Lecture 2 Notes Flashcards

1
Q

What is cognitive neuroscience?

A

The study of the nervous system with the intent to understand and explain cognition.

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2
Q

What are 4 reasons that we study neuroscience?

A

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.

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3
Q

What is qualia?

A

A quality or property as perceived or experienced by a person.

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4
Q

What are 4 perspectives on how the mind and brain are associated?

A

Interactionism, epiphenomenon, parallelism, and isomorphism.

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5
Q

What is the interactionist perspective?

A

A dualist perspective, there is a non-physical mind and a physical brain.

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6
Q

What is the epiphenomenon perspective?

A

There is a mind that does exist, but it emerges out of brain activity (the mind is the shadow that the brain casts).

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7
Q

What is the parallelism perspective?

A

The mind and brain are two things that work together - two sides of the same coin.

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8
Q

What is the isomorphic perspective?

A

A Gestalt explanation; mind terms and brain terms are the same. For every causal mind term there is a corresponding brain term.

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9
Q

What are 3 principles of neuroscience?

A

Localization, lateralization, and plasticity.

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10
Q

What is localization?

A

Particular parts of the brain seem to serve specific functions.

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11
Q

What is lateralization?

A

The right and left hemispheres do different things.

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12
Q

What is plasticity?

A

The idea that the brain can change over time.

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13
Q

What are the 2 types of plasticity?

A

Structural and functional.

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14
Q

What is structural plasticity?

A

The hard wiring of the brain changing and developing. Developing new connections where none existed before.

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15
Q

What is functional plasticity?

A

Moving a function from one area to another.

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16
Q

When is the brain most plastic?

A

During youth.

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17
Q

Does plasticity involve only neurons?

A

No, it may involve many different types of cells.

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18
Q

What is synaptic pruning?

A

When unused neural pathways in the brain are “pruned off” to make room for new things.

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19
Q

What is a CT scan?

A

Computer axial tomography. A moveable x-ray source and a computer work to create a cross section of the human body.

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20
Q

What is a PET scan?

A

Positron emission tomography. Radioactive isotopes are given to the patient and blood flow to an area is tracked. Uses the subtraction technique.

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21
Q

What is the subtraction technique?

A

A scan is done before and after something, and the difference is taken.

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22
Q

What is an (f)MRI?

A

(Functional) magnetic resonance imaging. Brief, powerful magnetic pulses are sent through the body/brain.

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23
Q

What is the difference between an MRI and an fMRI?

A

An fMRI shows activity, an MRI just shows a still image.

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24
Q

What are the advantages (2) and disadvantages (1) of an (f)MRI?

A

Advantages are that it is non-invasive and provides a good resolution. Disadvantage is that it is very expensive.

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25
Q

What is an EEG?

A

Electroencephalogram. Recording the electrical impulses created by neurons through the scalp.

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26
Q

What are the advantages of an EEG? (3)

A

Non-invasive, super fast, and provides millisecond levels of what the brain is doing.

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27
Q

What is an ERP?

A

Event-related-potential. Averages EEG patterns associated with specific events to find characteristic peaks and valleys after stimuli.

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28
Q

What advantage does an ERP have over an MRI?

A

It is less expensive.

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29
Q

What are the two parts to an ERP?

A

Negative/positive polarity and time (ms).

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30
Q

What is an MEG?

A

Magnetoencephalography. Measures magnetic fields on the scalp to provide an image.

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31
Q

How do MEGs and fMRIs compare and contrast?

A

MEGs have better temporal resolution and just as good a spatial resolution. They are more expensive though.

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32
Q

What is DTI?

A

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.

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33
Q

What is an advantage of a DTI?

A

Can work with dead tissue and can map what parts of the brain are connected to one another.

34
Q

Around how many neurons and glial cells do we have?

A

Between 10 and 100 billion neurons and 1 to 50 times as many glial cells.

35
Q

How many neurons thick is our cortex?

A

6 neurons thick.

36
Q

About how many synapses do we have?

A

0.15 quadrillion.

37
Q

What do neurons transmit signals to?

A

Other neurons, muscles, and glands.

38
Q

At what rate are we losing neurons?

A

1 per second after the age of 20.

39
Q

What is the dendrite for?

A

Receiving information.

