Week 2.1.1: Learning about the World

Question 1

These are guesses or expectations about future events based on past experiences or information.

Answer 1

Predictions

Question 2

Outcomes that provide pleasure or satisfaction.

Answer 2

Rewards

Question 3

A neurotransmitter (chemical messenger) crucial for reward learning.

It helps in motivation, action, addiction, and ADHD.

Motor Control: It also helps in controlling movements.
Hormone Release: It regulates the release of various hormones.

Answer 3

Dopamine

Question 4

Actions driven by the anticipation of rewards, which increase dopamine levels.

Answer 4

Reward Motivated Behavior

Question 5

A part of the midbrain involved in movement and reward.

Answer 5

Substantia Niagra (SN)

Question 6

Another midbrain area crucial for reward and motivation.

Answer 6

Ventral Tegmental Area (VTA)

Question 7

Long projections of neurons that transmit signals to other parts of the brain.

Answer 7

Axons

Question 8

Includes the caudate nucleus, putamen, and ventral striatum (nucleus accumbens), involved in reward processing.

Answer 8

Striatum

Question 9

The front part of the brain involved in complex behaviors, decision making, and moderating social behavior.

Answer 9

Prefrontal Cortex

Question 10

Neurons located in specific midbrain areas (SN and VTA) and send signals to various parts of the brain, including the striatum and prefrontal cortex, which are involved in processing rewards and making decisions.

Answer 10

Dopaminergic Neurons

Question 11

A mental disorder where a person loses touch with reality, experiencing delusions and hallucinations.

Answer 11

Psychosis

Question 12

Abnormal functioning of dopamine, a neurotransmitter, which is linked to psychosis.

Answer 12

Abberant Dopamine Activity

Question 13

These drugs increase dopamine levels and can cause delusions and hallucinations in healthy individuals. They worsen symptoms in people with schizophrenia.

Answer 13

Amphetamines and Cocaine

Question 14

Proteins on neurons that dopamine binds to. Higher density of these receptors in schizophrenia patients suggests increased dopamine activity.

Answer 14

D2 Receptors

Question 15

A precursor to dopamine. PET imaging studies show it is taken up faster by schizophrenia patients, indicating they produce more dopamine.

Answer 15

L-DOPA

Question 16

A pathway in the brain involving dopamine that affects the striatum.

Increased sensitization (responsiveness) of this system is associated with more severe psychotic symptoms.

Answer 16

Mesostriatal Dopamine System

Question 17

Blocking D2 receptors with medication can improve psychotic symptoms in patients.

Answer 17

D2 Receptor Antagonism

Question 18

Is a chemical that the body uses to produce dopamine

Answer 18

L-DOPA

Question 19

Is a substance from which another substance is formed, especially through a metabolic reaction.

Answer 19

Precursor

Question 20

These include hallucinations, delusions, and thought disorders.

They add abnormal experiences or behaviors.

Answer 20

Positive Symptoms

Question 22

This pathway involves dopamine neurons that project from the ventral tegmental area (VTA) to the nucleus accumbens and other limbic regions.

Excessive dopamine activity in this pathway is linked to positive symptoms. This hyperactivity increases the salience (importance) of irrelevant stimuli, leading to hallucinations and delusions

Answer 22

Mesolimbic Pathway

Question 23

These include apathy, social withdrawal, lack of motivation, and impaired emotional responses.

They reflect a reduction or loss of normal functions.

Answer 23

Negative Symptoms

Question 24

This pathway involves dopamine neurons that project from the VTA to the prefrontal cortex.

Reduced dopamine activity in this pathway is linked to negative symptoms. This hypoactivity affects executive functions, decision-making, and emotional regulation

Answer 24

Mesocortical Pathway

Question 25

The difference between the expected outcome and the actual outcome. It is a signal that helps the brain learn from experiences. It is dopamine-dependent.

Answer 25

Prediction Error

Question 26

What is the connection between surprise and learning?

Answer 26

The mismatch between what is expected and what actually happens (surprise) drives learning. When things are better than expected, dopamine release increases. When things are worse than expected, dopamine release decreases.

Question 27

According to Miller, this can lead to the formation of associations between unrelated pieces of information, treating them as meaningful combinations. This can result in delusions and hallucinations.

Answer 27

Excess Dopamine in the Brain

Question 28

The inappropriate assignment of importance to irrelevant stimuli. Mechanism: When dopamine firing occurs in response to a non-meaningful stimulus, it becomes salient and demands attention. This can lead to the formation of delusions, where individuals believe that unrelated events are connected and significant

Answer 28

Aberrant Salience

Question 29

A type of delusion where individuals believe that innocuous events or coincidences have strong personal significance. Example: Believing that messages on TV are intended specifically for them

Answer 29

Delusions of Reference

Question 30

Beliefs that one is being targeted or persecuted by others. Example: Believing that neighbors are spying on them or that people on the bus are planning an assault

Answer 30

Persecutory Delusions

Question 31

Block dopamine receptors, reducing the aberrant salience of stimuli. This helps in extinguishing and unlearning the delusional beliefs, Side Effects: While effective, they can also dampen the motivation and salience of normal events, potentially affecting overall motivation

Answer 31

Antipsychotics

Question 32

Strongly held ideas or convictions that influence how we perceive and interpret the world.

Answer 32

Beliefs

Question 33

The process of recognizing, organizing, and interpreting sensory information.

Answer 33

Perceptions