Class Test 1 Flashcards
what 2 things are involved in making an action?
- Plan a goal
2. Guide the action to achieve the goal
what does sensory information during action allow for?
movement guidance and correction
How is an action goal achieved through the sensory feedback loop?
Goal –> Reference Mechanism –> Effectors/executive –> Environment. (environment then gives feedback to the reference mechanism)
What does feedback for correction of a movement depend on?
capacity and time
what are the problems with closed loop control?
- we can execute some movements without sensory feedback
- the sensory feedback loop may be too long to control fast movements
Define a motor programme
a prestructured set of central commands capable of carrying out the movement open-loop
What is an open loop system?
When there is no sensory feedback
Learning and improving and open-loop movement is done through a reference which is compared to movement feedback…
If it is right and perfect then it is stored in memory. if not, it is improved.
What are the 2 problems with open and closed loop motor control?
- The storage problem –> questions whether there are set programmes that we learn and execute for every single movement - we wont have the capacity for all of this
- The novelty problem –> questions how we adapt the set programs we have to make new responses.
Explain the role of the generalised motor programme
it is a memory structure that governs a class of movements possessing a common movement pattern
It consists of invariant characteristics and adjusted parameters
Main invariants = Relative duration, relative force, order of events
Main Parametes = overall duration overall force
what are the two types of movement errors that may require correction?
- Programme selection - incorrect action selected
2. Programme execution - incorrect execution
How long does a selection error take to correct to form a new plan?
120-200 ms
Execution errors require modifying the ongoing plan. How long after error detection does this take?
30-50 ms
What is the main difference between open-loop and closed-loop systems
closed loop systems contain feedback between the movement effectors and the movement control centre.
what is an internal model and what are the two types?
= neural mechanisms that can mimic the input/output characteristics or their inverses, of the motor apparatus
- internal forward model
- internal inverse model
Describe what a forward model does?
their goal is to predict ‘what would be the sensory consequences of the movement’
- you begin with ‘ what is the goal?’
Describe what an inverse model does?
A series of motor commands that decide on the necessary motor commands from the desired goal.
It acts as a motor controller
Desired trajectory –> Inverse model –> Controlled object –> Realised trajectory
How do the internal models work together in a pair?
we set a feed forward model of what we want to achieve and then the inverse model is used to decide how we get there
Describe where motor control happens in the brain
In the cerebellum cortex
Motor cortex –> plans and executes the movement
Basal Ganglia –> Initiates movement
Cerebellum –> Integrates and refines the movment
What is the effect of cerebellar damage on motor control?
loss of coordination
some effects to muscle tone and posture
no effect on muscle strength, sensory perception or higher order
How does the cerebellum affect motor coordination?
- corrects ongoing movements when they deviate from the intended course + modifies descending output + central motor programs
Each motor programme of complex action can be called a what? and what can the separation between these be based around
unit of action
The separation between these units can be based around the relative timing of the movement. A change in timing represents a change in the movement unit
Explain the dynamic pattern theory
the theory suggests that continuous action coordinates on the basis of stability. this is defined by the relationship between movement variability and efficiency. (increased variability means a decrease in motor efficiency) –> to improve this, the dynamic pattern of the movement changes.
A change in dynamic serves to provide a ‘self-organised process’ that establishes more of a process. What is the evidence for this?
- Actions in asymmetry are known as anti-phase (left finger flexion, right finger extension thing)
- Actions made together in symmetry are known as in-phase (flexion of both fingers)
in-phase movements are more stable. When anti-phase movements are made quicker and quicker, they will switch to the in-phase pattern to ‘self organise itself
What is the Power Law of Practice
A negatively accelerated relation between performance and practice trails is similar to that of a power function.
= T = aP ^-b
T –> time
P –> some measure of practice , eg #of trials
-b –> a constant, the larger it is, the more rapid decreases with ractice
The rate of improvement at any point in practice tends to be linearly related to the margin of improvement left
Early in practice = fast improvement
Late in practice = slow improvement
During pre practice what is the best condition to increase the rate of learning?
- Making the task seem important.
