Motor Learning: Performance and Motor Control

A set of 20 vocabulary flashcards focused on key concepts from the 'Performance and Motor Control' lecture.

Speed-Accuracy trade-off

When both speed and accuracy are essential for skill performance, one is sacrificed to maintain the other.

Fitts’ Law

Mathematical model predicting movement time (MT) based on movement distance and target size.

Movement time (MT) formula

MT = a + bLog2 (2D/W), where Log2 (2D/W) is the index of difficulty (ID).

Phases of movement

The three phases include movement preparation, initial flight, and termination.

Open-loop control process

A control process that does not use feedback for movement adjustments.

Closed-loop control process

A control process that uses feedback to guide movement adjustments.

Prehension

General term used for the reaching and grasping of objects.

Components of prehension

Transport, grasp, and object manipulation.

Temporal relationship in prehension

The interaction between transport and grasp phases, showing they are not independent.

Maximum grip aperture timing

Occurs approximately at 2/3 MT, regardless of object size.

Motor equivalence

The ability to adapt motor movements to various contextual demands.

Bimanual coordination

Motor skills that require simultaneous use of two hands.

Symmetric bimanual coordination

When both hands move in the same spatial or temporal pattern.

Asymmetric bimanual coordination

When hands move with different spatial or temporal characteristics.

Central pattern generators (CPG)

Neural networks that produce rhythmic patterns of movement, such as walking and running.

Visual feedback in locomotion

Vision assists in navigating and avoiding objects during walking or running.

Catching a moving object phases

Initial positioning of arm and hand, shaping of hand and fingers, and grasping.

Critical time periods in catching

Initial flight and the time immediately before hand contact are crucial for successful catching.

Vision in striking a moving object

Provides spatial and temporal information necessary for initiating the striking action.

Bat swing timing adjustment

Batters adjust timing of swing initiation based on pitch speed, rather than swing duration.

Performance inconsistencies in handwriting

Problems like spacing changes, legibility issues, and unintentional letter modifications.