Psych Midterm 2

Lecture Notes on Memory, Cognition, and Disorders

Overview

• Focus on memory, its function, and its impact on cognition.

• Disorders affecting memory: Alzheimer's, ADHD, and more.

• Cognitive biases and their effect on memory and decision-making.

Memory and Its Importance

Types of Memory:

• Implicit Memory: Unconscious memory (e.g., walking, driving).

• Explicit Memory: Conscious memory (e.g., facts, experiences).

Stages of Memory:

1. Sensory Memory: Initial, fleeting storage of sensory information.

2. Short-term Memory (STM): Holds information temporarily for a few seconds or minutes.

3. Long-term Memory (LTM): Stores information for extended periods, from hours to a lifetime.

Processes of Memory:

• Encoding: Converting sensory input into memory.

• Storage: Maintaining information over time.

• Retrieval: Accessing stored information.

Disorders Impacting Memory

Alzheimer's Disease:

• A progressive brain disease that leads to the loss of neurons, amyloid plaques, and neurofibrillary tangles.

• Impacts cognition and the ability to live independently.

ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder):

• Affects focus, organization, and task completion.

• More common in males for hyperactivity; often overlooked in females.

• Diagnosis can lead to improved life management.

Memory Case Studies

Henry Molaison (H.M.):

• Underwent lobotomy affecting his hippocampus.

• Could not form new explicit memories after surgery.

ADHD and Memory:

• Different in children vs. adults.

• Adults are more prone to the inattentive type.

Techniques to Improve Memory

1. Chunking: Grouping information into larger, more manageable units.

2. Elaborative Rehearsal: Making information meaningful to enhance memory retention.

3. Context-dependent Learning: Matching learning and recall environments.

4. State-dependent Learning: Matching the emotional or physiological state between learning and recall.

Memory and Cognition

Working Memory:

• A short-term processing system for managing and manipulating information.

  • Central Executive: Directs attention and processes information.

Long-term Potentiation (LTP):

• The strengthening of synapses through repeated stimulation, which plays a role in memory formation.

Cognitive Biases and Memory

• Source Monitoring: Difficulty identifying the origin of memories.

• Confirmation Bias: Favoring information that confirms existing beliefs.

• Misinformation Effect: Post-event misinformation distorts memory.

Eyewitness Testimony

Reliability Concerns:

• Memory distortions affect accuracy.

• Eyewitness testimony is influenced by external information and cognitive biases.

Impact on Justice:

• Faulty eyewitness testimony can lead to wrongful convictions.

• DNA evidence has overturned many wrongful convictions.

Conclusion

• Memory is critical to identity and functioning.

• Disorders, biases, and external influences can significantly impact memory and cognition.

• Understanding these elements is crucial for psychology and helping professions.

What is Memory?

Types of Memory:

1. Sensory Memory: Brief retention of sensory information (e.g., a sound or an image).

2. Short-term Memory (STM): Holds information temporarily (e.g., remembering a phone number long enough to dial it).

3. Long-term Memory (LTM): Stores information for extended periods (e.g., memories of events, facts, skills).

Memory Allows Us to:

• Recall past experiences and learn from them.

• Store important information for future use.

• Make decisions based on our knowledge and past experiences.

• Learn new skills and retain them over time.

What is Cognition?

Definition:

• Cognition refers to the mental processes involved in acquiring knowledge, understanding, and processing information, including thinking, learning, problem-solving, reasoning, attention, and language comprehension.

Key Cognitive Processes:

1. Attention: Focusing mental resources on specific stimuli or tasks.

2. Perception: Interpreting sensory information (what we see, hear, etc.).

3. Memory: Storing and recalling information.

4. Thinking: Generating ideas, forming judgments, and solving problems.

5. Language: Understanding and producing spoken and written communication.

Cognition Allows Us to:

• Understand and interpret the world around us.

• Solve problems by analyzing situations and making decisions.

• Learn new information and adapt to changing environments.

• Communicate ideas and knowledge effectively.

How Memory and Cognition Work Together:

Memory and cognition are closely linked. Memory provides the information and experiences needed for cognitive processes, and cognition allows us to manipulate and apply that information in different contexts.

For example:

• Cognition helps us analyze a problem, while memory allows us to retrieve relevant past knowledge or experiences to solve it.

• Cognitive thinking helps us understand new concepts, and memory enables us to store and recall those concepts later.

Together, they allow us to:

• Navigate the world effectively by combining past knowledge with present experiences.

• Learn, adapt, and improve in response to new situations and information.

