Unit 1: Behavioral Neuroscience Flashcards
Understanding the physiological/neural underpinnings of mental processes
Nueroscience
understanding mental processes at a conceptual/explanatory level
Perception/Cognition
Processes by which we receive and perceive (i.e. detect and interpret) information from the environment
Sensation and Perception
Further mental processes by whihc we do things like learn from incoming information, remember information, and use information to solve problems and make choices
Cognition
Understanding the neuroscientific/biological/physiological underpinnings of perception
Perceptual neuroscience
understanding the neuroscientific/biological/physiological underpinnings of cognition
cognitive neuroscience
Study of _____ refers to studying mental processes and includes an abstract, conceptual description.
-Perception
-Cognition
mind
Study of _____ refers to studying the biological/physiological processes, brain structures (and behavior), and brain development (and behavior).
-Behavioral Neuroscience
-Perceptual NS
-Cognitive NS
Brain
In the computer analogy, the _____ is analogous to
-Describing things at a functional/user level
-talk about how you use the computer/software
-talk about how you operate the computer
-describe the different things you can do with a computer
Mind
In the computer analogy, the _____ is analogous to
-Describing things at the level of the underlying architecture involved
-Describe how information is physically stored in the electronics components
-Show how those components are interconnected
-describe what the components can do
-describe the underlying electronic components involved
Brain
Studying the ______
-only collects behavioral data
-use tasks and methods that produce overt behaviors
-then infer mental processes from those behaviors
mind (cognition, perception)
Studying the _______
-collects physiological data
brain (behavioral NS, Cog NS, Perception NS)
The sense in which behavioral neuroscience involves ________ is that it attempts to understand complex behaviors and mental states by reducing them to the component physiological processes that underlie those behaviors/mental states.
reductionism
neuroscientific (i.e. biological/physiological) underpinnings of behavior
Behavioral Neuroscience
Idea that to understand something complex, it can be useful to break it down into simpler parts
Reductionism
to understand complex behavior/mental processes, it’s useful to examine the underlying brain processes involved.
Reductionism in behavioral neuroscience
What are the approach/methods used in behavioral neuroscience?
Philosophical approach (as a starting point)
Scientific approach
Scientific Method
Form ideas/hypothesis/theories > derive predictions > test predictions through careful, systematic observation using empirical data/evidence
Scientific Method
______ approach
-based on intuition, personal insight
Philosophical approach
______ approach
-ideas are tested through observation by collecting empirical data
Scientific approach
True or False
Intuition/insight can be a starting point for the scientific approach
True
Who forms ideas, hypotheses, and theories to derive predictions?
a. Philosophers
b. Scientists
c. both
d. neither
C. Both
Who tests their prediction through careful, systematic obersations using empirical methods/data?
a. Philosophers
b. Scientists
c. both
d. neither
B. Scientists
What are advantages of a scientific approach?
Intuitions or “common sense” are often incorrect; the scientific approach appropriately rejects intuitions as the basis for drawing conclusions.
counters hindsight bias, since hypotheses are formed ahead of time and then tested.
counters confirmation bias by challenging ideas and seeking to disprove theories.
What are the most common empirical methods in BNS?
Experiments (but not as dominant as in cog psy)
Correlational methods:
Case studies
method of comparing two things to determine relation of two variables
correlational method
method to infer causation between two variables
experiment
in depth comprehensive analysis of 1-few individuals
case studies
why are case studies a common method for gathering empirical data in Behavioral NS?
examine behavior of people with damage in specific brain regions
what are examples of empirical behavioral data collected?
accuracy of performance on a motor task
written responses on a memory task
choices on a decision-making task
what are examples of empirical physiological data collected?
area injured or damaged or removed
electrical activity as measured by EEG
blood flow as measured by imaging techniques.
who could make a frog’s leg twitch with electrical stimulation (late 1700s) showing evidence that neurons work by electric impulses.
Galvani
who could produce movement in dogs by electrically stimulating exposed brain (1870) showing evidence that neurons in the brain work by electric impulses.
Fritz and Hitzig
who removed parts of animals’ brains demontrating for the first time that main division of the brain are responsible for different function and observed the following behavior (1813)?
cerebral cortex = loss of perception/judgement/etc.
cerebellum = loss of equilibrium and motor coordination
brainstem = loss of vital functions like circulation/respiration/etc.