- Goal setting and encouragement, like you can do it is not as effective as specific, absolute goals of moderate difficulty
What is, and what is learned through, Modelling
It is when you watch the movement being performed and then copy the model Learned is: - Movement strategies - Spacial information - Temporal information
why is it better to look at a learning model rather than an expert?
- better with knowledge of results - less errors over trails
- importance of cues + guidance
When regarding distribution of practice what are the 2 practice ways you can do
- Massed practice (all trials are consecutive)
2. Distributed practice ( rest between trials)
What are ‘Distribution of practice’ effects on performance
- the longer the rest, the better the performance
- given constant periods of work and short rest periods,degrade performance relative to longer rest periods
What are ‘Distribution of practice’ effects on learning
- length of retention interval
- Do the learning effects ‘wash out’?
- Total practice time - more practice if you have less rest.
What are the effects that varying practice has on retention of learning new skills
Constant vs varied practice
- by practising different things over constant practice is better for retention - less error
What are the effects that varying practice has on transfer of learning
- there is a better transfer for task within range of practice distances
- Smaller error for group where there’s variability
- Variability appears to increase the applicability of the learning
What other factors influence the effects of variability of practice
- Age of learner - powerful for kids
- Gender of learner - more effective for female
- Scheduling variable practice - is most effective randomised rather than blocked
What is the difference between blocked and random practice?
blocked = sequence where all trails on one tasks are done together, uninterrupted by other activities Random = same task is never repeated on consecutive trails
What is better for learning and performance… random or blocked practice?
- Better performance during practice in blocked condition
- Reversed effect in retention
- Always better to have practised under random conditions
Part vs whole practice. What is the problem with part practice?
taken in isolation, different parts do not constitute a motor programme, but different units of action
Effectiveness depends on the task. What is the difference between serial tasks and continuous tasks?
serial = complete isolation is not useful, but backward chaining (of at least 2 constitutive parts) is effective Continuous = interaction of part has to be learned, and this can only be done when all parts are present
What are the 4 main types of feedback you can obtain from a motor programme?
Inherent and Augmented (intrinsic and extrinsic)
Knowledge of results
Knowledge of performance
What is knowledge of results?
- post movement information. about the outcome of the movement, in terms of have you reached the intended goal?
what is knowledge of performance?
= post movement information, about the nature of the movement. did it feel right?
What are the different dimensions of augmented feedback?
Concurrent / Terminal (feedback before or after)
Immediate / delayed (after relevant action)
Verbal / Nonverbal (spoken, or visual, guided etc)
Distinct / Accumulated (feedback for each performance separately, or an accumulation of all past performances)
What are the 4 ways you can receive Knowledge of performance?
- video feedback - with cues if more effective than just watching the video
- Kinematic feedback - eg ‘you drop the elbow in the pull’… effectiveness depends on the nature of the task
- Biofeedback - EMG and HR
- Kinetic feedback - such as using force plates and power-meters. but this cant be used on all sports due to the nature of them, such as judo
How can knowledge of results impact learning?
- Precision of KR can change the direction and magnitude of error, and precision and be quantitative or qualitative
- learning is facilitated as the bandwidth becomes larger
What are the 2 ways of scheduling KR (knowledge of results) and how do these affect learning
Relative vs absolute frequency
- Reduced relative frequency effects may be beneficial to learning
- Too much knowledge of results and you lose your internal perception
How does augmented feedback work?
- Informational functions –> optimum when the learner is uncertain about the reliability of their intrinsic information.
- Motivational Functions
- Associational Functions - associations between stimuli + movements
How can augmented feedback degrade learning?
Blocking other processing activities
Inducing maladaptive corrections
What are the main stages to the initiation of a muscle contraction
- action potential stimulates release of neurotransmitter across the neuromuscular junction
- Action potential spread across the sarcolemma + into the muscle fibre via the t-tubules
- Calcium is released from the sarcoplasmic reticulum
- Calcium binds to the troponin to expose the myosin binding sites and cross bridges are formed
what is a twitch?
one action potential generates a single twitch