Introduction to biological psychology

Question 1

How do we know what is inside the brain?

Answer 1

Clinical cases, animal models and having a look in the living brain.

Question 2

What is phrenology?

Answer 2

Bumps on the skull believed that reflects functions and personality traits.

Question 3

What happened on September 13 in 1848?

Answer 3

An accident of a 25 year old railroad construction foreman where a pole entered on the left side of Gage’s face. Before his accident Gage was a pleasant, reliable and responsible man but after the accident people described him as undependable, foul mouthed and angry. He was no longer “Gage”.

Question 4

What happens when the frontal lobe is damaged or injured?

Answer 4

Impaired decision making, deficits in tests of problem solving and reasoning, and adolescent development.
This is because the frontal lobe seems to carry out a variety of functions, including higher mental processes.

Question 5

What is visual agnosias?

Answer 5

The inability of recognising faces (prosopagnosia) due to bilateral damage to fusiform gyrus.

Question 6

What is a knife cut to the brain?

Answer 6

This is to cut a subcortical tract, a fine metal tube (hollow needle) is positioned next to it. Once in position, the knife blade pivots out of the needle, thus cutting the tract. (cut)

Question 7

What is a electrolytic lesion to the brain?

Answer 7

A subcortical structure can be destroyed by positioning an electrode tip in it and passing sufficient current across the tip to destroy the tissue. (electric)

Question 8

What is a aspiration lesion to the brain?

Answer 8

Parts of the surface of the brain can be removed by sucking them away through a fine hand-held glass pipette connected to a vacuum pump. (chemical)

Question 9

What are the 3 methods of studying the brain and behaviour relationship?

Answer 9

Study the effects of brain damage
Relate brain anatomy to behaviour
Record brain activity during behaviour

Question 10

What side of the body does the left hemisphere control?

Answer 10

Right part of the body

Question 11

What side of the body does the right hemisphere control?

Answer 11

Left part of the body

Question 12

What is Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)?

Answer 12

It applies intense magnetic field temporarily (de)activates neurons. (study a brain area active, then inactive, then active again). It can be used to establish a cause between a part of the brain and its functions.
This is a non-invasive research method. However, it can cause fainting and seizures (but rarely).
It is best advised to not use this method if the individual has a pacemaker.

Question 13

What is computerised axial tomography (CT/CAT)?

Answer 13

Injection of a dye. It passes X-rays through the head; the scanner rotates slowly until measurement has been taken at each angle.
It usually lasts for 10 to 20 minutes.
The computer constructs an image of the brain in order to identify any damage such as strokes, tumours, and cortical atrophy.

Question 14

What is magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)?

Answer 14

These are images based on signal from protons (nucleus of hydrogen atom) (hydrogen is the most common element in the tissue).
This has excellent spatial resolution, it is also safer and less expensive. However, it is time consuming.
MRI scans are non-invasive and non-ionizing.

Question 15

What does temporal resolution mean?

Answer 15

Time

Question 16

What does spatial resolution mean?

Answer 16

Space

Question 17

What is electroencephalogram (EEG)?

Answer 17

Records electrical brain activity via surface (marco) electrodes. It can produce evoked potentials that self-reports sometimes do not reveal.
It is cheap and mobile.
It contains light equipment and requires no special rooms.
It can be tolerant to movement so claustrophobic individuals can be tested too.
It’s non-invasive and has a temporal resolution. However, testing lower brain areas can have weak signal therefore inaccurate to those results.

Question 18

What is magnetoencephalograph (MEG)?

Answer 18

Faint magnetic fields.
MEG signals have currents flowing in neurons’ dendrites in synaptic transmission. It can detect 50,000 active neurons.
It has good temporal resolution.

Question 19

What is position emissions tomography (PET)?

Answer 19

Records activity in the living brain by recording the emissions of radioactivity from injected chemicals.
It visualises the brains blood flow. The injected chemical from that the positions collides with the electrons which make the gamma rays and then the PET scans detect the gamma rays.
This is good for schizophrenic patients. However, it is invasive.

Question 20

What is functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)?

Answer 20

It is a modified version of MRI. It records the energy released by haemoglobin, where it picks up blood and oxygen. It detects the increase in blood flow to the brain after brain activity.
They are safer and less expensive.
Non-invasive.

Question 21

What is a lesion?

Answer 21

A region in an organ or tissue which has suffered damage through injury or disease, such as a wound, ulcer, abscess, or tumour.