NO LECTURE NOTES JUST READING Lecture 1 - Psychological Functions of the Cortex Flashcards
(reading 63-66):
What parts of the brain greatly enlarge the surface area of the cortex?
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- sulci (small grooves)
- fissures (large grooves)
- gyri (bulges between adjacent sulci or fissures)
greatly enlarge the surface area of the cortex, compared with a smooth brain of the same size. In fact, two-thirds of the surface of the cortex is hidden in the grooves; thus, the presence of gyri and sulci triples the area of the cerebral cortex. The total surface area is approximately 2360 cm2 (2.5 ft2), and the thickness is approximately 3 mm.
(reading 63-66):
Describe the term “white matter”.
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The large concentration of myelin around these axons gives this tissue an opaque white appearance—hence the term white matter.
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Define the forebrain.
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The most rostral of the three major divisions of the brain; includes the telencephalon and diencephalon.
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Define the cerebral hemisphere.
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(sa ree brul) One of the two major portions of the forebrain, covered by the cerebral cortex.
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Define the subcortical region.
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The region located within the brain, beneath the cortical surface.
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Define the sulcus (plural: sulci)
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(sul kus, sul sigh) A groove, smaller than a fissure, in the surface of the cerebral hemisphere.
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Define the fissure.
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A major groove in the surface of the brain; it is larger than a sulcus.
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Define the gyrus (plural: gyri)
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(jye russ, jye rye) A convolution of the cortex of the cerebral hemispheres, separated by sulci or fissures.
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Define the primary visual cortex.
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The region of the posterior occipital lobe whose primary input is from the visual system.
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Define the calcarine fissure.
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(kal ka rine) A fissure located in the occipital lobe on the medial surface of the brain; most of the primary visual cortex is located along its upper and lower banks.
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Define the primary auditory cortex.
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The region of the superior temporal lobe whose primary input is from the auditory system.
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Define the lateral fissure.
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The fissure that separates the temporal lobe from the overlying frontal and parietal lobes.
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Define the primary somatosensory cortex.
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The region of the anterior parietal lobe whose primary input is from the somatosensory system.
Receives information from the body senses.
Different regions of the primary somatosensory cortex receive information from different regions of the body.
With the exception of olfaction and gustation (taste), sensory information from the body or the environment is sent to the primary sensory cortex of the contralateral hemisphere. Thus, the primary somatosensory cortex of the left hemisphere learns what the right hand is holding, the left primary visual cortex learns what is happening toward the person’s right, and so on.
(reading 63-66):
Define the central sulcus.
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(sul kus) The sulcus that separates the frontal lobe from the parietal lobe.
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Define the primary motor cortex.
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The region of the posterior frontal lobe that contains neurones that control movements of skeletal muscles.
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Define the frontal lobe
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The anterior portion of the cerebral cortex, rostral to the parietal lobe and dorsal to the temporal lobe.
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Define the parietal lobe
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(pa rye i tul) The region of the cerebral cortex caudal to the frontal lobe and dorsal to the temporal lobe.
Neurons in different parts of the primary motor cortex are connected to muscles in different parts of the body. The connections, like those of the sensory regions of the cerebral cortex, are contralateral; the left primary motor cortex controls the right side of the body and vice versa.
See figure 8 on page 62.
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See figure 9 on page 63.
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(reading 63-66):
Define the temporal lobe.
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(tem por ul)
The region of the cerebral cortex rostral to the occipital lobe and ventral to the parietal and frontal lobes.
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Define the occipital lobe.
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(ok sip i tul) The region of the cerebral cortex caudal to the parietal and temporal lobes.
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Define the sensory association cortex.
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Those regions of the cerebral cortex that receive information from the regions of primary sensory cortex.
Circuits of neurons in the sensory association cortex analyze the information received from the primary sensory cortex; perception takes place there, and memo- ries are stored there. The regions of the sensory association cortex located closest to the primary sensory areas receive information from only one sensory system. For example, the region closest to the primary visual cortex analyzes visual information and stores visual memories. Regions of the sensory association cortex located far from the primary sensory areas receive information from more than one sensory system; thus, they are involved in several kinds of perceptions and memories. These regions make it possible to integrate information from more than one sensory system.
(reading 63-66):
Define the motor association cortex.
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The region of the frontal lobe rostral to the primary motor cortex; also known as the premotor cortex.
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Define the prefrontal cortex.
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The region of the frontal lobe rostral to the motor association cortex.
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Define the corpus callosum.
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(ka loh sum) A large bundle of axons that interconnects corresponding regions of the association cortex on each side of the brain.
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Define the neocortex.
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The phylogenetically newest cortex, including the primary sensory cortex, primary motor cortex, and association cortex.
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Define the limbic cortex.
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Phylogenetically old cortex, located at the medial edge (“limbus”) of the cerebral hemispheres; part of the limbic system.
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Define the cingulate gyrus.
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(sing yew lett) A strip of limbic cortex lying along the lateral walls of the groove separating the cerebral hemispheres, just above the corpus callosum.
See figure 10 on page 65.
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(reading 63-66):
Define the limbic system.
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A group of brain regions including the anterior thalamic nuclei,
amygdala, hippocampus, limbic cortex, and parts of the hypothalamus, as well as their interconnecting fiber bundles.
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Define the hippocampus.
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A forebrain structure of the medial temporal lobe, constituting an important part of the limbic system; involved in learning and memory.
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Define the amygdala.
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(a mig da la) A structure in the interior of the rostral temporal lobe, containing a set of nuclei; part of the limbic system.