Flourens
Who survived with no impairment of intelligence, memory, speech, movement, but became irresponsible, antisocial due to piercing the frontal lobe? (1848)
Phineas Gage
who enhanced evidence of “localizaiton of function” in the brain by identifying damage to the left frontal lobe on a post-mortem on a man unable to speak? (1844)
Broca
Who showed (in principle) how complex behavior could be accomplished by a network of active neurons and suggested neuronal connections could become organized by sensory input/stimulation into strongly interconnected groups (cell assemblies) (1949)?
wrote a book called: The Organization of Behavior that demonstrated this.
Hebb
What is a relatively new discipline, started as biological psychology (then changed to a new term in the 1960s), and has accelerated growth since?
Modern Field of Behavioral NS
How can Behavioral neuroscience greatly contribute to our conceptual understanding?
conscious vs. unconscious memory
attenuation theory
Why is brain and behavior a two-way street?
Behavior isn’t just produced by the brain
Behaviors change the brain.
-signaling or “messenger units” of the brain
-Humans have about 86 billion of these
-On average, each has about 10,000 connections, meaning there are an estimated 86 trillion connections
Neurons
contains machinery of the cell, including the nucleus and mitochondria, and where signals are processed
Soma (cell body)
receive signals from other neurons, sends the signals to the soma (where they are then processed)
Dendrites
transmits signals from the soma to other neurons
Axon
“insulates” the axon, increases efficiency of signal transmission down the axon
Myelin Sheath
end of the neuron; connects to the soma or dendrites of other neurons with a small gap in between called a synapse.
Terminal Buttons
How do Neurons communicate within the neuron?
electrical
How do neurons communicate between neurons? (one neuron to another neuron)
chemical
(within the neuron/internally)
when neurons are excited, they “fire” in an all-or-none fashion called _____.
Action Potential
What is released when an action potential reaches the terminal buttons?
A chemical called neurotransmitters
How and where is chemical communication released?
via neurotransmitters at the synapse.
What do neurotransmitters bind to once released?
receptors of the receiving neurons, potentially producing a new action potential.
Does this belong in Gray Matter or white matter?
Somas
Gray Matter
Does this belong in Gray Matter or white matter?
dendrites
Gray Matter
Does this belong in Gray Matter or white matter?
terminal Buttons
Gray Matter
Does this belong in Gray Matter or white matter?
axons
White matter
the myelin sheath is white in color.
Why is the brain folded and wrinkled?
Allows a large volume to fit in a smaller area (like crinkling up a piece of paper).
amount of wrinking/folding in different species is related to intelligence
What is the functional specialization of the Occipital lobe?
vision / visual processing
What is the functional specialization of the Parietal lobe?
spatial and sensorimotor
What is the functional specialization of the Temporal lobe?
audition (hearing) and memory
What is the functional specialization of the Frontal lobe?
executive functions such as planning, control, etc.
What is the functional specialization of the Cerebellum?
production of movement
What is the functional specialization of the Corpus Callosum?
bridge between hemispheres (for communication)
What is the functional specialization of the Thalamus?
gateway to the cortex; relays sensory messages to cortex
What is the functional specialization of the Hypothalamus?
homeostatic/regulatory functions.
What is the functional specialization of the Broca’s area?
Producing language
What is the functional specialization of the Wernicke’s area?
Understanding language
What is the purpose of the Limbic System?
for producing, understanding and regulating emotion.
What/where is the motor cortex?
Frontal lobe
Deciding what movement is needed
What/where is the sensory cortex?
Processes incoming sesnory messages
Parietal lobe
Pathway that goes from the mesencephalon (i.e. midbrain) to the nucleus accumbent + amygdala of the limbic (emotion) system
Mesolimbic pathway
Pathway that goes from the mesencephalon (i.e. midbrain) to the prefrontal cortex
mesocortical pathway
brain regions involved in the reinforcement of behavior by reward
the Reward System
Regarding Hemispheric SpecializationTerm to describe one side is more dominant that the other for some function. (relative, and the hemispheres do work together and highly interact.
Lateralization of function
True or False;
the idea of left-brained and right-brained people is a myth.
True, it is a myth.
