Learning and Memory Flashcards
Learning
Lasting change in behaviour resulting from experience
Acquiring new information and skills
Learning - Forms, Classical Conditioning, Pavlov
Pairing of two stimuli causes a change in response to one
Dogs study
Unconditioned stimulus produces an unconditioned response
Pairing UCS with a neutral stimulus produces UCR
After multiple pairings, NS will produce the CR without need for the UCS
Learning - Forms, Operant Conditioning, Skinner
Responses followed by reinforcement or punishmenet will be strengthened or weakened respectively
Rat study
Trained rats to press a level for food or avoid an area using shocks
Learning - Forms, Delayed Responses
Happenings which affect much later behaviour
e.g. eating a poisonous berry, being ill and then being averse to the berries forever
Learning - Forms, Insightful Behaviours
Searching or problem-solving to gain reward
e.g. monkey using a tool to get food from a box
Learning - Forms, Imitation
Copying of others behaviour
e.g. birdsong (not paired with reward)
Learning - Mechanisms, Pavlov
Conditioning strengthens to connections between the newly conditioned stimulus and usual unconditioned response via the original unconditioned stimulus
Learning - Mechanisms, Lashley 1930
If learning is a result of neural connections, a knife cut should abolish the learning
If specific connections explain learning of specific information, the size of physical damage should be proportional to the amount of retardation caused
Learning - Mechanisms, Lashley 1930, Mass Action
Assumption that the cortex works as a whole
If more of the cortex is active, learning will be more effective
Learning - Mechanisms, Lashley 1930, Engram
The physical representation of learning within the brain
e.g. the synapse connection
Located in the cortex
Learning - Mechanisms, Lashley 1930, Equipotentiality
All of the cortex contributes to learning equally, so much so that if one area were the be damaged, other areas can compensate for its function
Learning - Mechanisms, Thompson 1986, Engram
The engram of learning is located in the cerebellum
Learning - Mechanisms, Thompson 1986, Lateral Interpositus Nucleus
Inhibition of the LIN inhibits learning
When learning is suppressed, LIN shows no activity
Activity in LIN is required for retention and extinction of information
Learning - Mechanisms, Thompson 1986, Red Nucleus
Important for showing a learned response
Unsure whether you still learn implicitly as it cannot be shown
Memory
Process of acquiring knowledge and skills manifested in behavioural changes, based on an ability to retain what is learned
Memory - Encoding
Receiving, processing and combining information
Memory - Storage
Permanently recording encoded information
Memory - Retrieval, Recall, Recollection
Being able to call back the information from storage
Memory - Short-Term Memory, Hebb 1949
Holds information that has just been given for around 20-30 seconds
Memory - Short-Term Memory, Atkinson & Shiffrin 1968
All information must go via STM and be rehearsed before being consolidated to LTM
Memory - Working Memory, Baddeley & Hitch 1994
Temporary storage of information that is activley attended to and able to be worked on for a period of time
Memory - Working Memory, Chafee & Goldman-Rakic 1998
Delayed response task with single-unit neuron recording in parietal and prefrontal cortex
Shows that parietal activity can compensate for other areas of the brain during learning and memory consolidation
Memory - Working Memory, Hedden & Garbiela 2004
Lateral prefrontal cortex, primary visual cortex and hippocampus volume decrease with age
Can explain memory decline
Memory - Working Memory, Rosen et al 2002
Older individuals with intact memory show greater activity in lateral PFC, primary visual cortex and hippocampus
Memory - Declarative
Knowledge of facts requiring conscious awareness
Fast learning with little repetition
Verbally expressed
Memory - Procedural
Implicit knowledge of skills and abilities
Slow learning requiring much repetition
Expressed in performance
Memory - Episodic
Personal experiences and events, including the emotions and sensations of the occurrence
Memory - Semantic
Facts of the world not related to specific events
e.g. word meanings
Memory - Amnesia
Loss of memory
Memory - Amnesia, HM
Removal of hippocampus
Difficulty forming LTM
STM and WM intact
Poor declarative memory
Intact implicit memory
Memory - Amnesia, HM, Milner 1958
HM could remember a string of numbers by creating abstract strategies (procedural memory) to help remember them
If put under cognitive load or distracted, recall was not possible due to inability to consolidation the string
Memory - Amnesia, Shrager et al 2008
Damage to medial temporal lobe left WM intact
If tasks were dependent on LTM, patients extremely impaired
Memory - Amnesia, Retrograde
Loss of memories prior to brain damage
Memory - Amnesia, Anterograde
Loss of ability to form new memories
Memory - Amnesia, KC
Bilateral hippocampal lesion
Anterograde amnesia
Episodic amnesia
Memory - Amnesia, KC, Rosenbaum et al 2005
KC able to use information about self from prior to incident but cannot form new memories or remember past experiences
Supports dissociation between episodic and semantic memory
Memory - Amnesia, Tranel & Damasio 1993
Amnesia patients were exposed to a nurse (neutral / pleasant / unfriendly)