Memory Processes

1. The Phonological Loop

   • Function: Deals with auditory and verbal information.

   • Tool/Technique: Repetition (Rehearsal) helps keep information active.

   • Example: Repeating a phone number to yourself until you can dial it.

2. The Visuospatial Sketchpad

   • Function: Handles visual and spatial information (e.g., imagining a map).

   • Tool/Technique: Visualization and Mind Mapping help retain spatial or visual details.

   • Example: Visualizing how puzzle pieces fit together or creating a mind map to organize tasks.

3. The Central Executive

   • Function: Directs attention, switches tasks, and integrates information.

   • Tool/Technique: Task Switching and Prioritization help manage complex tasks.

   • Example: Using a to-do list to focus on tasks in order of importance.

4. Chunking

   • Function: Improves working memory by grouping information into chunks.

   • Tool/Technique: Chunking Information reduces cognitive load.

   • Example: Breaking a phone number into smaller chunks (e.g., 987-654-3210).

5. Mnemonics

   • Function: Memory aids for easier encoding and retrieval of information.

   • Tool/Technique: Acronyms and Acrostics, Storytelling.

   • Example: Using "PEMDAS" to remember the order of operations or creating a story to remember a list of items.

6. Dual-Task Training

   • Function: Involves practicing multiple tasks at once to strengthen working memory.

   • Tool/Technique: Cognitive Exercises and Brain Training Apps.

   • Example: Games like Lumosity or Peak that train working memory by requiring multitasking.

7. External Memory Aids

   • Function: Tools to support memory in daily life.

   • Tool/Technique: Notebooks, Calendars, and Digital Reminders.

   • Example: Using a calendar app to remember appointments.

8. Cognitive Load Management

   • Function: Managing information processing to avoid overloading memory.

   • Tool/Technique: Breaking Tasks into Smaller Steps.

   • Example: Breaking a report into stages like research, drafting, and editing.

9. Practice and Repetition

   • Function: Repetition strengthens memory by reinforcing neural pathways.

   • Tool/Technique: Spaced Repetition.

   • Example: Using spaced repetition systems (SRS) to study vocabulary.

10. Physical Exercise and Brain Health

    • Function: Physical exercise improves working memory and cognitive function.

    • Tool/Technique: Regular Physical Activity.

    • Example: Engaging in activities like walking, running, or yoga.

Summary:

The tools and techniques mentioned above help enhance the capacity and efficiency of working memory, whether through visualization, chunking, mnemonics, repetition, or cognitive training. These methods reduce cognitive overload and improve your ability to process and retain information in everyday tasks, problem-solving, and learning.

Biological Structure of Memory

1. Hippocampus

• Location: Part of the limbic system, in the temporal lobe.

• Function: Essential for the formation and consolidation of new long-term memories, especially episodic memories (events and experiences). It also plays a critical role in spatial memory (location and navigation).

• Role: Integrates information from different brain regions to form new connections, important for memory formation and learning. It aids in the retrieval of memories.

• Damage: Damage (e.g., from amnesia) can prevent the formation of new long-term memories, although older memories may remain intact.

2. Amygdala

• Location: Part of the limbic system, deep within the temporal lobes.

• Function: Involved in emotional processing, particularly for fear and strong emotions. It assigns emotional significance to memories, affecting their encoding and vividness.

• Role: Works with the hippocampus to enhance memory encoding based on emotional intensity.

• Damage: Damage can impair the ability to recall emotional aspects of memories, although other types of memory may remain unaffected.

3. Prefrontal Cortex

• Location: The front part of the frontal lobe.

• Function: Involved in working memory (temporary storage and manipulation of information for tasks like reasoning, decision-making, and problem-solving).

• Role: Acts as the central executive, managing attention, organizing thoughts, and filtering distractions. It also plays a role in short-term memory and cognitive load management.

• Damage: Damage can cause difficulties with tasks requiring attention, decision-making, and working memory.

4. Cerebellum

• Location: At the back of the brain, beneath the occipital lobes.

• Function: Plays a key role in the formation of procedural memory (skills and habits like riding a bike or playing an instrument).

• Role: Coordinates and refines movements based on learned experiences, which are stored as procedural memories.

• Damage: Damage can impair motor skills and procedural memory, making it difficult to perform learned physical tasks.

5. Basal Ganglia

• Location: A group of nuclei deep within the cerebral hemispheres, including the striatum (caudate nucleus, putamen) and globus pallidus.

• Function: Involved in procedural memory formation and retrieval, as well as habit formation.

• Role: Automates motor functions and behaviors through repetition, turning them into automatic routines.

