Principles of Neuroscience

Question 1

Immaterial Soul

Answer 1

Soul resides in the heart
The brain is not important
Logos (higher thinking), Thymos (emotion), Eros (romantic love)

Question 2

Materialism

Answer 2

The idea that all functions of mind are produced by the brain

Question 3

Galen, Da Vinci (Ventricles)

Answer 3

400 BCE - 100 ACE
Believed fluid in the brain (4 humours) and its balance was important to behaviour and functioning.
Thinking led to processes like trepanation

Question 4

Dualism (Descartes)

Answer 4

The brain and the mind are two separate functions which interact to produce behaviour

Question 5

Issues with dualism

Answer 5

How can a material thing affect a non material thing (not physically possible)

Question 6

Functional localisation

Answer 6

Ascribing specific functions to specific areas of the brain
First suggested by Thomas Willis (thought the corpus striatum is the site of common sense)

Question 7

Phrenology

Answer 7

Similar to functional localisation, personality aspects and skills have different locations in the brain
The better you are at a skill the larger this area will be in the brain
Not very scientific

Question 8

Equipotentiality

Answer 8

All areas of the brain are equally able to perform a task.
Opposition to functional localisation.
Supported by Flourens: Size of lesions in brain was more important then location of lesion.

Question 9

Broca’s area

Answer 9

Left frontal lobe is important for speech

Question 10

Wernickes Area

Answer 10

Area of the brain responsible for the understanding of language

Question 11

The neurone doctrine

Answer 11

The brain is made up of individual nerve cells which communicate with each other at synapses. Cajal, found a way to stain individual nerve cells (instead of large groups of nerve cells).
Could make out shape and structure of neurones.

Question 12

Cytoarchitecture

Answer 12

The naming system used to label the brain

Question 13

Single neurone recording

Answer 13

Way of studying the brain by measuring changes in voltage of a single neurone
Tells us about the organisation of the brain

Question 14

Electroencephalography (EEG) and Magnetoencephalography (MEG)

Answer 14

Picks up the magnetic field created by the electric field from the firing of many neurones.

Question 15

fMRI and PET

Answer 15

Measures oxygen concentration in the brain, higher brain activity leads to increased blood flow and a higher fMRI signal

Question 16

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)

Answer 16

Uses a coil to interrupt the magnetic signals of the brain.