of thought such as spiritualists like Freud, and went against spiritualists by focusing on external behavior and stimuli rather than internal behavior.
98
Explain the notion of biological preparedness and give an example.
Biological preparedness is the idea that people and animals are inherently inclined to form associations between certain stimuli and responses. An example would be the development of taste adversions, or avoidance of eating one thing after you get sick from it. When milk is sour, you know not to drink it as you might get sick from it.
99
Explain the notion of biological preparedness and give an example.
Biological preparedness is the idea that people and animals are inherently inclined to form associations between certain stimuli and responses. An example would be the development of taste adversions, or avoidance of eating one thing after you get sick from it. When milk is sour, you know not to drink it as you might get sick from it.
100
How is operant conditioning different from classical conditioning?
Classical conditioning is used to produce reflexive, automatic responses, while operant conditioning is for complex, non-reflexive responses.
101
What is Thorndike’s Law of Effect?
Thorndike’s Law of Effect states that rewarded behavior will likely occur again.
102
Successive Approximations
A series of rewards that provide positive steps towards the final outcome
103
What are the problems associated with using punishment to modify behavior?
Some problems include not being as long term. Punishment is ambiguous in that it can’t shape or tell you what to do. It doesn’t stop you from wanting to do it. It instead teaches you and makes you think about how to get away with it in the future.
104
To what does “spread of effects” refer?
The spread of effects refers to punishment: punishing one person for something can lead to the spread of its effects. For example, preventing a child from going to a sleepover with friends by grounding them creates issues, as the child’s friends feel the effects as well even though they didn’t do anything to contribute to what led to the punishment.
105
Where did the behaviorists go wrong? In other words, what weaknesses have now been identified when we evaluate radical behaviorist claims?
Learning isn’t just something that happens to you. Garcia’s effect said that not all stimuli can be paired with any other stimulus. Unfamiliar stimuli might have an advantage over familliar stimuli? Number of trial for conditioning to be successful varies greatly. Cognitive revolution stated not everything can be explained using behaviorism. Take a dog that knows a, b, and c. When given a, b, c, d, and asked to find d, the dog can find d via process of elimination without any reinforcement. (Rico)
106
What is instinctive drift? Give an example.
Instincts can be overcome, but if the reinforcement or punishment stops, then the subject will drift back to its instincts. Pig money
107
What are the three major tasks involved in memory?
The three major tasks involved in memory are encoding where you get info in, storage (consolidation) where you retain the info, and retrieval, which would involve getting the info out.
108
Explain the “modal model” of memory (i.e., the three stage model).
There is sensory memory that is split second and split into echoic and iconic memory, short-term memory (also known as working memory) which has a limited capacity, and 20-30 seconds in duration. There is a limit on short term memory before you either lose it or transfer it into long term memory. There is also long-term memory, where the information is supposed to stick.
109
What are the two major types of sensory memory?
Two major types of sensory memory are echoic and iconic sensory memory. Iconic memory is the visual image people store when they see something briefly. These memories will fade after a while. Echoic memories, which are stored for slightly longer, are memories that people hold when they hear something.
110
What is chunking?
Chunking is putting things together to make words. In a more general sense, it’s grouping bits of information into larger groups in order to make memorization easier and more efficient.
111
What is a mnemonic?
A mnemonic is giving each thing that you want to memorize a code. Ie PEMDAS for order of operations or Hash for 6 of hearts. Essentially, it’s coming up with a coding system in order to aid in better memorizing lists. Attaching meaning to certain words.
112
What is the evidence that LTM and STM are distinct?
LTM and STM are mostly housed in different parts of the brain. LTM is housed more in the hippocampus and the temporal lobe, while short term memory is housed in the frontal cortex, supposedly known as the boss of the brain.
113
Explain the serial position effect, primacy and recency.
The serial position effect appears like a valley between two mountains. At the left is the primacy effect and at the right is the recency effect. The example given in class focused on memorizing a list of words, it was noticed that words that were towards the beginning and towards the end were often memorized. This reasoning is because the recent ones are most likely still in your short term memory, while the first ones made it into longer termed memory. It’s more likely that things in the middle got mixed up.