40
Q

What is the soma?

A

The cell body.

41
Q

What is the axon?

A

The main length of a neuron.

42
Q

What is an axon hillock?

A

The tapering part of the soma.

43
Q

What is the myelin?

A

The fatty sheathe that covered the axon to speed up neural impulses.

44
Q

What are the nodes of Ranvier?

A

The gaps between the myelin.

45
Q

What is the terminal bouton?

A

The end opposite the dendrite.

46
Q

What are the 4 stages of action potentials and corresponding voltages?

A

Resting stage (-70mV), depolarization (+40mV), repolarization, hyperpolarization/undershoot (~-80mV).

47
Q

What is the gap between neurons called?

A

The synaptic cleft.

48
Q

Around how many known neurotransmitters are there?

A

At least 50.

49
Q

What is EPSP?

A

Excitatory-post-synaptic-potential.

50
Q

What is IPSP?

A

Inhibitory-post-synaptic-potential.

51
Q

How do neurotransmitters convey an effect?

A

In a graded fashion. Effect changes in the proportion to the intensity of the stimulation of the neurotransmitter.

52
Q

What are 2 things that are represented in your mind?

A

Quality and intensity of experience.

53
Q

What are the 4 types of sensory coding?

A

Specificity, temporal, population, and sparse coding.

54
Q

What is specificity coding?

A

Different neurons are activated for different stimuli.

55
Q

What is temporal coding?

A

Different perceptions are based on different patterns of activity.

56
Q

What is population coding?

A

Patterns of activity across populations of neurons are what react to different stimuli.

57
Q

What is sparse coding?

A

Middle ground between specificity and population; a strong activation by a relatively small number of neurons.

58
Q

What three parts can the brain be split into?

A

The hindbrain, midbrain, and forebrain.

59
Q

What two parts can the forebrain be split into?

A

The cortex and subcortex.

60
Q

What 4 parts can the subcortex be split into?

A

The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), amygdala, basal ganglia, and hippocampus.

61
Q

What is the anterior cingulate cortex responsible for? (3)

A

Connections between the prefrontal cortex and the parietal lobe, involved in emotional regulation and making decisions, associated with physiological responses (HR and BP).

62
Q

What is the amygdala responsible for?

A

Negative emotions such as anger and fear.

63
Q

What is the basal ganglia responsible for?

A

Intentional movements.

64
Q

What is the hippocampus responsible for?

A

Spatial navigation, committing things to long term memory.

65
Q

What 4 parts (lobes) can the cortex be split into?

A

Occipital lobe, temporal lobes, parietal lobe, and frontal lobe.

66
Q

What divides the temporal lobe from the rest of the brain?

A

The lateral fissure.

67
Q

What divides the frontal lobe from the parietal lobe?

A

The central fissure.

68
Q

What fissure divides the two hemispheres?

A

The longitudinal fissure.

69
Q

What is the fusiform face area originally thought to and now known to identify?

A

Originally thought to recognize faces, now it is known to identify subtle differences in pictures of objects.

70
Q

What does the parahippocampal place area identify?

A

Visual scenes.

71
Q

What does the extrastriate body area identify?

A

Body parts (not the face).

72
Q

What is the Broca’s area associated with?

A

Production of speech.

73
Q

What is Wernicke’s area associated with?

A

Comprehension of speech.

74
Q

What is contralateral perception/control?

A

Sides of the brain controlling/perceiving from the opposite side of the body.

75
Q

What is ipsilateral information processing?

A

Sides of the brain controlling/perceiving from the same side of the body.

76
Q

What is hemispherical specialization?

A

One hemisphere tends to do something that is different than the other side.

77
Q

What connects the two hemispheres?

A

The corpus callosum.

78
Q

Are the two hemispheres symmetrical?

A

No.

79
Q

What is a single dissociation?

A

When one part of the brain is damaged and one function goes away.

80
Q

What is a double dissociation?

A

When two people have two different parts of their brains damaged and have different functions impaired.

81
Q

What is the capgras delusion?

A

A delusion where someone believes that their parents are not really their parents, but are imposters.

82
Q

What is a proposed cause of the capgras delusion?

A

A disconnect between the temporal lobes (visual cortex) and the amygdala (emotional connection).