Later shown photos and will prefer the pleasant nurse
Cannot recall seeing the nurses
Implicit memory intact, declarative not
Memory - Amnesia, Stickgold et al 2000
Amnesiacs played tetris and still had hypnagogic / dreaming experiences about the game despite not being able to recall playing
Lack of explicit, declarative memory
Memory - Neural Basis, Amygdala
Involved in fear-conditioning
Memory - Neural Basis, Parietal Lobe
Active when associating details of memories
Active during EWT
Damage results in poor episodic memory during spontaneous elaboration
Memory - Neural Basis, Temporal Lobe
Hub for communication between regions of the brain
Linked to semantic dementia
Memory - Neural Basis, Hippocampus
Link between amnesia and hippocampus damage suggests its involvement in memory
Memory - Neural Basis, Hippocampus, Zola et al 2000
Dmaage impairs matching-to-sample tasks showing impaired episodic, declarative memory
Memory - Neural Basis, Hippocampus, HM
Could not rememeber completing tasks e.g. mirror drawing
Skill improved due to procedural memory
Memory - Neural Basis, Hippocampus, Spatial Memory, Goodrich-Hinsaker & Hopkins 2010
Radial maze for rats
Rats failed to navigate the same maze multiple times if had hippocampus damage
Simulated to find same results if using VR on humans
Memory - Neural Basis, Hippocampus, Spatial Memory, Maguire et al 2000
Taxi drivers, who rely heavily on spatial memory, show enhanced hippocampus activity and volume
Memory - Neural Basis, Hippocampus, Contextual Memory, Kamarowski et al 2009
Individual neurons respond to specific contexts
Memory - Neural Basis, Hippocampus, Protein
Inhibition of hippocampul protein impairs memory consolidation
Enhanced release of cortisol during emotional events results in amygdala and hippocampal activity
Emotional events are remembered better
Memory - Neural Basis, Basal Ganglia
Resembles a horn
Composed of globus pallidua, putamen and caudate nucleus
Associated with planning of motor movement and coordination, important in procedural learning
Damage results in Parkinson’s and inability to learn implicitly
Memory - Neural Basis, Basal Ganglia, Moody et al 2010
Demonstrated the role of basal ganglis in implicit habit learning
Parkinson’s patients, who have inability to learn implicity, only learned a technique if they showed awareness of participating
If they were not aware they could not learn due to inability to have learned implicitly also
Memory - Neural Basis, Prefrontal Cortex
Linked to reward choice comparisons and memory suppression
Impact on classical conditioning
Memory - Neural Basis, Prefrontal Cortex, Depue et al 2007
Memories are suppressed by different areas of prefrontal cortex
Inferior PFC suppresses sensory memories
Medial PFC suppresses emotional memories
Memory - Biochemical Mechanism
Patterns of neural acitivty leave paths in the brain for physical change
Memory - Biochemical Mechanism, Hebbian Synapse
Simultaneous presynaptic and postsynaptic activity strengthens the effectiveness of a neuron
Memory - Biochemical Mechanism, Hebbian Synapse, Long-Term Depression
Prolonged decreased sensitivity
Possibly due to extended understimulation
Memory - Biochemical Mechanism, Hebbian Synapse, Long-Term Potentiation
When axons are bombarded with stimulation they become more responsive and synapses remain potentiated (with neurotransmitters) for a longer time
Dependent on glutamate
Memory - Biochemical Mechanism, Hebbian Synapse, Long-Term Potentiation, Assumptions
Specificity where only active neurons are strengthened to improve efficiency
Associativity where weak inputs are paired with stronger ones to enhance neuronal responses by summation
Cooperativity where simulataneous stimulation increases LTP by summation
Memory - Biochemical Mechanism, Glutamate Synapse
Glutamate is an excitatory neurotransmitter
Memory - Biochemical Mechanism, Glutamate Synapse, AMPA
Glutamate receptors which open Na+ channels to allow cell depolarisation
Memory - Biochemical Mechanism, Glutamate Synapse, NMDA
Glutamate receptors which open Na+ channels to allow cell depolarisation
Also open Ca++ channels if membranes are already polarised, triggerring neurotransmitter release
Memory - Biochemical Mechanism, Glutamate Synapse, Magnesium
Blocks NMDA receptors at resting potential so no neurotransmitter is released and postsynaptic membranes cannot be stimulated
Is blocked from NMDA receptors at excitation threshold, allowing postsynaptic stimulation
Memory - Biochemical Mechanism, Glutamate Synapse, Ca++
Allowed into the cell after Mg+ is blocked from NMDA receptors
Triggers CaMk11 proteins (e.g. CREB) in the nucleus to alter gene expression, which alters glutamate responsivity
Memory - Biochemical Mechanism, Glutamate Synapse, Gene Alteration
Caused by CaMk11 / CREB
Increase glutamate release, dendrite number, AMPA sensitivity, increasing postsynaptic stimulation
Memory - Biochemical Mechanism, Glutamate Synapse, Postsynaptic Stimulation
Excessive stimulation causes release of retrograde neurotransmitters
Memory - Biochemical Mechanism, Glutamate Synapse, Retrograde Neurotransmitters
Modify presynaptic membranes
Decrease excitation threshold so AP are sent by weaker stimulation
Increase neurotransmitter release from more sites meaning more in the synapse for longer, resulting in LTP
Expand axons to fit more Na+ channels to allow more AP to fire