114
Distinguish between the following types of memory: explicit (episodic and semantic), implicit.
Explicit memory can be split into episodic and semantic. Explicit memory is memory where you know you know it (ideally this is where you want to be on tests). Episodic memory is composed of memory that you know happened to you. For example, it could be that time I fell off the swing when I was 3. Semantic memory is more so composed of general facts, such as the capitals of countries.
115
How can psychologists find evidence for implicit memory?
Implicit memory can compose of classical conditioning where you are operating without awareness, procedural/habits and skills which can be difficult to make explicit by explaining (say walking), savings and relearning, where if you’re taught something again, you learn faster (savings!).
116
Explain the general premise of the “levels of processing” model and what the three levels are.
The premise of the levels of processing predicts that the deeper information is processed, the longer a memory trace will last. The basic idea is that memory is a by product of the depth of processing of information. We can process information in structural processing where we encode only the physical qualities of something (typeface of a word or how the letters look, maybe the font), the phonemic or acoustic processing (which is when we encode its sound), and the semantic processing which happens when we encode the meaning of a word and relate it to similar words with similar meaning. This could be something like picturing a tree at NU’s campus.
117
Transience
when your memory fades over time and/or experiences interference with other stuff. An example would be taking French like Renee did and not remembering as much over time.
118
Ebbinghaus curve
illustrates the decay of memory over a couple of days. Ebbinghaus did this experiment through CVCs, words that were consonant-vowel-consonant that didn’t make sense and tried to teach himself and test himself over time. He realized that when he relearned the new words each day, they tended to stick more in his memory.
119
Absentmindedness
occurs when you weren’t engaged or paying attention. An example would be when you’re providing directions and you get distracted, but you don’t even realize that say a new person showed up. FIND BETTER EXAMPLE In other words, for anything to stick, you have to pay attention to it.
120
Misattributions
occurs when you get content, but you mix up and/or forget where you heard it. A source misattribution occurs when you associate A with B when A really wasn’t from B. Don’t have a source misattribution from content on the Onion with the news.
121
Cryptomnesia
when you think something came from you when in reality it came from someone else. Think of the song Ice Ice Baby and Under Pressure or Sam Smith. In each case, one artist definitely didn’t notice that the idea they thought was theirs’ was actually from someone else, making it really problematic.
122
What’s the difference between anterograde and retrograde amnesia?
Retrograde amnesia is when you lose memories of your past events. If you suffer from trauma from a car accident, you might lose recollection of the events a couple of hours leading up and during the car accident. Anterograde amnesia is when you lost the ability to form new memories. The video of Cline was a demonstration of anterograde amnesia, as Cline’s memory degraded to only lasting up to around 30 seconds, hence why he kept mentioning he just awoke from unconsciousness and feels like he hasn’t seen his wife in a long time. This was a result of damage to his hippocampus as well as frontal lobe damage (which is what caused him to repeat himself a lot).
123
What is an engram?
An engram is the physical site of memory stage, that is where memory lives. The size of the area removed from the rat in Lashley’s experiment was the most important factor in predicting retention. The location was far less important. Memory is distributed throughout the brain as opposed to one area.
124
What is equipotentiality?
Equipotentiality is the idea that memory is distributed throughout the brain rather than confined to any specific location.
125
What is long-term potentiation?
Long term potentiation is the strengthening of a synaptic connection, making the postsynaptic neurons more easily activated by the presynaptic neurons. To simulate this, researchers first establish that stimulating one neuron with a single electrical impulse leads to a certain amount of firing in a second neuron. The researchers then provide intense electrical stimulation to the first neuron. They might give it 100 pulses in one second, then administer a single electrical pulse to the first neuron and measure the second neuron’s fire. If LTP has occurred, the intense electrical stimulation will have the increased likelihood that stimulating the first neuron leads to increased firing in the second neuron. The probability of the postsynaptic neuron firing increases after applying intense and frequent pulses to the presynaptic neuron.
126
Where do memories appear to be stored in the brain?
