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Cog Neuropsych > Exam 1 -Neuro Cog > Flashcards

Exam 1 -Neuro Cog Flashcards

1
Q

What does Boundary Extension reveal about how the human brain works?

A

Boundary Extension reflects cognitive processes that extrapolate beyond the boundaries in the stimulus to provide the basis for planning eye-movements and other actions in the environment

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2
Q

What illusions reveal?

A
  1. Reality is constructed
  2. The mind/brain influences perception - Our brains impose structure on the stimulation we receive, contributing to the realty we experience
  3. Universality
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3
Q

Cognitivism

A

The brain is an information - processing system

Information processing: Mental representations are transformed by cognitive functions to support perception, thought, etc.

To fully understand the brain, we must understand the cognitive functions it instantiates and how it does so

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4
Q

Reductionism

A

Have to understand the most fundamental basics before extrapolating higher layers

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5
Q

Molecular Neuroscience

A

Biochemical processes

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6
Q

Cognitive Neuroscience

A

Information processing

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7
Q

What is the analogy between the computer and the brain

A

The brain is to cognition as computer hardware is to software

We cannot understand a computer without understanding the software it runs

We cannot understand the brain without understanding its cognitive functions

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8
Q

How are cognitive functions like mathematical functions

A

Math functions -> take in input, apply function, yield output

Cognitive Functions -> neural representations of info as input, apply transformation, yield different representation as output

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9
Q

Cardiocentrism

A

The belief that the heart is the seat of intellectual and perceptual functions

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10
Q

Who believed in cardiocentrism?

A

Aristotle

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11
Q

Ventricular localization

A

The fluid filled ventricles are the location of cognition:
Perception: Lateral ventricle
Cognition: third ventricle
memory: fourth ventricle

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12
Q

Evidence against ventricular localization

A

Human ventricles are similar t those of animals that have inferior mental abilities

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13
Q

Cerebral localization

A

The localization of respiration to the medulla dorsal and ventral roots of the spinal cord led to the idea that other parts of the brain might support higher level mental functions

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14
Q

Cortical localization

A

The brain is composed of as many organs as there are mental faculties

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15
Q

Phrenology

A

These ental organs vary in size and their size affects the shape of the skull.

One can study a persons character and faculties by studying the external configuration of the skull

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16
Q

Who believed in cortical localization and phrenology?

A

Gall

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17
Q

What was correct about phrenology?

A

Cortical localization of function

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18
Q

What are the competing view on the neural instantiation of cognition?

A

Functional localization vs Holism

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19
Q

Functional localization

A

Specific cortical areas perform specific cognitive functions - There may be interactions between cortical areas but these interactions are sufficiently limited, therefore we can understand the brain by identifying its cognitive functions and their locations in the brain

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20
Q

Holism

A

The cortex is a dynamic whole which is more than the sum of its parts

  • Music cannot be understood as individual notes
    The brain cannot be understood via decomposition into local areas and component functions
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21
Q

Primary contribution for Broca

A

Tested the hypothesis that language is a faculty of the anterior frontal lobes

Person had extreme difficulty in speaking but no paralysis of lips or tongue and no language comprehension difficulties

Turned the tide in favor of functional localization as opposed to holism

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22
Q

Primary contribution of Golgi

A

Fused neural networks
Incorrect
Silver nitrate stain: stains random neurons discovered by Golgi
- Convinced most that neurons are not continuous and connected - rather they are independent units

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23
Q

Primary contribution of Ramon y Cajal

A

Independent units for neurons

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24
Q

The Neuron Doctrine

A

Neurons are separate physiological units
Electricity travels in one direction down a neuron