No evidence that one hemisphere is more dominant in individuals
No evidence that there are imbalances that translate into differerent types of people.
what type of stain is selective and can examine size and density of cell bodies (somas) ?
Cell body stains
what type of stain is selective and can examine distribution of myelin sheaths and identify tracts of myelinated axons?
Myelin stains
what type of stain stains the cell memrans across the whole neuron and reveals details of individual neurons like branches of dendrites and axons?
Membrane stains
what type of stain is a membrane stain and has the peculiar property of staining a small subset (specific) of neurons?
Golgi stain
what type of stain are taken up by the neuron and transported along the routes of their axon, therefore reveals the path of axon and can determine what region connect to what other regions?
Tract Tracers
what brain activity examination method includes microwire electrodes that record the firing rate (action potential) of individual neurons in living brain and examines whether differnt experiemental conditions change the rate of individual neurons?
single-unit recordings
Who used single unit recordings from visual cortex of cats and identified individual neurons responded maximally to specific line orientations, acting like “feature detectors”.
Hubel and Weisel (1959)
What are cons of using single-unit recordings?
highly invasive, therefore limited to animals
what brain activity examination method
-includes using macro electrodes on the surface of the scalp to measure the electrical activity of neurons
-is unable to detect the activity of individual neurons
-detects the activity of large groups of neurons in the area of the electrode that are active at the same time
-data takes the form of “brain waves” that vary in frequency and amplitude.
-spontaneous brain wave activity is notably different for various mental states.
Electroencephalogram (EEG)
What is an EEG activity that is
- associated with an event that has been time-locked to the occurrence of an event and then averaged across many instances of the event
-compare waveforms for different types of cognitive, perceptual, or motor events?
event-related potential (ERPs)
what are the pros of Event-Related potentials?
Non invasive
good temporal (time/sequence of events) resolution
what are the cons of Event-Related Potentials?
poor spatial resolution
uses modern imaging techniques to determine the precise area of damage and (2) do a systematic assessment of intact vs. deficient functions.
Logic: infer that deficient functions must’ve been performed by the brain area that is damaged
lesion studies
methods for getting a visual image of the structure of an individuals living brain
useful for detecting abnormalities, damage, disease and precisely locating problematic areas.
do NOT examine brain activity
Structural imaging techniques
Structural imaging technique where numerous x-ray slices are used to form a structural 3D image.
CAT or CT scan
Structural imaging technique where applying a strong magnetic field allows for the visualization of the differing density of hydrogen that exists in white matter vs. gray matter
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
method that examines actual activity in the living brain, and therefore get a localization of function
two most common techniques examine activity by measuring blood flow, based on the idea that blood flow will increase to areas that are in heavy used
Functional Imaging techniques
Functional Imaging technique that relies on magentic properties of oxygenated vs. deoxygenated blood
Functional Magentic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)
Functional Imaging technique that relies on a radioactive tracer that collects in areas that have higher activity.
Positron Emission Tomography (PET)
What are pros and cons of Functional Imaging techniques
Can get fairly precise information about localization of function
Good Spatial Resolution
mediocre temporal resolution
What electrical brain stimulation method
Genes come in pairs called _____, one from each parent
alleles
Same allele for a particular gene or trait
Homozygous
Different alleles for a particular gene or trait
Heterozygous
a ______ gene shows its effect for homozygous and heterzygous conditions
-always expressed if present
(e.g. brown eyes, unattached earlobes)
Dominant gene
a _____ gene shows its effect only when homozygous
-only expressed when dominant is not present
(e.g. blue eyes, attached earlobes)
recessive gene
a person’s genetic make-up, their specific genetic makeup or combination of alleles.
Genotype
A person’s observable traits and characteristics, reflecting the expression of their genes, influenced by environmental factors.
Phenotype
area of study that examines changes in phenotype and do not involve alterations in DNA itself.
Epigenetics
what 3 things can influence whether (and what extent) geners are turned on or off?
- environment
- behavior
- experiences
epigenetic process that adds a simple (methyl) molecule to DNA. commonly “locks” genes in the off position, repressing gene expression.
(affected by diet)
DNA Methylation
Occurs when a child inherits the environmental conditions in which their parent experiences
Epigenetic Inheritance
what type of study (of Familial relationships) examine how strong a particular characterisitic is shared among relatives.
