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PSY 246 > Midterm > Flashcards

Midterm Flashcards

1
Q

why might we want to study the brain

A
  • most complex organ
  • how the brain produces both behaviour and consciousness is still not understood
  • understanding the brain helps us to explain and possibly cure behavioural disorders
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2
Q

cardiocentric hypothesis

A

past belief that the heart was responsible for our thinking. purposed by aristotle, believed the brain was used as a cooling unit for the blood and to regulate the temperature of the heart

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3
Q

phrenology

A

the bumps on the skull are correlated to what parts of your brain you used the most

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4
Q

what did the original cephalocentric hypothesis entail

A

believed the pineal gland was responsible for behaviour, and that the mind regulates behaviour by directing the flow of ventricle fluid to the appropriate muscles

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5
Q

problems with descartes cephalocentric theory

A

the pineal gland is involved in biological rhythms, not intelligence or behaviour control - and it is not essential (people can have it removed and live normally)

fluid is not pumped from the ventricles to control movement

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6
Q

monism/materialism

A

behaviour can be explained as a function of the nervous system without trying to think about the mind. the brain simply produces the mind. without brain function, there is no soul/mind

this theory was supported by the phineas gage incident - which suggested a link between brain trauma and personality change

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7
Q

shortcomings of the phrenology theory of psychology

A
  1. cranioscopies where invalid reflections of cortical surface area
  2. it wasnt falsifiable
  3. it would seek confirmation for behaviours, not empirically test
  4. localized the wrong faculties
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8
Q

the theory of equipotentiality was overturned by this new neurological study method

A

electrical stimulation - showed that stimulations in certain regions caused reactions in certain parts of the body - especially the bilateral nature of the brain

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9
Q

cytoarchitectonics

A

neurons of similar shape and size tend to group together

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10
Q

Who came up with the very famous map using cytoarchitectonics

A

broadmen - broadmens map organized the brain into 52 distinct areas based on neuron shape

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11
Q

What was Moniz’s leucotomy

A

an early type of lobotomy involving severing the connections between the frontal cortex and thalamus to alleviate symptoms of psychosis and depression

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12
Q

what were the stats for the outcomes of Walter Freeman’s lobotomized patients

A

33% improved, 33% remain unchanged, and 33% worsened

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13
Q

why can the brain be described as inconsistent

A

variability between brains of one person to the other
inconsistencies in how it is described (naming structures based on what it looks like, where they are, who discovered them)
structures referred to as more than one name

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14
Q

three types of glial cells

A

astrocytes - regulate how far NT spreads
oligodendrocytes - produce myelin
microglia - remove debris

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15
Q

an electrical signal from an action potential gets converted to a ____ signal when Nt are released

A

chemical signal

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16
Q

ipsilateral

A

same side

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17
Q

afferent neurons

A

move towards the CNS (A=Approach)

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18
Q

a tract refers to a large collection of

A

axons

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19
Q

a fissure in the brain refers to

A

a very deep cleft in the cortex that reaches all the way down to the ventricles

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20
Q

a sulcus in the brain refers to

A

a more shallow cleft

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21
Q

a gyrus in the brain refers to

A

a ridge in the cortex

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22
Q

the precentral gyrus is the

A

motor cortex

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23
Q

the precentral gyrus lays right in front of (anterior to) the

A

central fissure

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24
Q

grey matter is the innermost or outermost layer

A

outermost

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25
Q

T/F the CNS is encased in bone

A

true

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26
Q

three major divisions of the brain

A

forebrain, midbrain, hindbrain

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27
Q

cerebellum, pons, and medulla are all structures of the

A

hindbrain

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28
Q

cerebellum

A

coordinating movements and balance, motor learning

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29
Q

medulla oblongata

A

breathing, BP, heart rate, other autonomic functions

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30
Q

pons

A

sleeping, breathing, other unconcious processes

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31
Q

cerebellar agenesis causes

A

impairment of motor functions, especially relating to the coordination of voluntary movement - clumsy, delays in motor development, low muscle tone

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32
Q

the superior and inferior colliculus are located in

A

the mid brain

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33
Q

superior colliculus

A

directing gaze and object directed behaviour

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34
Q

thalamus

A

relay centre of the brain - filters motor and sensory signals and relays them to the cortex. regulates sleep, alertness, wakefulness

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35
Q

hypothalamus

A

regulates basic functions:
body temp, hunger, thirst, mood, sex drive, blood pressure, sleep