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25
Neuronal Signaling as computation
Presynaptic neuron recieves signals -> moves current down an axon -> triggers release of neurotransmitter at the synapse -> passes signal to post synaptic neuron
26
Excitary signals (EPSP)
Increase the probability that the post-synaptic neuron will fire (generate a signal)
27
Inhibitory Signals (IPSP)
decrease the probability that the post synaptic neuron will fire
28
Thalamus
Central relay for all sensory and motor information to and from cortex Lateral geniculate nucleus: Visual Medial Geniculate nucleus: auditory Ventral posterior nucleus: Somatosensory
29
Hippocampus
Memory formation
30
Amygdala
Emotion
31
Cingulate gyrus
Motivations and error detection
32
Sulcus
Furrows
33
Gyri
Protruding folds
34
4 lobes
Frontal Temporal Parietal Occipital
35
Disruption/Stimulation approach
disruption/stimulation of a specific brain region can disrupt/enhance specific cognitive functions We can use experimental tasks to determine which cognitive function are impaired when a specific brain region is disrupted
36
Neural activity recording approach
Design experimental tasks to isolate a cognitive function Measure brain activity and determine which brain regions are activated by the task
37
Association
Damage to brain region 1 is associated with poor performance on cognitive function A
38
Give an example of an association
damage to the occipital lobe is associated with poor vision
39
Dissocation
Damage to region 1 is associated with poor performance on function A but not function B Useful for determining more specific brain function mappings and ruling out more general explnations
40
Give an example of a dissociation
Damage to the fusiform gyrus is associated with poor perception of faces but not objects
41
Double dissociation
Requires 2 groups: group 1: damage to region 1 is associated with poor performance on function A but not function B Group 2: damage to region 2 is associated with poor performance on function B but not function A
42
Example for double dissociation
Damage to the fusiform gyrus is associated with poor perception of faces but not places and damage to the parahippocampal gyrus is associated with poor perception of places but not faces
43
44
Structural MRI
Measures the difference in water (hydrogen) density in brain tissue to visualize brain structures
45
Spatial resolution
Ability to resolve small differences in an image
46
challanges in MRI
All brains are different and need to be able to refer to the same brain locations across different individuals and studies
46
Lesion Deficit Correlation
by overlaying images of brain lesions for a group of subjects who all have a similar pattern of cognitive impairement, we can identfy common ares of lesioning across the group
46
Advantages for lesion deficit correlations
Powerful method for testing the causal role of brain regions in cognitive functions Reveals brain areas that are necessary for the function Double dissociations provide strong evidence for separable processes (eg. face perception vs place perception
46
Disadvantages of Lesion Deficit Correlation
They are not controlled experiments. Damage may not occur in brain areas one would like to investigate. Subjects may have various cognitive, educations or other differences that complicate interpretation. In other words Damage is not narrowly localized, therefore multiple functions can be impaired Damage is never identical from person to person
46
What is the advantage of using Trancranial Magnetic Stimulation?
Can be used on healthy volunteers Transient and non invasive can get temporal resolution
47
What does a TMS do?
generates a magnetic field that can increase or decrease neuronal firing -> DISRUPTING COGNITIVE PROCESSING It is akin to temporary lesions
48
How does Intracranial Stimulation work?
Application of focal stimulation during awake brain surgery and ask individual to perform a task
49
What are the advantages of Intracranial Stimulation?
can provide specific neural perturbation can be used in healthy volunteers
50
What are the disadvantages of intracranial stimulation?
Limited to animals unless in clinical cases only limited places can be stimulated in clinical cases
51
What are the disadvantages of TMS?
Not very focused, can stimulate areas around and above the target area very uncomofrtable Safety issues with repeated tms
52
How does Diffusion Tensor Imaging work?
MRI is used to measure the motion of water since water diffuses more along fiber tracts than across them
53
What are the challenges for understanding brain cognition relations?
Isolating a brain region Isolating specific cognitive functions
54
What is brain activity?
Neurons firing action potentials
55
What do action potentials do?
cause the release of neurotransmitters at synapses
56
How do you indirectly measure brain activity?
FMRI: Changes in blood oxygenation
57
Why should we measure brain activity?
1. Identify what cognitive functions a brain region is associated with 2. Identify what information a brain region sends to other parts of the brain (ex. info about specific facial features) 3. characterize the functional organization of the brain
58
What is the key measure of invasive recording electrical activity of neurons?
The firing rate - the number of action potentials per second
59
If a neuron responds strongly to a specific stimulus, we infer
That the neuron is involved in processing that stimulus
60
Advantages of Invasive recording of neurons
High temporal resolution High Spatial resolution Can allow for the recording of individual neurons
61
Disadvantages of invasive recording
Invasive samples only a small percentage of neurons in the brain cannot demonstrate the causal function of neurons in cognition
62
What does an FMRI Measure?
BOLD SIGNALS - Blood Oxygenation Level Dependent Signals When neurons fire, excessive amounts of oxygen are sent to nearby blood vessels More neural firing = more oxygenated hemoglobin in local blood vessels
63
What is fMRI used for?
to identify the cognitive functions that a brain region is associated with
64
Advantages of fMRI
Non-invasive can examine activity across the whole brain moderately good spatial resolution
65
Disadvantages of fMRI
Low temporal resolution cannot examine activity in individual neurons cannot demonstrate causal function of brain regions
66
What do EEG and MEG Measure?
Difference in electric potential along the axis of the neurons, which is detected as a change in voltage. This occurs when neurotransmitters are released at synapses
67
what do we use EEG for?
used to assess the overall state of the brain (sleep, arousal, etc.) used to assess the timing of brain responses to experimental events.
68
What are event related responses?
EEG or MEG responses to an event are averaged over many repeated trais
69
Advantages of EEG and MEG
Non-invasive High Temporal Resolution
70
Disadvantages of EGG and MEG
Poor spatial resolution poor detection of signals in deeper brain regions cannot examine activity of individual neurons cannot determine causal function of brain regions in cognition
71

Cog Neuropsych (4 decks)

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