Psychology CH.2 Flashcards
Memory and Brain
Meningitis
a three layer protective membranes (dura, arachnoid, pia)
Cerebral Hemispheres
brain divided in halves (essentially, each side governs the opposite side of the body)
Hemispheres divided into lobes
(frontal, parietal, occipital, and temporal)
Corpus callosum
bundle of nerve fibers connecting left and right hemispheres (allows both sides to communicate)
Upper 2 mm
Known as cerebral cortex, where most of higher order thinking takes place
Made up of gray matter
Occipital lobe
Processes what is seen
(shape, color, and motion)
Temporal lobe
helps you use your senses to understand and respond to the world around you
(Processing sound, Entering new information into memory, Storing visual memories, Comprehending language
Parietal lobe
a major sensory processing hub for your brain.
(Spatial location and attention,
Somatosensory strip where sensations of your body are registered)
Frontal lobe
Important in speech production,
Emotion, The search for specific memories, Reasoning (working memory)/attention, Contains the motor strip that controls fine movements
Direct Stimulation — AG’s operation
a non-invasive treatment that uses electrodes to deliver a low electric current to the scalp
Transcranial magnetic stimulation
a non-invasive brain stimulation technique that uses magnetic fields to stimulate nerve cells in specific areas of the brain
Brainstem
Helps with basic survival functions
Medulla
heart rate, respiration, swallowing
Reticular formation
alertness, sleep-wake cycle; autonomic system activation
Cerebellum
physical coordination; paying attention; estimating time
Thalamus
- Hub that receives information from sensory/motor neurons relaying them to other parts of the brain
- Sleep and attention
Hypothalamus
- a small region of the brain that plays a crucial role in regulating various bodily functions
- Eating and drinking
- Helps regulate blood pressure, heart rate, temp.
- Regulates hormone levels (prepare for fight/flight)
Hippocampus (HM)
Plays key role in entering information into memory
Amygdala
Emotions;l expression and interpretation (fear/anger)
Functional MRI (FMRI)
used for studying the brain in action (over time); it picks up the level or oxygen use in different areas over time (also MRS for neurotransmitters)
Magnetoencephalography (MEG)
detects magnetic fields of the brain, but is more powerful than ER’s because structure/function and time course are both accurate
Positron emission tomography (PET)
injecting a radioactive tracer that is taken up by different areas of the brain at a rate proportional to that regions activity
Phrenology
(a pseudoscience that attempted to determine a person’s personality and intellect by analyzing the shape of their skull)