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36
Q

cerebral cortex

A

higher cognitive functioning

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37
Q

basal ganglia

A

motor functioning and learning

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38
Q

limbic system

A

emotion, memory, spatial navigation

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39
Q

the primary motor cortex is also referred to as

A

the pre-central gyrus

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40
Q

three main areas in the frontal lobe

A

primary motor cortex (voluntary muscle movement)

prefrontal cortex (executive functions, behaviour, personality)

Broca’s area (muscles of speech, production of speech)

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41
Q

the Broca’s area is also referred to as

A

the inferior frontal gyrus

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42
Q

main function of the temporal lobe

A

auditory processing (including hearing, analyzing, recognizing, and memory of auditory stimuli)

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43
Q

main function of the parietal lobe

A

somatosensory - awareness and processing of somatic sensation, proprioception - combines information from multiple senses into a usable form

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44
Q

main function of the occipital lobe

A

awareness and processing of visual stimuli

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45
Q

basal ganglia function

A

fine-tuning of voluntary movements, and the initiation of movements

also decision making, reward, and addiction

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46
Q

limbic system

A

behavioural and emotional responses

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47
Q

callosal agenesis

A

person born with no corpus callosum (large bundle of myelinated nerves connecting the left and right hemispheres)

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48
Q

ventricular system

A

the cerebrospinal fluid provides support for the brain

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49
Q

single cell recordings

A

study done in animal models where electrodes are inserted into an indivudual neuron

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50
Q

most neurons are tuned to a _____ stimulus and have a ___ level of basal activity

A

most neurons are tuned to a particular stimulus and have a low level of basal activity

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51
Q

advantages of the single cell recording

A

greater precision

can be used to model disease processes

can conclude casuality

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52
Q

limitations of single cell neurorecordings

A

they may not be generalizable due to differences in humans and non-human animals, as well as the complexity of the brain and behaviour compared to a single neuron

53
Q

cortical stimulation

A

electrodes placed on the surface of the brain

54
Q

subcortical stimulation

A

stimulating white matter pathways

55
Q

deep brain stimulation

A

implant electrodes into brain regions of interest

  • can be used to treat conditions like depression, OCD, epilepsy, parkinson’s
56
Q

pros of brain stimulation

A

allows for detailed examination of brain - behaviour relationships

you often have a high level of control of the stimulation

57
Q

cons of brain stimulation

A

its invasive, usually involves some degree of brain damage, human methods rely on patients not healthy volunteers

58
Q

difference between controlled and acquired brain lesion studies

A

controlled brain lesion studies use animals, whereas acquired ones use patients

controlled ones are nice because you can pick the exact location and extent of the damage, giving you the ability to make statements about casaulity - but not all processes can be examined by this and not all of the animal models will generalize to human systems

acquired ones are useful because we can otherwise study lesions in human participants, but they are subject to individual differences and we may not always know the premorbid function

59
Q

which brain imaging techniques show electrical activity

A

EEG and ERPs

60
Q

which brain imaging techniques show structural imaging

A

CT, MRI, DTI

61
Q

which brain imaging techniques show functional images

A

PET, fMRI, TMS

62
Q

beta waves on an EEG

A

high frequency, low amplitude
person is alert

63
Q

alpha waves on an EEG

A

lower frequency, high amplitude
person is relaxed

64
Q

delta waves on an EEG

A

less frequent, higher amplitude waves
sleep

65
Q

what do partial seizures look like on an EEG compared to generalized seizures

A

spikes and sharp waves in only a specific brain area. Generalized seizures also display spikes and sharp waves but these are spread over the brain

66
Q

event-related potentials

A

measuring brain response to a specific event and averaging the activity over many trials to see when information gets processed in the brain

67
Q

brain computer interfaces allow patients with this disease to operate a computer using brain waves, allowing them to speak, send emails, and texts

A

ALS

68
Q

advantages and disadvantages of EEGs and ERPs

A

they’re non-invasive and have great temporal resolution, inexpensive, good for both clinical and healthy patients

they have poor spatial resolution, vulnerable to movement artifacts, signal can be distorted by skull variations

69
Q

CT scan

A

computed tomography - uses X ray to create pictures of the skull and brain - high density regions absorb more so they appear as lighter (skull)
low density appear darker (grey matter and fluid)

70
Q

advantages vs disadvantages of CT scans

A

theyre fast and non-invasive, provide structural images in vivo, and can be used in both clinical and healthy populations

they have por station resolution, give no information about functioning, and radiation may limit repeated scanning

71
Q

whatis Magnetic Resonance Imagining, and what are its pros vs cons

A

using strong magnets to measure magnetic fields to create images via hydrogen atoms in the body

non invasive and has good spatial resolution, but cannot be used with anything metal, its loud, bad for claustrophobic

