Methods of Studying the Brain Flashcards
1
Q
fMRI - n
A
Functional magnetic resonance imaging
2
Q
fMRI - d
A
- measures brain activity during task performance
- detects radio waves from changing magnetic fields
- detects which regions of the brain are oxygen rich = active (haemodynamic response)
- localisation of function
3
Q
EEG - n
A
Electroencephalogram
4
Q
EEG - d
A
- records electrical impulses produced by brain activity
- measures characteristic wave patterns
- using statistical averaging filters out extraneous brain activity
- diagnoses conditions e.g. arrhythmic activity patterns
5
Q
ERP - n
A
Event-related potentials
6
Q
ERP - d
A
- electrophysiological response of the brain to a specific sensory, cognitive or motor event that can be isolated through statistical analysis of EEG data
7
Q
Post-mortem examinations
A
- brain is analysed after death (usually neurodivergent/brain injury) to see whether behaviours can be linked to structural abnormalities
- often compared to a healthy brain to see extent of difference
8
Q
fMRI - strength
A
- doesn’t rely on the use of radiation
-virtually risk-free, non-invasive and straightforward - images with high spatial resolution
9
Q
fMRI - weakness
A
- expensive compared to other techniques
- 5 second lag between neuronal transmission and screen image
- doesn’t truly represent moment-to-moment brain activity (poor temporal transmission)
10
Q
EEG - strength
A
- useful in studying sleep stages and epilepsy diagnosis
- extremely high temporal resolution accurate to the millisecond
- real world value
11
Q
EEG - weaknesses
A
- by nature the information is generalised as it is from thousands of neurons
- not useful in pinpointing the exact source of neural activity
- difficut to distinguish between activities originating in close locations
12
Q
ERP - strength
A
- bring more specificity to measurement of neural process than can be achieved with raw EEG data
- excellent temporal resolution
- used to measure cognitive functions and deficits e.g. maintenance of working memory
13
Q
ERP - weakness
A
- lack of standardisation in ERP methodology between different studies so difficult to confirm findings
- in order to establish pure data all extraneous material must be eliminated - difficult to achieve
14
Q
Post-mortem exam - strength
A
- providing a foundation for early understanding of key processes e.g. Broca and Wernicke
- post mortem studies used to study HM’s brain
- still provide useful information
15
Q
Post - mortem exam - weakness
A
- Causation, damage could be linked to other trauma unrelated to research
- ethical issues: may not be able to provide informed consent
e.g. HM unable to provide consent do to memory loss