Example: IQ of parents vs. their children has a correlation of about .42 (moderate correlation) suggested that intelligence follows family lines to some extent.
Family Studies
What is the issue with family studies?
in family studies, effects of heredity are confounded with effects of environment; relatives with similar genes usually have similar environment.
what type of study (of Familial relationships) compare the similarity between children and adopted parents (shared environments) vs. children and their biological parents (not a shared environment)?
Adoption Studies
What is the issue with adoption studies?
even when looking at children reared apart from biological parents, haven’t eliminated possible environmental influences that can occur prenatally or pre-adoption.
what type of study (of Familial relationships) can compare
-the similarity of twins vs. non-twin siblings
-identical twins (100% shared genes) to fraternal twins (50% shared genes)
-identical twins reared together to identical twins reared apart
Example:
Twin Studies
concept that captures the degree of genetic influence
Heritability
what is the loss/reduction of connections within neurons during childhood?
synaptic pruning
what drives the activity of a neural pathway and affects wheter a connection is reinforced, stabilized, weakened, or lost?
experience
when neurons fire together, their connection is _____.
strengthened
when neurons do not fire together, their connection is _____.
weakened/eliminated.
the death of cells which occurs as a normal and controlled part of an organism’s growth or development.
apoptosis
covering of axon with myelin sheath, which speeds conduction; occurs most intensely after birth, extends into childhood and adulthood.
myelination
What term describes different parts of the cortex maturing at different rates?
-areas involved in basic functions (processing sensory information, controlling movement) mature first, areas for most sophisticated functions (planning, control) develop later
-creation of synaptic connections reaches its peak in visual and auditory cortices a few months after birth; much slower in prefrontal cortex.
-“back to front” maturation
Differential Maturation of cortex
What functions increase during differential maturation of cortex?
-sophisticated functions (planning, control) in the frontal lobe
-Increased hemispheric lateralization of function
-increased functional specializations
developmental stage when nervous system is especially sensitive to certain environmental stimuli
Critical Period
Vulnerability during early development caused by drinking alcohol during pregnancy; has dramatic effect on brain development in utero.
-small,malformed brains
-misaligned neurons
-short dendrites, few branches
-long-term deficiencyes in cognitive functioniong + behavioral problems to varying degrees
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome
Vulernability during early development where prolonged or severe stress prodcues elevated levels of cortisol in the mother; this excessive cortisol can disrupt brain development in the fetus.
-atypical development of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, involved in stress response
-alters limbic system (enlarged amygdala), affecting emotional processing.
-produces increased risk for anxiety, depression, ADHD, conduct disorders
Prenatal stress
what refers to the brain’s ability to modify and adapt in response to experience
After early childhood development, neurogenesis is limited. However, circuits continue to be modified by experience throughout life, with changes to synaptic connections, myelinations, etc. Can even reorganize in substantial ways when needed.
Neuroplasticity
what happens to the somatosensory cortex when a limb is amputated?
the corresponding cortical area does not die or go unused. It often realigns with areas representing the lost limb being taken over by neighboring areas, but does not get fully taken over.
set of factors that initiate, sustain and direct behaviors
-it is the reason why a person acts or behaves in a certain way.
-driving force behind human action.
Motivation
Internal states produced by physical needs (e.g. thirst and hunger), which comple an individual to engage in appropriate action.
Drives
Things in the external environment that compel and reinforce particular behaviors.
-reinforce behaviors that produce ___, compelling an individual to repeat those behaviors in the future.
-typically trigger an itnerna state of pleasure within the brain, and its this state of pleasure that compels future pursuit.
Largely served by different systems (hypthalamus vs. limbic system)
Rewards
Motivation can arise from internal ____ and external ____.
drives; rewards
state of balance or stability in the body, which is needed for proper functioning and survival
Homeostasis
Drives that help preserve homeostasis
Regulatory drives
What is a critical structure in regulatory drives?
tiny area (about the size of an almond in humans) that lies deep in the brain, nestled between the cerebral hemispheres, just above the brainstem.
although small, it’s quite complex with many different clusters of neurons (nuclei) that serve important functions.
Hypothalamus
What is the hormone system known as?
endocrine system
What is the primary interface between the nervous system and endocrine system via its connection to the pituitary gland?