72
Q

diffusion tensor imaging

A

mapping white matter pathways that detects how water travels along tracts

73
Q

first neuroimaging technique

A

person on a precariously balanced table, getting them to think would increase blood flow to their head and table would tilt head down

74
Q

PET SCAN

A

positron emission tomography

  • use radioactive substances known as radiotracers to visualize and measure changes in metabolic processes (utilization of dopamine for example)h
75
Q

how does a pet scan work

A

find a molecule used in the brain
make it radioactive
inject it into the brain
measure where the tracer is being metabolized

76
Q

advantages vs disadvantages of PET scan

A

can be used on many molecules , but it is radiation so you can only do 4-5 scans a year and it is expensive

77
Q

functional MRI

A

measures changes in brain activity by detecting changes in blood flow. Hemoglobin is an oxygen carrier so oxygenated Hb repels magnetic fields. Compares the relative ratios of OHb to dOHb

pros: non invasive and no radiation, can use standard MRI equipment and you can do a regular MRI and fMRI simultaneously

Cons it is expensive, has slow temporal resolution, and does not work for claustrophobic people or those with implanted metal

78
Q

transcranial magnetic stimulation

A

applying a strong magnetic field at the surface of the skull to change electrical activity in adjacent neurons to stimulate or inactivate neurons, allowing researchers to infer the function of the area from the behavioural changes induced. can also treat pain, movement disorders, and depression

79
Q

three types of somatosensory receptors

A

nociception - pain and temp
hapsis - fine touch and pressure
proprioception - awareness of body in space

80
Q

the spinothalamic tract is responsible for

A

transmission of pain, temperature, and crude touch to the brain

81
Q

DCML pathway is responsible for

A

conveying sensations of fine touch, vibration, pressure, two point discrimination, and proprioception

82
Q

the corticospinal tract is responsible for

A

carrying movement-related informatin from the motor cortex to the spinal cord (walking, reaching, fine finger movements)

83
Q

the S1 brain region

A

primary somatosensory cortex - the post-central gyrus
- tactile representation of the opposite side of the body

84
Q

posterior parietal association cortex

A

integration of body position information with location of objects in space

85
Q

dorsolateral prefrontal cortex

A

active in the planning of movement - tells secondary and primary motor areas what movements to make

86
Q

the M1 brain region

A

primary motor cortex
controls movements of the muscles - organized somatotopically (homunculus map)

87
Q

secondary motor cortex’s role and its three associated areas

A

the production of voluntary movement

  1. supplementary motor area - self generated movement
  2. premotor cortex - externally generated movement (reflexively watching an ambulance drive by)
  3. cingulate cortex - conflict resolution
88
Q

explain the integration of motor movement via the parietal, prefrontal, premotor, and motor cortices

A

the parietal cortex will receive and inetegrate sensory info and initiate movement, the prefrontal will plan the movement, the premotor will organize the movement sequences, and the motor cortex will produce the movements

89
Q

basal ganglia’s role in movement

A

initiates movement and stops undesired movements

90
Q

why can surgeons do brain surgery while a patient is conscious

A

the brain has no pain receptors

91
Q

four major classes of apraxias

A

ideomotor apraxia - cannot execute simple GESTURES when asked to (both intransitive gestures like waving goodbye and transitive getures like practical motions like flipping a coin)

ideational - cannot fathom how to do a task, the necessary actions and which ORDER they should be performed in - more extreme

comstructional - cannot build, assemble, or draw objects - cannot use their visuoperceptual information to guide voluntary movements, bad spatial processing

oral - inability to perform intricate movements with the face/pharynx/larynx on command - can do it on their own (subconsciously)

92
Q

tactile agnosia/astereognosis

A

loss of the ability to identify an object by touch – their sensation awareness is correct, they could describe the features of an object but not identify it

93
Q

callosal apraxia

A

selective impairment of the ability to carryout verbal requests with the left hand, because the verbal information is processed on the left hemisphere but the right hemisphere controls the left hands

94
Q

probable cause of phantom limb syndrome

A

cortical reorganization - areas of the brain which no longer receive sensory input start to accept input from adjacent areas

95
Q

treatment for phantom limb pain

A

meditation and relaxation techniques, drugs, but mirror therapy seems to be the best

96
Q

xenomelia/foreign limb syndrome

A

the desire for an amputation - study using MED showed that the foot and thigh areas of their brain showed reduced activation in the limb desired to be amputated

97
Q

optic nerve

A

a bunch of ganglion cell axons that leave the eye at the optic disk, also called the blindspot

98
Q

optic chiasm

A

the point of crossover for half of the visual projections (information from the left visual field sent to the right visual field)