Memories appear to be stored in the brain in various areas. Different brain regions are responsible for storing different aspects of information. We know from studies of H.M. that regions within the temporal lobes, such as the hippocampus, are important for the ability to store new memories. The temporal lobes are important to say what you remember, but are less important for memory involving motor actions.
127
What areas of the brain appear to be heavily involved in the creation and storage (consolidation) of memories?
The middle section of the temporal lobes, called the medial temporal lobes, is responsible for the formation of new memories. The actual storage occurs in the particular brain regions engaged during the perception, processing, and analysis of the material being learned. Visual information for example is stored in the cortical areas involved in visual perception. Memory for sensory experienced involves reactivating the cortical circuits involved in the initial seeing or hearing. The medial temporal lobes form links between the different storage sites and direct the gradual strengthening of the connections between the links. Once connections are strengthened enough through consolidation, the medial temporal lobes become less important for memory. This is why H.M could not make new memories but could retrieve old ones.
128
What is reconsolidation? Why has it been interesting to researchers?
Reconsolidation is the idea that once memories are activated, they need to be consolidated again to be stored back in memory, where consolidation is the neural process which encoded information becomes stored in memory. Think of reconsolidation as returning a book so someone can check it out later. The “book” or memory is also prone to tearing out pages or adding new pages. In other words, memories change over time.
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Explain how the idea of working memory is different from the notion of short term memory.
Short term memory receives the stores from sensory memory. Short term memory was thought of initially a buffer or holding place. Instead, it’s an active unit that deals with multiple types of information. A more modern model is working memory, where the storage system actively retains and manipulates multiple pieces of temporary information from multiple sources. Ideas can include sounds, images and ideas. This usually stays for 20-30 seconds before disappearing unless you purposefully prevent it from doing so.
More difficult to remember strings of letters after backward counting, working memory only lasts less than half a minute without continuous rehearsing as a way to remember.
Memories are strengthened with retrieval and practice of retrieval. Those who practiced retrieving the information did best. Practice. Practice. Practice.
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What is a schema?
Decisions about how to chunk information depend on schemas. These are structures in long-term memory that help us perceive, organize, process, and user information. As we sort out incoming information, schemas guide our attention to an environment’s relevant features. Thanks to schemas, we construct new memories by filling in holes within existing memories, overlooking inconsistent information, and interpreting meaning based on past experiences. The basic idea is that they provide structures for understanding events in the world. A schema for grocery shopping might likely include shopping carts, abundant choices, and set prices. You may expect to choose your own fruit in the produce section. You earned the grocery store schema from experience, which helps you easily predict and navigate the grocery store experience. Culture can heavily influence schemas. For example, in France, you may not be allowed to touch the produce. pg . 280
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Retrieval cue
anything that helps a person recall information stored in long term memory (think hand sanitizer and Yosemite)
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Encoding specificity principle
the idea that any stimulus that is encoded along with an experience can later trigger a memory for the experience
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Describe context-dependent and state-dependent memory and the evidence supporting each.
Context-dependent memory is the kind of memory enhancement when the recall situation is similar to the encoding situation. In one study of encoding, participants studied words in two rooms. The participants were tested for recall in the room in which they studied. When they were tested in the other room, the participants recalled an average of 35 words. When they were tested in the room they studied, they recalled an average of 49 words correctly. Recalling in the same environment or context as encoding will have better memory
State-dependent memory is when internal cues can affect the recovery of information from long-term memory. Think about mood. When you are in a good mood, you tend to recall good times, whereas at the end of a bad day, negative memories tend to surface. Memory can be enhanced by a person’s internal states match during encoding and recall.
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Proactive interference
old information inhibits the ability to remember new information. If you study for psychology and then swap to anthro, and then take anthro, your performance might be impaired by your knowledge about psychology.
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Retroactive interference
New information inhibits the ability to remember old information. When it comes to take the psychology test, your performance suffers because you recall the anthro material instead of the psych material.
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Blocking
a retrieval failure when a person is temporarily unable to remember something.
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Are flashbulb memories more accurate than other memories? Explain.
Flashbulb memories are vivid episodic memories of important or emotionally arousing events. Flashbulb memories are recalled no more accurately than other episodic memories although people report them with more confidence.
