Tenta Antti-ord Flashcards
Characteristics of science
there are 7: Testability Falsifiability Scientific publishing and public criticism Peer review Self-critical attitude No absolute authority Self correction
Testability
Any statement put forward in science must be intersubjectively testable.
Falsifiability
A theory that can explain all imaginable observation is not a scientific theory.
Scientific publishing and public criticism
In science, whoever puts forward a statement about some aspect of reality, has the burden of proof to produce convincing evidence to back it up. The strictly controlled evaluation and publishing of new scientific ideas or findings.
peer review
The quality control system of scientific publishing
Self-critical attitude
Every scientist should be equally critical towards their own pet theories as they are towards competing theories supported by others.
No absolute authorities
No person and no authority is above criticism in science.
Self-correction
Science is a self-critical open belief system. In constant process of change.
Philosophy of science
The science of science, what science tells us about reality. Appearance (what we see) vs reality (what it really is).
Scientific Realism
A philosophy of science that tries to answer the questions: “What is science?” and “What does science tell us about reality?”
Naive realism
Reality = appenence
trepanation
Drilling a hole in the skull
atonism
The brain can be divided into anatomically (structure) and physiologically (function) defined parts.
Holism
The brain cannot be divided into parts it constitutes one unified network without any clearly defined parts.
The cell theory
Living organisms are made up of cells (Schwann). All material objects – atomic constituents. All living tissue – cellular elements as discrete units. But neural tissue – looks like a tangled net in the microscope.
The reticular theory
Neural tissue is a vast physically continuous network.
The neuron theory
Neurons are individual cells
Functional Localizationism
Localizationism and anti-localizationism. That are both partially correct.
Localizationism
Mental functions can be localized into different parts of the brain. The brain is a collection of specialized “mental organs”.
Anti-localizationism
Different mental functions cannot be localized in different parts of the brain. All of the brain participants in all kinds of mental function, and each mental function activates the whole brain.
Cartesian dualism
The soul is beyond science, it belongs in religion
phrenology
(Frantz Joseph Gall) The mind is a biological phenomenon that can be studied empirically. Denial of dualism, atomism, functional localization, individual differences. Psychology is a part of science not a part of philosophy. Questionable ideas in phrenology: “The size and mass of brain tissue directly correlates with the strength of a mental capacity.” This led to pseudoscience arguments for racism and nationalism, etc.
Lesion localizations
To localize damage in the brain
Wernicke’s aphasic
People with damage on a specific area of the temporal lobe made it so that even though they could speak fluently, what they said did not make much sense
Broca’s aphasic
The person understand what is said to him but speaks with difficulty, if at all.
cognitive science
“Maps of the mind” Functional analysis of the mind.
neuroscience
“Maps of the brain” Anatomical/psychological analysis of the brain
Functional decompostion
Cognitive psychology: Patterns of normal performance. Measurable aspect of behaviour in a task. Cognitive neuropsychology: Patterns of performance in brain-damaged patients. Interests lays in the pattern of performance to figure out what the patient can still do without difficulty and what kind of tasks have become difficult or perhaps altogether impossible.
dissociation
Tells us that the tasks do not have identical mechanisms. When dissecting complex mental tasks into their subcomponents, a researcher can establish a “single dissociation” between functions.
Double dissociation
To strengthen a single dissociation, a researcher can establish a “double dissociation”. This is the demonstration that two experimental manipulations each have different effect on two dependent variables; if one manipulation affects the first variable and not the second, the other manipulation affects the second variable and not the first.
Structural Brain imaging
CT, CAT (computarized tomography), MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) shows only the anatomical structures of the brain. Does not show brain activity or function. No change in the image no matter what the subject is thinking, experiencing, etc, at the mental level.
Functional Brain Imaging
PET (positron emission tomography), fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) Detects signals arising from the brain metabolism. PET – blood flow, energy consumption. fMRI – blood oxygen level.
Electromagnetic brain-sensing
EEG (Hans Berger), MEG – measures brain electrical activity.
Electromagnetic brain stimulation
TMS (transcranial magnetic stimulation), tDCs and tACs (transcranial electrical stimulation), measures brain stimulation.
Spatial resolution
Tells us where in the brain something is happening.
Temporal resolution
Tells us when something is happening in the brain
Truthlikeness
“verisimilitude” (Karl Popper)
The cardiocentric view
The heart is the centre of intellectual and perceptual function.
The ventricle theory
The brain (not brain tissue) as the seat of the soul and intellect. The intellectual soul is divided into three parts. (Galenos)
Neologism
(Wernicke) “word salad”.