Hypothalamus.
where is the body’s “thermostat” and contains neurons that respond directly to the temperature of the blood flowing through the area and contains other neurons receive input from temperature receptors in otehr parts of the body (i.e. skin)?
Hypothalamus
How does the Hypothalamus regulate temperature?
The hypothalamus integrates temperature information and initiates regulatory responses such as panting, sweating, shivering, increasing or decreasing blood flow to the extremities (and build winter fat reserves for insulations).
How does the hypothalamus regulate thirst?
Receptors in the body/brain detect (1) reduced water content within the cells and (2) reduced blood volume due to loss of water outside of the cells.
These signals are passed to the hypothalamus which trggers the internal state of thirst and motivates drinking.
How does the hypothalamus regulate hunger?
Three key signals of food/nutrients are:
1. low supply of glucose
2. deficit in fatty acids
3. depletion of stomach’s store of nutrients
Hunger signals exert influence via hypothalamus, which stimulates an internal state of hunger and motivates eating.
How does the hypothalamus regulate satiety?
Three key signals of food/nutrients are:
1. stretching of the stomach
2. release of peptides by the stomach and intestines during digestions.
3. release of the hormone leptin by fat cells.
Satiety signals exert their influence via the hypothalamus, which stimulates the internal state of satiety and reduces eating.
Reward pathway that goes from the mesencephalon (i.e. midbrain) to the nucleaus accumbens + amygdala of the limbic (emotion) system
Mesolimbic pathway
reward pathway that goes form the mesencephelon (or midbrain) to the prefrontal cortex.
Mesocorticial pathway
the reward pathways are _____, meaning that primary neurotransmitter in these pathways is dopamine.
dopaminergic pathway
disruption of the normal motivational hierarchy, such that the powerful drive to seek drugs supercedes other drives and motivations.
(in other words, with drug use, normal rewards are no longer pleasureable.)
Motivational Toxicity
a positive or negative mental experience (i.e. “feeling”) that is usually accompanied by physiological activity, expressive behavior, and an inclination to act.
Emotion
What are observable elements of emotion?
-physiological changes (e.g. increased heart rate, respirations, and sweating; release of endorphins, cortisol; heightened alertness)
-behaviroal expressions (e.g. facial expressions, tone and inflection of voice, body language, etc.)
What are unobservable elements of emotion?
conscious mental experiences or “feelings”
What theory of emotion has the idea that physiological changes occur quickly and automatically in response to conditions, then the brain senses and interprets the bodily changes, producing the conscious mental experience of an emotion.
stimulus > perception/interpretation > specific pattern of autonomic arousal > particular emotion experienced
James-Lange Theory
What theory of emotion proposes physiological changes don’t cause or produce conscious mental states, or vice versa; they are arrived at separately and independently.
the conditions simultaneously activate the appropriate ental experience, and activate the body in a way that is appropriate for the conditions.
stimulus > perception/interpretation > [general autonomic arousal + particular emotion experienced] = bodily response and emotional experience are simultaneous.
Cannon-Bard Theory
What theory of emotion proposes physiological changes can influence the intensity of the emotion.
Emotional expereinces reflect combined, interacting effects of the physiological changes occurring in the body and a cognitive assessment of the situation/context.
Physiological changes stimulate a cognitive assessment of the situation/context; the cognitive assessment determines which emotion we experience.
Two-Factor Theory
Network of structures that loop around the upper brain stem.
“emotion center” (though other structures/regions also involved in emotion.
Some structures more importnatn for non-emotional functions
Limbic system
what is needed for emotions to be elicited?
Arousal and context.
Emotions reflect physiological activity and a cognitive assessment of the context.
what key functions does evidence suggest the amygdala serve?
Assess the emotional significance of stimuli from the outside world, via inputs from sensory system.
Generates some of the body’s initial bodily responses, via outputs to the PNS and modulation of the internal drives and hormonal functions of the hypthalamus.
What key structure (instead of or in addition too the amygdala) is implicated in the conscious mental experiences of emotions?
studies reveal the involvment of the posterior region for sensation (itch, pain, temperature, touch, etc) and involvment of anterior region for non-bodily “feelings” (anger, sadness, joy, anxiety, trust, surprise)
Insular cortex, or insula
studies of the Insular cortex reveal the involvement of the _____ region for sensations pertaining to itch, pain temperature, though, etc.
Posterior or Anterior?
