Week 2.5 - Animal Behaviour and Cognition Flashcards
What are Brodmann’s areas?
Parcelations (i.e. divisions) of the neocortex based on cytoarchitecture and lesion studies originally proposed by Korbinian Brodmann.
What is the function of the hippocampus?
It is the area of the brain normally associated with navigation and episodic memory.
What is transcription?
What is translation?
Transcription is the process that sequences RNA on the basis of DNA.
Translation is the creation of a protein from RNA.
What is a Golgi stain?
A method of staining entire neurons so that they can be visualized in a microscope.
Only 10% or so of the neurons are stained, it is a stochastic process.
What is fMRI?
A method of visualizing the activity of the brain using the BOLD (blood oxygenation level-dependent) signal.
What is cognition?
The ability of an animal to meaningfully interact with their environment.
What is studied by the field of epigenetics?
The expression or inhibition of particular genes according to environmental and developmental influences.
What is the default network?
The network of brain regions that is active when a person is not focused on the outside world.
How can we measure default networks?
Using fMRI
What are some of the limitations of using animal models?
(1) It is difficult to assess mood changes in animals (if we are studying mood disorders)
(2) Behavioral tests are often not specific enough
(3) Rodents might react differently to medications compared to humans
(4) Mood disorders are polygenic and multifactorial, making it impossible to use the transgenic method to model them
Which cells are thought to produce the most EEG signals from the cerebral cortex?
Pyramidal cells
This is because they are well-aligned and fire together
What are some of the medical uses of EEG?
(1) It can be used to monitor patients with epilepsy
(2) It can be used to measure the state of consciousness (e.g., comatose state)
Indicate whether each of these sentences is true or false:
(1) The core of each neuromodulatory system has a lot of neurons
(2) Each neuron can influence many others
(3) Neurotransmitters are released into the extracellular space
(4) Neurons that produce modulatory neurotransmitters are mostly in the cortex
(1) False
(2) True
(3) True
(4) False
What are the sites of origin of the dopamine system?
(1) substantia nigra
(2) ventral tegmental area
(image source: Wikipedia)
What are the main functions of the dopamine system?
(1) Motor function
(2) Reward/punishment
(3) Problem-solving
(4) Planning
What is the site of origin of the serotonin system?
Raphe Nuclei (in the brainstem)
What are the main functions of the serotonin system?
(1) Mood regulation
(2) Sleep
(3) Arousal
(4) Sensory processing
(5) Pain modulation
Nowadays, we look at emotion in terms of a spectrum.
What are the two dimensions of this spectrum?
(1) Valence
(2) Arousal
Ex. Anger would be classified as a combination of negative valence and high arousal
Which brain region has been shown to increase its activity in response to fearful faces?
Amygdala
What is the difference between an instinct and a reflex?
An instinct is a sequence of movements.
A reflex encompasses only one movement.
Which of the following has the shortest sensitive (critical) period?
(a) Language development
(b) Sight development
(c) Higher cognitive function development
(b) Sight development
What is cognition (in neuroscience terms)?
Cognition is the process by which the sensory input is transformed, stored, recovered, and used.
Which school of thought believes that behavior is decided by internal processes?
Cognitive Psychology
Which school of thought rejects introspection as a method of scientific inquiry?
Behaviorism
