Cognitive neuroscience Flashcards
What are the similarities between the human mind and computer?
Both have input, memory
What are the differences between the human mind and computer?
- Computer is made of metal and plastic, brain is organic
- Computer needs plugging in, the mind doesn’t
- Computer has limited memory, the mind doesn’t
- Computers don’t have emotions, the mind does
Information processing model (1980)
information is received through senses and processed by the brain in steps; input, processing and output
What is the input in the human mind?
Our senses encode information from the environment
What is the processing in the human mind?
The information is processed via schemas
What is the output in the human mind?
a behavioural response
Miller (1991)
first used the term, “cognitive neuroscience” in order to bridge the gap between cognitive science and neuroscience
Which approaches do cognitive neuroscience combine?
Cognitive and biological approach
Cognitive neuroscience definition
the scientific study of brain structures on metal processes. Area of the brain can be mapped to locate specific cognitive functions
How can the brain be scanned?
FMRI scans and PET
fMRI
functional magnetic resonance imaging
PET
positron emission tomography
What are the advantages of the use of theoretical computer models and the emergence of cognitive neuroscience?
+ It’s very dominant in psychology and can be applied to practical and theoretical contexts
+ Has been founded on the idea of soft determinism so humans recognise that their cognitive thinking system operates within the limits of what they know. it’s interactionist
+ Focuses on theoretical computer models and emphasises scientific methods such as laboratory experiments when collecting data
What are the disadvantages of the use of theoretical computer models and the emergence of cognitive neuroscience?
- Can be criticised for its use of theoretical computer models and this is because models over simplify the behaviour and reduce it to simple steps and this is reductionist
- Not accurate to compare computers and humans as computers are mechanistic and have no free will however humans do and are alive and have emotions
What did Maguire (2000) study?
(Taxi driver brains) Wanted to investigate if brain autonomy was predetermined or whether it is susceptible to plastic changes in response to environmental stimulation (driving a taxi) and these drivers undergo extensive training to make an idea group for the study of spatial navigation
How many people were studied in Maguire (2000)?
32 healthy males aged 44 investigates in two groups
What were the two groups in Maguire (2000)?
- One were 16 licensed male London taxi drivers in the job for at least 18 months
- the other group were 16 males in a control group who had never driven taxis
What were the results in Maguire (2000)
The right posterior hippocampus in the brain of taxi drivers was larger than the control group and this was related to the length of time the taxi driver has been in the job, the longer they had the larger the right posterior hippocampus
What is the right posterior hippocampus used for?
responsible for storing visual representations of the environment
What are the advantages of the Maguire (2000)?
+ Supports the keys aspects of cognitive neuroscience and uses MEI scans to investigate and the study emphasises how the brain is like a muscle
+ Research evidence that the right posterior hippocampus is involved in spatial awareness
What are the disadvantages of Maguire (2000)?
- It is only investigated in males with means the study lacks ecological validity
