Lecture 2 Notes Flashcards
What is cognitive neuroscience?
The study of the nervous system with the intent to understand and explain cognition.
What are 4 reasons that we study neuroscience?
As another level of analysis, to explain things such as mental disorders, to be able to produce insights by looking at the nervous system, and to intervene using those insights.
What is qualia?
A quality or property as perceived or experienced by a person.
What are 4 perspectives on how the mind and brain are associated?
Interactionism, epiphenomenon, parallelism, and isomorphism.
What is the interactionist perspective?
A dualist perspective, there is a non-physical mind and a physical brain.
What is the epiphenomenon perspective?
There is a mind that does exist, but it emerges out of brain activity (the mind is the shadow that the brain casts).
What is the parallelism perspective?
The mind and brain are two things that work together - two sides of the same coin.
What is the isomorphic perspective?
A Gestalt explanation; mind terms and brain terms are the same. For every causal mind term there is a corresponding brain term.
What are 3 principles of neuroscience?
Localization, lateralization, and plasticity.
What is localization?
Particular parts of the brain seem to serve specific functions.
What is lateralization?
The right and left hemispheres do different things.
What is plasticity?
The idea that the brain can change over time.
What are the 2 types of plasticity?
Structural and functional.
What is structural plasticity?
The hard wiring of the brain changing and developing. Developing new connections where none existed before.
What is functional plasticity?
Moving a function from one area to another.
When is the brain most plastic?
During youth.
Does plasticity involve only neurons?
No, it may involve many different types of cells.
What is synaptic pruning?
When unused neural pathways in the brain are “pruned off” to make room for new things.
What is a CT scan?
Computer axial tomography. A moveable x-ray source and a computer work to create a cross section of the human body.
What is a PET scan?
Positron emission tomography. Radioactive isotopes are given to the patient and blood flow to an area is tracked. Uses the subtraction technique.
What is the subtraction technique?
A scan is done before and after something, and the difference is taken.
What is an (f)MRI?
(Functional) magnetic resonance imaging. Brief, powerful magnetic pulses are sent through the body/brain.
What is the difference between an MRI and an fMRI?
An fMRI shows activity, an MRI just shows a still image.
What are the advantages (2) and disadvantages (1) of an (f)MRI?
Advantages are that it is non-invasive and provides a good resolution. Disadvantage is that it is very expensive.
What is an EEG?
Electroencephalogram. Recording the electrical impulses created by neurons through the scalp.
What are the advantages of an EEG? (3)
Non-invasive, super fast, and provides millisecond levels of what the brain is doing.
What is an ERP?
Event-related-potential. Averages EEG patterns associated with specific events to find characteristic peaks and valleys after stimuli.
What advantage does an ERP have over an MRI?
It is less expensive.
What are the two parts to an ERP?
Negative/positive polarity and time (ms).
What is an MEG?
Magnetoencephalography. Measures magnetic fields on the scalp to provide an image.
How do MEGs and fMRIs compare and contrast?
MEGs have better temporal resolution and just as good a spatial resolution. They are more expensive though.
What is DTI?
Diffusion tensor imaging. A form of MRI that detects the difference in activity in neurons by tracing the movement of a water molecule to find the structure of an axon.