Memory & Learing

Units: Intro of the Brain. Intro of basic learning.

Frontal Lobe

(Front) Responsible for planning, retrieving memories, conscious and critical thinking

Thalamus

Sensory relay station from the body to the brain

Axon

Sends signals to other neurons/muscles

Cell body

Intergrated signals

Cerebral Cortex

Sensory processing, motor learning, and memory formation

Hippocampus

Spatial learning, social learning, generalization, and emotional learning

Cognitivism

Focuses on the study of consciousness written experimental psycology

Behaviorism

Focuses on observable behavior

Artstotle’s principles of association (3)

1. Contiguity

2. Frequency

3. Similiarity

Contiguity

Association of memory in regard with time and location

Frequency

Association of memory in regard with repetition of events

Similarity

Association of memory in regard with similar characteristics

Conceptual Priming

Enhanced accessibility of a concept resulting from exposure to a semantically related stimulus

Perceptual Priming

Enhanced processing of a stimulus resulting from prior perceptual exposure to the same stimulus

Operant Conditioning

Associative learning where behavior frequently changes based on environmental consequences

Classical Conditioning

Associative learning where a neutral stimulus comes to predict an unconditioned stimulus, triggering an automatic physiological and emotional response

Priming

A change in response to stimulus due to prior exposure to that stimulus or a related concept, occurring without conscious effort

Procedural Memory

Motor skills and behavior habits execution without conscious effect

Implicit Memory

A long-term memory that can be performed without conscious awareness

Blind Design

Participants don’t know the hypothesis being tested, or weather they are receiving an experimental treatment or a placebo

Subject Biais

Influence to a subjects prior knowledge or expectations can have on the outcome

Retention Curve

A graph showing relearning as a function of time since initial learning

Memory

Storing information and past experiences

Learning

A taught change in behavior

Behaviorism

Psychology should restrict itself t study of observable behavior, avoiding mental events

The Blank Slate

All knowledge is derived from experience

Descartes V. Dualism

The belief that people derive some information from experience, yet much of what we know is innate

Somatosensory Cortex cortical map: Thumb

Large cortical representation

Somatosensory Cortex cortical map: Neck

Small cortical representation

Receptive Fields

The range of stimuli that causes a particular neuron to fire

Cortical Plasticity

Cortical organization and receptive fields to change as a result of experience

Spatial Learning

Learning about the location and relationships between objects & places in an environment

Perceptual Learning

Repeated experience makes it easier to distinguish between similar stimuli

Familiarization

Developing a sense of similarity after repeated exposure

Sensitization

Increased response after repeated exposure

Habituation

Decreased response after repeated exposure

Temporal lobe

(Temples/Lower-side) In charge of language, hearing, and memories

Occipital Lobe

(Back) In charge of vision

Parietal Lobe

(Top) In charge of touch and sensory processing

Basal Ganglia

In charge of skill learning and sensory-guided actions

Cerebellum

In charge of motor learning, classical conditioning, and balance

Dendrites

Receives signals

Frontal cortex

Manages thoughts and memory retrieval

Amygdala

Handles emotional learning and emotional memories

Synaptic Consolidation

Stabilization of memory (Occurs in the hours after learning)

Systems Consolidation

Hippocampus-dependent memories become independent of the hippocampus (Occurs over a period of weeks to years)

Long-term potentiation

When two neurons fire at same time repeatedly, synapses between them get stronger (fire together, wire together)

▪ Sprouting of new synaptic contacts between co-activated neurons

Long-term depression

When two neurons fire out of sync, synapses between them get weaker (out of sync, lose link).

▪ Retraction/dismantling of synaptic contacts between non-cooperating neurons

Dual-Process Theory

Repeated events always lead to the processes underlying both habituation and sensitization

Neurologically, habituation is when

Glutamate is decreased, decreasing the sensory neurons

Neurologically, sensitization is when

Serotonin is added into the body, increasing glutamate and sensory neurons

Empiricism

all knowledge comes from experience and observation

Nativism

Skills, abilities, and knowledge are innate or hard-wired into the human brain at birth