Posterior
studies of the Insular cortex reveal the involvement of the _____ region for non-bodily “feelings” like anger, sadness, joy, anxiety, trust, surprise
Posterior or Anterior?
Anterior
What type of study looks at Damage/removal of tissue and the behavorial impact?
Lesion Studies
Humans with ______ damage show a variety of deficits in emotional processing especially with anxiety and fear.
amygdala
What do the connections (going both ways) between the amygdala and prefrontal cortex (PFC) allow?
the PFC to evaluate the information coming in from the amygdala, as well as moderate the activity of the amygdala.
the adjustment of emotional responses based on the larger environmental and behavioral context. (e.g. emotional response to an empty parking spot).
Emotional reappraisal
What is the role of the Prefrontal cortex in emotion?
the PFC can evaluate the basis of an intial emotional response (in light of other informations, thoughts, goals, etc.) and then modfiy the expression fo the emotion, as needed.
some data indicates the ____ hemisphere is more involved in negative emotions whereas the _____ hemisphere is more involved in negative emotions.
Right; left
clinical condition that goes beyond these normal reactions to life’s challenges, with the sadness persisting for much longer.
Characteristics: profound sadness, diminished pleasure, loss of motivation and energy, slowed thoguht, difficulty concentrating, sleep disturbances, loss of appetite, thoughts of suicide
Major Depressive disorder
What are structural differences in the brain in someone experiencing MDD?
in the PFC:
-reduced cortical volume
-neuronal atrophy
-reduced synapses
Structural reductions in the hippocampus (those with MDD have higher levels of cortisol, known to cause atrophy in the hippocampus)
what are functional differences in the brain of someone diagnosed with MDD?
-Overactivity in the amygdala (going unchecked)
-Abnormalities in PFC activities: overactivity in some areas, underactivity in others)
-abnormalities in the interaction between regions of the PFC and PFC+amygdala. causing faulty regulation of the amygdala by the PFC.
DISRUPTION IN HOMEOSTASIS OF CIRCUITS INVOLVED IN EMOTION.
depression caused by low levels of serotonin and norepinephrine at critical synapses.
No longer a supported theory.
Monoamine hypothesis of depression
How is stress beneficial?
When a situation is percieved as stressful, the amygdala initiates a stress response ot help you deal with the situation
How can stress be toxic?
if it is severe, frequent or prolonged.
interferes with memory, appetite, sexual desire, depletes energy.
compromises immune system. (causing body wide inflammation)
increases blood pressure
a condition that results from prolonged exposure to stressful/demanding situation.
characterized by physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion; reduced energy, interest, and motivation; and negative feelings, such as helplessness/hopelessness, cynicism, reduced sense of self
Most commonly affects highly motivated individuals who become disillusioned over time, as a result of the long-term exposure to heavy demands, expectations, and stress
Burnout
How can you cope with stress to prevent burnout (supported by science)?
reappraise the situation
lean on social support network
relaxation techniques
eat well
good sleep
exercise
nature
What are the effects on the brain from toxic stress?
-reduced cortical volument/thickness in PFC and hippocampus
-dendridic atrophy in PFC and hippocampus, but dendritic growth in the amygdala
-reduced reactivityy of the PFC during emotion processing, but increased reactivity of the amygdala during emotional processing
-reduced interaction between the PFC and amygdala
What are the FUNCTIONAL consequences of someone experiencing toxic stress?
hyperactivity of the amygdala combined with reduced modulation by the PFC.
-emotional impulses of amygdala may not get approprately modulated by the PFC
-emotional impulses may not be appropriately tempered by an evaluation of the context, thoughtful reasoning and planning, consideration of consequences.
-the end result is that the system can over-react to and misinterpret sitaution and events.
a persistent stress reaction to a traumatic event(s)
characteristics: recurrent recollections/images/thoughts; avoidance of relevant triggers; hyperarousal; negative changes in mood
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
What are the FUNCTIONAL consequences of someone experiencing PTSD?
hyperactivity of the amygdala combined with reduced modulation by the PFC.
-emotional impulses of amygdala may not get approprately modulated by the PFC
-emotional impulses may not be appropriately tempered by an evaluation of the context, thoughtful reasoning and planning, consideration of consequences.
-the end result is that the system can over-react to and misinterpret sitaution and events.
