Cognitive Science 1 - Lec 4

Anterior

Toward the front

Posterior

Toward the back

Anterior

Toward the front

Posterior

Toward the back

Dorsal

Toward the top of the head/back of the body

Vernal

Toward the bottom of the skull/front of the body

Lateral

Toward the side of the body/away from the middle

Medial

Toward the middle of the body/away from the side

Ipsilateral

On the same side of the body

Contralateral

On the opposite side of the body

Coronal (frontal) section

Slice of brain parallel to the forehead

Sagittarius (lateral) section

Slice of brain perpendicular to the ground and parallel to the temporal lobes

Transverse (axial) section

Slice of brain parallel to the ground

Central Nervous System (CNS)

Brain + Spinal cord

Peripheral nervous system (PNS)

Sensory and motor neurons that connect central nervous system to the rest of the body

Autonomic nervous system

Part of peripheral nervous system that regulates involuntary functions

Sympathetic Nervous system

Part of autonomic nervous system that controls arousal, energy expenditure, increases heart rate, blood sugar, and causes goosebumps

Involves adrenal medulla (secretes epinephrine and norepinephrine)

Fight or flight response

Parasympathetic Nervous System

Part of Autonomic nervous system that controls relaxation, energy storage, increases salivation, gastric, and intestinal motility

Activated by yoga and meditation

Rest and digest response

Forebrain, Midbrain, Hindbrain

The three divisions of the human brain

Cerebral Cortex

The outermost layer of gray matter w/ 26 billion neurons and is 3mm thick

Part of the forebrain

Best distinguishes humans from other animals

Convolutions/wiggles increase surface area for information storage

Consists of mainly glia and cell bodies that give it grayish brown color

Neocortex

Part of cerebral cortex that is phylogenetically the newest part of the cortex composed of 4 lobes

Limbic cortex

Older part of cerebral cortex involved in emotion and memory

Frontal lobe

Lobe involved in speaking, muscle movement, planning, judgement, and emotional control

Its size is directly related to size of person’s social networks

Primary motor cortex

Posterior part of frontal lobe that controls voluntary movements

Prefrontal cortex

anterior part of frontal lobe involved in planning, judgement, and decision-making

Parietal Lobe

Lobe that contains primary somatosensory cortex

Somatosensory cortex

Anterior Part of parietal lobe that maps the body’s surface

Occipital Lobe

Contains primary visual cortex

Visual cortex

Posterior part of occipital lobe that receives and processes visual information

Temporal lobe

Contains primary auditory cortex

Auditory cortex

Superior part of temporal lobe that receives auditory information

Aphasia

Difficulty producing/comprehending speech caused by brain damage

Broca’s Aphasia (expressive aphasia)

Damage to left frontal lobe that causes difficulty in speech production

Meaningful but halting, labored, and ungrammatical

Function words (a, the, in, about) are omitted

Wernicke’s aphasia (fluent aphasia)

Damage to the left posterior superior temporal lobe that causes difficulty in speech comprehension/ability to understand speech & produce meaningful words

Patients do not recognize that they cannot produce meaningful speech or understand others

Corpus Callosum

Bundle of axons that interconnects the corresponding regions of the association cortex of the two hemispheres of the brain

Left cerebral hemisphere

Hemisphere that is analytical, logical, and processes language & math

Right cerebral hemisphere

Hemisphere that synthesizes information, holistic view, pattern recognition, and emotion perception

Limbic cortex

• part of the phylogenetically ancient cortex and is a key component of the limbic system. 

• Specifically, it includes the insular cortex and cingulate cortex. 

• The limbic cortex integrates sensory, affective, and cognitive components of pain and processes information regarding the internal bodily state

Limbic system

Doughnut shaped system of neural structures at border of brainstem and cerebral hemispheres

Associated with emotions and memory

Amygdala

Part of the limbic system responsible for motion regulation, fear, aggression, shaped like two almonds

Hippocampus

Part of the limbic system that is tough nut shaped and is important in memory

Basal ganglia

Collection of subcortical nuclei important for controlling movement

Related to Parkinson’s disease and OCD

Parkinson’s disease

Degeneration of caudate nucleus’s and putamen in basal ganglia

Notes by tremors, rigidity, balance issues

Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)

Increased activity in the caudate nucleus and in the frontal area of the basal ganglia

Nucleus Accumbes

Reward center of the brain

Dopamine release here is linked to drug addiction

Thalamus

Inferior to basal ganglia

Relay station for sensory and motor signals

Directs all in-coming and out-going information to sensory receiving area in the cortex and sends replies to cerebellum and medulla

Hypothalamus

Smalls neural structure beneath the thalamus that control autonomic nervous system, pituitary glands, and basic survival behaviors like four Fs (feeding, fighting, fleeing, and mating)

Brain stem

Oldest part and central core of the brain, beginning where spinal cord swells as it enters the skull

Responsible for autonomic survival functions (like breathing and heartbeat)

Reticular formation

Network of neural tissue in central part of brainstem that regulates sleep, arousal, attention, and various vital reflexes

More active in introverts and extroverts

Pons

Bulge in brainstem part of reticular formation that is important in sleep, arousal, and sensory analysis/movement

Medulla Oblongata

Base of brainstem that controls vital functions like heart rate, breathing, and blood pressure

Cerebellum

“Little brain” at rear of brainstem that helps coordinate voluntary movement and balance, motor learning, and higher cognition like math

Default Mode Network (DMN)

Brain areas that are active when participants in resting state (When brain is not focused on a task)

Daydreaming, self-reflection, reminiscing

Posterior cingulate cortex, precuneus, medial frontal cortex, and temporal parietal junction

Correlation with its deterioration and Alzheimer’s From rising levels or amyloid beta and tan proteins

Human Connectome Project (Brain mapping)

Launched in 2009 to map functional brain connectivity

Uses diffusion spectrum imaging (MRI Technique) to track brain fiber connections

Marcel Just

Decoded thoughts using fMRI with team at Carnegie Mellon

Can distinguish between autistic individuals vs neurotypical controls, suicidal individuals, and can help patients communicate via imagining different scenarios

Neuroplasticity

Brain’s capacity to adapt to damage and modify brain/reorganize following damage (especially in children)

Hemispherectomy

Removal of a brain hemisphere

Young children can recover nearly full brain function

Constraint induced therapy

Used in stroke recovery where patients are forced to use their weaker link to rewire the brain