Exam 1 PSYCH 3513

Localization

The idea that different brain areas have specialized functions.

Equipotentiality

The idea that the brain functions as a whole, and any part can perform any function.

Localization

The idea that different brain areas have specialized functions.

Equipotentiality

The idea that the brain functions as a whole, and any part can perform any function.

Phrenology

The outdated theory that skull bumps indicate mental traits.

Cognition

Mental processes like thinking, memory, and perception

Neuroscience

Study of the nervous system

Cognitive Neuroscience

Intersection of both fields, studying how brain function supports cognition

Dualism

The belief that the mind and body are separate entities (Descartes).

Empiricism

The idea that knowledge comes from experience and observation.

Neuron Doctrine

The theory that neurons are individual units that communicate via synapses.

Cajal used Golgi’s staining method to develop Neuron Doctrine and proposed that the nervous system is made up of discrete, individual cells.

Fritsch & Hitzing

Electrical stimulation of the brain (motor cortex) affects movement (motor map in dogs)

Cytoarchitectonics

Brodman, structural arrangment of neurons, based only off of morphological properties

Ventricles

Cavities in the brain that contain cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) that cushions and nourishes the brain, regulate pressure, shock absorption.

Lobes of the Brain

Frontal, Parietal, Occipital, Temporal

Frontal Lobe

primary motor cortex, thinking, movement, most complex, decision making

includes Prefrontal Cortex (planning, attention) and Orbitofrontal Cortex (personality, damage = antisocial behavior)

Occipital Lobe

primary visual cortex, vision, back of head

Temporal Lobe

primary auditory cortex, hearing, Wernicke’s area, face & object recognition, located on the sides of the brain

Parietal Lobe

primary somatosensory cortex, touch, perception of spatial movement, located above the occipital lobe

Subcortical structures

group of brain regions located beneath cerebral cortex

Parts of Neuron

Include the Soma (cell body), Dendrites (input), and axon (output), Myelin (insulation), which are essential for transmitting signals.

Gray Matter

cell bodies (contains neurons and synapses)

White Matter

axon tracts (contains myelinated axons for communication), myelin is white

Why is the cortex folded?

large surface area in small space, decrease in axonal distance & connection time

Transverse Orientation

Top-down view of the brain.

Sagittal Orientation

Side view of the brain.

Coronal Orientation

Front view of the brain.

Rostral/Anterior

towards front

Caudal/Posterior

towards back

Dorsal/Superior

towards top

Ventral/inferior

towards bottom

Astrocytes

Glial cells that support and nourish neurons, keep out bacteria, maintain BBB.

Oligodendrocytes

Glial cells that create myelin in the CNS.

Schwann Cells

Glial cells that create myelin in the PNS.

Microglia

Glial cells that serve immune defense, synaptic pruning, remove damages cells.

Ions involved in Neuronal Signaling

Sodium (Na+), potassium (K+), chloride (Cl-), calcium (Ca2+).

Layers of the Brain

Skull, dura mater (protective layer, hard), gray matter (neurons), white matter (axons).

Cerebellum Function

Coordination, balance, and fine motor control, highly complex, most neurons

Limbic System

Responsible for emotion and memory; includes the basal ganglia, amygdala, and hippocampus.

Importance of Redundancy in Brain Arteries

Ensures continuous blood flow in case of blockage (e.g., stroke prevention).

Gyrus (Gyri)

bumps

Sulcus (Sulci)

grooves

Spatial Resolution

The ability to see where brain activity occurs.

Temporal Resolution

The ability to see when brain activity occurs.

Cognitive Psychology

The study of mental processes like memory, attention, and perception.

Computational Modeling

simulation, using computer as metaphor for brainto understand cognitive processes and behavior.

Neuropsychology

Studying brain function by examining brain injuries.

Coup

Initial impact on the cortical surface of the brain

Countercoup

Brain bounces back, can be worse than coup

fMRI Pros and Cons

✅ High spatial resolution. ❌ Low temporal resolution (slow).

Two Types of fMRI design

Block design & Event-related design

EEG

Measure of electrical activity, changes in voltages, non-invasive electrodes

✅ High temporal resolution. ❌ Poor spatial resolution.

ERP

Event related potential, type of EEG analysis

MEG

magnetic fields fro, brain activity, average ERPs, more accurate spatial localization

BOLD Signal

Blood Oxygen Level Dependent signal, indicating neural activity.

CT Scan

Use of x rays to create images of internal brain structures (only spatial)

MRI

magnetic fields for structure, changing concentrations of protons, only structural

Single Dissociation

One function is impaired, but another is not.

Double Dissociation

Two independent functions are affected differently.

TMS

A technique that temporarily disrupts brain function using magnetic pulses, allows for double dissociations.

Single cell Recording

insert electrode into neuron and record action potentials, excellent spatial AND temporal resolution, but poor spatial COVERAGE (one neuron only)

Retinotopic Mapping

The way the visual field is represented in the brain.

Receptive Fields

The area of the visual field that a neuron responds to.

V1

Primary visual cortex, detects edges, oriented lines

V5 (MT)

motion detection, movement/speed

V4

color processing, attention

Lateral Geniculate Nucleus (LGN)

thalamus relay for vision, begins processing of visual info from retina, between retina & V1

Olfaction

The sense that does NOT pass through the thalamus first.

Tonotopic Map

Auditory system organizes sound frequencies, high frequencies = base, low = apex.

Interaural Time Difference

sounds reach closer ear first

Interaural Intensity Difference

sound louder in closer ear

Medial Geniculate Nucleus (MGN)

thalamus relay for audition, between inferior colliculus and auditory cortex

Ventral Posterior Nuclear Complex

relay of thalamus for sensory (touch) information, thalamus → cerebral cortex

Cortical Plasticity

The brain’s ability to reorganize itself after injury.

Corpuscles

receptors in the skin

Merkel’s Corpuscles

regular touch

Meissner’s Corpuscles

light touch

Pacinian Corpuscles

deep pressure

Ruffini Corpuscles

temperature information

Nociceptors

signal pain via myelinated and unmyelinated fibers

Proprioceptors

at linkages of muscles and tendons provide physical state

Synesthesia

A condition where stimulation of one sense leads to experiences in another (e.g., seeing colors when hearing music), mixing of 2 or more senses

Phantom Limb Syndrome

Feeling sensations in a missing limb, often treated with mirror therapy.

Taste Transmission

Taste buds → brainstem → thalamus → gustatory cortex.

Studying Olfactory Sensation in fMRI

Difficult because breathing motion interferes with imaging.

Olfactory Receptors

Hundreds exist, each responding to different odor molecules.

Which sense does not predominantly project contralaterally?

Gustation