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Define the fornix.
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A fiber bundle that connects the hippocampus with other parts of the brain, including the mammillary bodies of the hypothalamus; part of the limbic system.
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Define the mammillary bodies.
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(mam i lair ee) A protrusion of the bottom of the brain at the posterior end of the hypothalamus, containing some hypothalamic nuclei; part of the limbic system.
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Define the basal ganglia.
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A group of subcortical nuclei in the telencephalon, the caudate nucleus, the globus pallidus, and the putamen; important parts of the motor system.
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Define the nucleus.
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An identifiable group of neural cell bodies in the central nervous system.
See figure 12 on page 66.
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(reading 77-79):
Unilateral (“one-sided”) neglect occurs when the ________ is damaged.
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Unilateral (“one-sided”) neglect occurs when the right parietal lobe is damaged.
The parietal lobe contains the primary somato- sensory cortex. It receives information from the skin, the muscles, the joints, the internal organs, and the part of the inner ear that is concerned with balance. Thus, it is concerned with the body and its position. But that is not all; the association cortex of the parietal lobe also receives auditory and visual information from the association cortex of the occipital and temporal lobes. Its most important function seems to be to put together information about the movements and location of the parts of the body with the locations of objects in space around us.
If unilateral neglect simply consisted of blindness in the left side of the visual field and anesthesia of the left side of the body, it would not be nearly as interesting. But individuals with unilateral neglect are neither half blind nor half numb. Under the proper circumstances, they can see things located to their left, and they can tell when someone touches the left side of their bodies. But normally, they ignore such stimuli and act as if the left side of the world and of their bodies did not exist.
Remember that people with unilateral neglect fail to notice not only things to their left but also the left halves of things. But to distinguish between the left and right halves of an object, you first have to perceive the entire object— otherwise, how would you know where the middle was?
(reading 77-79):
Describe the experiment conducted by Volpe, LeDoux, and Gazzaniga (1979) about unilateral neglect.
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Volpe, LeDoux, and Gazzaniga (1979) presented pairs of visual stimuli to people with unilateral neglect—one stimulus in the left visual field and one stimulus in the right. Invariably, the people reported seeing only the right-hand stimulus. But when the investigators asked the people to say whether or not the two stimuli were identical, they answered correctly even though they said that they were unaware of the left-hand stimulus.
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Describe the experiment conducted by Bisiach and Luzzatti (1978) about unilateral neglect.
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Bisiach and Luzzatti (1978) demonstrated that unilateral neglect extends even to a person’s own visual imagery. The investigators asked two patients with unilateral neglect to describe the Piazza del Duomo, a well known landmark in Milan, the city in which they and the patients lived. They asked the patients to imagine that they were standing at the north end of the piazza and to tell them what they saw. The patients duly named the buildings, but only those on the west, to their right. Then the investigators asked the patients to imagine themselves at the south end of the piazza. This time, they named the buildings on the east—again, to their right. Obviously, they knew about all of the buildings and their locations, but they visualized them only when the buildings were located in the right side of their (imaginary) visual field.
(reading 77-79):
Describe the rubber hand illusion experiment by Ehrsson, Spence, and Passingham (2004).
(reading 77-79):
Normal subjects were positioned with their left hand hidden out of sight. They saw a lifelike rubber left hand in front of them. The experimenters stroked both the subject’s hidden left hand and the visible rubber hand with a small paintbrush. If the two hands were stroked synchronously and in the same direction, the subjects began to experience the rubber hand as their own. In fact, if they were then asked to use their right hand to point to their left hand, they tended to point toward the rubber hand. However, if the real and artificial hands were stroked in different directions or at different times, the subjects did not experience the rubber hand as their own.
While the subjects were participating in the experiment, the experimenters recorded the activity of their brains with a functional MRI scanner. The scans showed increased activity in the parietal lobe, and then, as the subjects began to experience the rubber hand as belonging to their body, in the premotor cortex, a region of the brain involved in planning movements. When the stroking of the real and artificial hands was uncoordinated and the subjects did not experience the rubber hand as their own, the premotor cortex did not become activated. The experimenters concluded that the parietal cortex analyzed the sight and the feeling of brush strokes. When the parietal cortex detected that they were congruent, this information was transmitted to the premotor cortex, which gave rise to the feeling of ownership of the rubber hand.
(reading 150-156):
Define the extrastriate cortex.
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A region of the visual association cortex; receives fibers from the striate cortex and from the superior colliculi and projects to the inferior temporal cortex.
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Define the dorsal stream.
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A system of interconnected regions of visual cortex involved in the perception of spatial location, beginning with the striate cortex and ending with the posterior parietal cortex.
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Define the ventral stream.
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A system of interconnected regions of visual cortex involved in the perception of form, beginning with the striate cortex and ending with the inferior temporal cortex.
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Define the inferior temporal cortex.
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The highest level of the ventral stream of the visual association cortex; involved in the perception of objects, including people’s bodies and faces.
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Define the posterior parietal cortex.
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The highest level of the dorsal stream of the visual association cortex; involved in the perception of movement and spatial location.
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Define the colour constancy.
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The relatively constant appearance of the colors of
objects viewed under varying lighting conditions.
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Define the cerebral achromatopsia.
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(ay krohm
a top see a) Inability to discriminate among different hues; caused by damage to area V8 of the visual association cortex.
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Define visual agnosia.
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ag no zha
Deficits in visual form perception in the absence of blindness; caused by brain damage.