unit 1 aos2 Flashcards
(45 cards)
the 3 theories of the brain
brain versus heart debate, the mind-body problem, phrenology
brain vs heart debate
a debate as to whether the heart or the brain is responsible for mental processes, such as thought, emotion and behaviour
mind-body problem
the philosophical question as to whether our mind is seperate and distinguishable from our body or whether they are one integrated entity
phrenology
the study of the shape and size of the human skull to determine personality and mental functioning
first brain experiments
ablation, brain leisioning, split brain research
ablation
the surgical removal, destruction, or cutting of a region of brain tissue
brain leisioning
the practice of inducing and/or studying the effects of damage to an area of the brain
neuroimaging
a range of techniques used to capture images of the brain’s structure, function and activities
basal ganglia
primary function is the encoding and storage of procedural memories (your basal ganglia, which has stored the procedure of running)
amygdala
primary function is emotional processing and encoding emotional memories (you see a spider on the wall of your bedroom. Your amygdala triggers a fear response telling you to run away)
hippocampus
primary function is the forming of explicit memories (You calm down in the hallway where your hippocampus forms this explicit memory)
cerebellum
primary function is to coordinate muscle movement (responds to this message by activating the cerebellum, which sends motor neurons to your legs to start you moving)
neocortex
primary function is the storage of explicit (long term episodic) memories (explicit memory, which is then stored in your neocortex, reinforcing that spiders in bedrooms are scary.)
Neuron
a nerve cell that receives and transmits neural information in the brain
3 structures of the neuron
dendrites, myelin, axon terminals
dendrites
recieves neuronal messages
myelin
insulates the neuron and prevents disturbance from other neurons
axon terminals
sends neuronal messages to the next neuron
the synaptic gap
a tiny space between two neurons, where they communicate with each other
what is the difference between the synaptic gap and the synapse
The neuron that fires the message into the synaptic gap is known as the presynaptic neuron. The neuron that receives this message from the synapse is known as the postsynaptic neuron.
two specific ways in which the brain changes
long-term potentiation and long-term depression
long-term potentiation
refers to the strengthening of synaptic connections as a result of repeated activation. Everytime you ride a bike, the neural pathways involved become activated and strengthened
long-term depression
refers to the weakening of synaptic connections as a result of repeated low-level activation. If you don’t ride your bike for an extended period, the synaptic connections wont be activated
2 ways in which neuroplasticity occurs
developmental plasticity (ageing and maturation) and adaptive plasticity (brain trauma)