Studied by 0 people
How was the brain studied before scanning technology was available?
Longitudinal, holistic brain damage case studies
What are 3 flaws of longitudinal brain damage case studies?
Case studies cannot easily be generalized
Any information about the patient before they had brain damage can’t be verified if the study is retrospective
No manually manipulated ind. variable = no cause & effect relationship
What can you use/not use singular case studies for?
You CANNOT use them to draw conclusions, but you CAN USE them to spark new research on specific parts of the brain
What is the criteria for determining if invasive techniques are allowed to be used in a study?
If the research is groundbreaking and there are no alternatives left
What is MRI?
Magnetic Resonance Imaging gives 3D pictures of the brain structure using magnetic fields and radio waves to map hydrogen molecule activity in different parts of the brain.
What are some benefits and drawbacks of using MRIs?
+Non-invasive
+High resolution
-Doesn’t map actual activity within the brain, just its structure
What are PET scans?
Positron Emission Tomography scans observe the metabolic processes in the brain by detecting gamma rays emitted indirectly by a tracer to produce a colored image of which parts of the brain were most active.
What are some benefits and drawbacks of using PET scans?
+Allows patient to do activities for studies while their scans are being observed
-The injection of radioactive material is invasive albeit safe
-Slowest of all techniques and poor in resolution
What is fMRI?
Functional MRIs measure changes in blood flow in the active brain, detecting where blood flow increases and therefore where it uses more oxygen to create a film that shows where change occurs
What are some benefits and drawbacks of using fMRIs?
+Non-invasive and easy to use
+High resolution
-Low ecological validity; a lot of noise in the machine
-Slower than other techniques and not as fast as the changes that occur in the brain
What is EEG?
Electroencephalography measures electrical activity in the brain by using electrodes placed on the skull
What are some benefits and drawbacks to using EEG?
+Able to diagnose epilepsy and sleep disorders
+Non-invasive and fast
+Non-expensive
-Hard to measure exactly where a pattern originates because of constant electric signals → tells you WHEN activity occurs but not where
What is Temporal Resolution?
The smallest time period in which a scanner can register changes in the brain
What is Spatial Resolution?
The ability of a scanner to discriminate between nearby locations; a unit of space that is discernable in the brain