99
Q

retino-geniculate-striate pathway

A

this is responsible for conscious vision.

eye > optic chiasm > LGN (lateral geniculate nucleus of the thalamus > primary visual cortex

100
Q

V1 and V2 regions of the brain

A

the primary and secondary visual cortices.
involved in orientation, spatial frequencies, and binocular vision

101
Q

V4 area of the brain

A

vision association cortex - involved in colour

102
Q

MT / V5 region of the brain

A

the middle temporal region - involved in motion

103
Q

Hemianopia

A

loss of vision in half of the visual field due to damage to the primary visual cortex

104
Q

scotoma

A

loss of vision in one point due to damage in the primary visual cortex - also called blind sight - they are perceiving information but they do not know it - this happens because the brain rewires itself to use the tecto - pulvinar pathway

105
Q

quadrantanopia

A

loss of vision in a quarter of the visual field due to damage to the primary visual cortex

106
Q

ventral visual stream

A

the “what” pathway - recognizes the name and function of objects

107
Q

dorsal visual stream

A

recognizes the where and how - location of objects and how to interact with them

108
Q

Inferotemporal (IT) cortex

A

part of the cerebral cortex in the lower portion of the temporal lobe which recognizes objects. implicated in Agnosia - failure to recognize objects

109
Q

neurons in the IT complex respond well to this kind of stimuli

A

respond well to hands, faces, or objects - not to spots or lines

110
Q

parahippocampal place area - responds well to

A

places like pictures of a house

111
Q

double dissociation

A

when one perceptual function can be damaged without affecting the other - for example the ability to recognize faces but not recognize objects (prosopagnosia vs agnosia)

112
Q

apperceptive visual agnosia

A

inability to recognize an object because of the inability to perceive it - cannot recognize the visual stimuli

113
Q

associative visual agnosia

A

inability to associate objects with meaning - can draw an object but could not tell you its function - show a doctored image of a made up animal and wouldn’t be able to tell you if it exists or not

114
Q

prosopagnosia

A

inability to recognize familiar people by their face - often caused by right hemisphere damage

115
Q

optic aphasia

A

impaired ability to name objects, but they know what it is and what it does - a tip of the tongue like sensation

116
Q

motion blindness

A

rare neurophysiological disorder in which affected indviduals cannot perceive motion - damage to V5/MT

117
Q

list and describe the three processes of memory

A

encoding - attending to information
consolidation - storing information
retrieval - accessing information from where it is stored

118
Q

difference between short and long term memory

A

short term memory holds information beyond the duration of the stimuli but does not hold it permanently, only for a few seconds. Can only hold about 7 items

long term memory can be hold for years and is relatively permanent and unlimited

119
Q

what is working memory

A

information that is going to be acted on (where you parked your car) or used (information retrieved from LTM)

120
Q

three components of working memory

A
  1. central executive - attention
  2. phonological loop - inner speech repeating the info
  3. visuospatial sketchpad - visuospatial information
121
Q

explicit vs implict memories

A

explicit memories - facts and events that can be easily communicated
implicit memories - skills and habits which cannot be easily communicated

122
Q

three classes of long term memory

A

episodic - temporally distinct, unique past experience and autobiographical memory

semantic - knowledge that is not personal to you (name of a colour)

implicit / procedural - how to do things

123
Q

the hippocampus and frontal lobes are particular associated with this class of memory

A

explicit

124
Q

the basal ganglia and cerebellum is especially correlated with this class of memory

A

implicit

125
Q

what did we learn from patient HM

A

had epilepsy so they removed small section from both of his temporal lobes which ended up being his hippocampi. the epilepsy stopped but he had permanent anterograde amnesia - impairment in the learning aspect of memory. he was able to learn some new things like a floor plan or short navigation routes bc this was procedural. we learned that memory systems are distinct in behaviour and associated brain regions and that the storage and retrieval of LTM is not in the hippocampi, nor is the location of immediate STM, but the hippocampus is somehow involved in converting STM to LTM.

126
Q

retrograde amnesia is commonly associated with damage to the

A

hippocampus and temporal lobes (episodic and declarative memory)

127
Q

what is the difference between temporally extensive and temporally limited retrograde amnesia

A

extensive covers decades of memories and is often caused by dementias, PD, HD

whereas limited can be (and is most frequently) a week lost, but can stretch to a couple years. can be caused by TBI, electroconvulsive therapy

128
Q

Highly superior autobiographical memory

A

allows individuals to remember every detail of their lives - with increased grey matter in the temporal and parietal lobes and connecting white matter connections

PSY 246 (4 decks)

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