Localisation of Function Flashcards

Includes hemispheric lateralisation

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1
Q

What is localisation of function?

A

The belief that specific areas of the brain are associated with specific cognitive processes
E.g if an area is damaged via illness or injury, the function associated with that area will also be affected

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2
Q

What is the cerebral cortex?

A
  • Outer layer of the two hemispheres
  • Approx 3mm thick
  • Appears grey due to cell bodies (grey matter)
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3
Q

What is grey matter?

A

40% of brain
Processes and sends information to parts of the body

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4
Q

What is white matter?

A

60% of brain
Connects areas and neurons

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5
Q

What is the motor cortex?

A

The region of the brain responsible for the generation of voluntary motor movements

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6
Q

What is the somatosensory cortex?

A

The region of your brain that processes input from sensory receptors in the body that are sensitive to touch

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7
Q

What is the visual cortex?

A

The region of the brain that receives and processes visual information relayed from the retinas

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8
Q

What is the auditory cortex?

A

The region of the brain that receives and process sound input

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9
Q

What is Broca’s area?

A

The area in the left frontal lobe associated with speech production

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10
Q

What is Wernicke’s area?

A

The area in the left temporal love important in the comprehension of language

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11
Q

How do the visual centers in the occipital lobes work?

A
  • Retina at the back of each eye, light enters and strikes photoreceptors
  • Nerves impulses transmitted to the brain via the optical nerve
  • Impulses terminate in the thalamus (relay station) which then passes info onto the visual cortex
  • Visual cortex spans both hemispheres, and has areas for different information (e.g colour, shape, movement)
  • Left hemisphere relieves info from right visual field and vice versa
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12
Q

How do auditory centers in the temporal lobe work?

A
  • Pathway begins in the cochlea, sound waves converted to nerve impulses
  • Impulses travel to brain stem where basic decoding takes place
  • Moves then to the thalamus, where further decoding takes place
  • Impulses then arrive in the auditory cortex where sound is recognised
  • Info from left ear is processed by right auditory cortex and vice versa
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13
Q

How do motor cortex and somatosensory cortex work?

A
  • Motor cortex on left side controls muscles on right side of the body and vice versa
  • Different parts of motor cortex exert control over different parts of the body
  • Regions are arranged logically next to one another
  • Somatosensory cortex detects sensory events arising from different regions in the body
  • Uses sensory info from the skin
  • Area of the brain produces sensations of pressure, heat and touch, which is then localised to different body regions
  • Cortex of left side of brain receives info from right side of the body and vice versa
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14
Q

Where is Broca’s area located?

A

Back of the left frontal lobe
Near the motor cortex responsible for movement of the lips, jaw and tongue

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15
Q

What is the function of Broca’s area?

A

Speech production
Precise control of mouth to produce sound in the form of recognisable language

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16
Q

What is the impact of damage of Broca’s area?

A

Speech is disrupted
The person can understand language clearly but cannot produce speech clearly
Speech can be slow and slurred
Degree of severity depends on extent of damage to the area
Condition is known as Broca’s aphasia

17
Q

Where is Wernicke’s area located?

A

Back of the left temporal lobe
Near the primary auditory cortex which receives sound information from the ears

18
Q

What is the function of Wernicke’s area?

A

Speech comprehension
Understanding speech of others and creating meaningful speech

19
Q

What is the impact of damage on Wernicke’s area?

A

Meaning is disrupted
The person becomes unaware of their own and others meaning
They can speak clearly but the sentences they string together make no sense
Degree of severity depends on extent of damage to the area
Condition is known as Wernicke’s aphasia

20
Q

Research support: AO3 ✅

A
  • Peterson et al. (1998) carried out brain scans and found that Wernicke’s area was more active during a listening track and Broca’s area was more active during a reading task
    This shows how the brain didn’t work holistically, but as reductionist parts. There was higher activity in certain areas of the brain with certain tasks
  • Tulving et al. (1994) found that semantic and episodic memories were found in different parts of the prefrontal cortex. This provides support for the theory that neurological functions are localised
21
Q

Evidence of equipotentiality theory: AO3 ❌

A
  • The equipotentiality theory states that intact cortex areas can take responsibility from other cortex areas if they’ve been damaged
  • This theory has been found in stroke patients who have been able to regain ability initially lost after their stroke
  • According to localisation of function, this scenario is not possible
22
Q

Understanding of communication between brain areas: AO3 ❌

A
  • Wernicke claimed that different brain areas had specialist functions, however they must interact with each other in order to work (interdependent)
  • Dronkers (2007) re-examined 2 patients brains that had Broca’s aphasia using MRI imaging
    This revealed that other areas besides Broca’s could’ve contributed to the loss of speech
  • This study suggests that learning and speech production are too complex to be localised and require support from other areas