H1 Introducing cognitive neuroscience Flashcards
cognition
a variety of higher mental processes (such as thinking, perceiving imagining,speaking, acting and planning)
cognitive neuroscience
aims to explain cognitive processes in terms of brain-based mechanisms
cognitive psychology+biology & neuroscience
mind-body problem
how can a physical substance give rise to sensations, thoughts and emotions
dualism
the belief that mind and brain are made up of different kinds of substance (Descartes)
dual-aspect theory
belief that mind and brain are two levels of description of the same thing (Spinoza)
reductionism
belief that mind-based concepts will eventually be replaced by neuroscientific concepts
phrenology
idea that different regions perform different functions + size of these regions produces distortions of the skull- correlating with indiv differences
functional specialization
different regions of the brain are specialized for different functions
cognitive neuropsychology
study of brain-damaged patients to inform theories of normal cognition
information-processing approach
approach in which behaviour is described in terms of a sequence of cognitive stages (computer metaphor)
theory of modularity
theory with 2 classes of cognitive process: central systems & modules
central systems → domain independant: type of info processed is non-specific
modules→ domain specific: process only 1 type of info
interactivity
later stages of processing can begin before earlier stages are complete
top-down processing
later stages can influence the processing of earlier ones
bottom-up processing
passage of information from simpler (vb edges) to more complex (vb objects)
parallel processing
different info is processed at the = time