• Damage: Disorders like Parkinson’s disease can result from damage, affecting movement and procedural memory.

6. Temporal Lobes

• Location: Located on the sides of the brain, near the ears.

• Function: Important for processing auditory information and encoding long-term memory, particularly semantic memory (facts and knowledge) and episodic memory (personal experiences).

• Role: Involved in recognition memory (recognizing faces and objects). The right temporal lobe handles visual memory, while the left temporal lobe processes verbal and semantic memories.

• Damage: Damage can lead to memory deficits, especially in recalling events and processing verbal and auditory information.

7. Thalamus

• Location: A deep structure at the center of the brain.

• Function: Acts as a relay station, transmitting sensory information (except smell) to appropriate cortical areas.

• Role: Integrates sensory information, crucial for encoding sensory memories, and works with the hippocampus to consolidate new memories.

• Damage: Damage can impair sensory processing and attention, leading to memory deficits.

8. Neurons and Synapses

• Location: Neurons are throughout the brain, synapses are where neurons communicate.

• Function: Synaptic plasticity (strengthening or weakening of synapses) is a key mechanism for memory. When forming new memories, synapses change in response to repeated stimulation.

• Role: Long-term potentiation (LTP) strengthens neuron connections, making it easier to form and retain memories.

• Damage: Disruptions in synaptic plasticity can cause memory disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease, which involves synapse deterioration and memory loss.

9. Reticular Formation

• Location: A network of neurons in the brainstem.

• Function: Regulates alertness and consciousness, essential for encoding memories.

• Role: Filters sensory information and maintains the arousal needed for memory formation.

• Damage: Damage can impair attention and focus, making encoding and recalling memories difficult.

Nervous System Overview

Neuron Structure and Function

• Cell Body (Soma): Contains the nucleus and organelles.

• Dendrites: Branch-like structures that receive signals from other neurons.

• Axon: Transmits signals away from the cell body.

• Myelin Sheath: Insulates the axon, speeding up signal transmission.

• Axon Terminals: The end of the axon, where signals are sent to other cells.

• Synapse: The gap between neurons where signal transmission occurs.

Functions of Neurons:

1. Signal Reception: Dendrites receive signals from other neurons.

2. Signal Integration: The cell body processes the incoming signals.

3. Electrical Impulse Conducting: Action potentials travel along the axon.

4. Transmission: Neurotransmitters are released at the axon terminals to communicate with other neurons.

Neurotransmitters and Their Functions

1. Dopamine: Controls voluntary movement, reward, pleasure, cognition, and attention.

2. Serotonin: Regulates mood, sleep, appetite, digestion, and pain perception.

3. Acetylcholine (ACh): Involved in muscle contraction, cognition, memory, and regulating the autonomic nervous system.

Central and Peripheral Nervous Systems

Central Nervous System (CNS)

• Components: Brain and spinal cord.

• Functions: Controls body activities, processes sensations, and coordinates motor control.

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

• Components: Nerves outside the brain and spinal cord.

• Functions: Connects the CNS to muscles, skin, and glands.

• Subsystems:

  • Somatic Nervous System (SNS): Manages voluntary movements and sensory information.

  • Autonomic Nervous System (ANS): Controls involuntary functions.

    • Sympathetic: Responsible for "fight or flight" responses.

    • Parasympathetic: Manages "rest and digest" activities.

Old Brain Structure and Function

Components:

1. Brainstem: Controls basic life functions (heartbeat, breathing).

2. Medulla: Manages vital functions (heartbeat, breathing).

3. Pons: Assists with sleep, breathing, and communication.

4. Cerebellum: Coordinates balance and movement.

5. Thalamus: Acts as a relay station for sensory information.

6. Hypothalamus: Regulates basic needs and emotions.

Influence on Behavior:

• The old brain controls automatic survival functions and basic emotional responses.

Cerebral Cortex Structure and Function

1. Frontal Lobe: Involved in movement, thinking, planning, and personality.

2. Parietal Lobe: Processes sensory information and spatial awareness.

3. Occipital Lobe: Handles visual processing.

4. Temporal Lobe: Manages hearing, memory, and language comprehension.

5. Association Areas: Integrate sensory information and support higher-level cognitive functions.

Brain Plasticity and Neurogenesis

1. Brain Plasticity (Neuroplasticity): The brain's ability to change and adapt by forming new neural connections. (Example: Learning a new skill strengthens neural pathways).

2. Neurogenesis: The formation of new neurons, particularly in areas like the hippocampus, important for memory.

Brain Lateralization

• Left Hemisphere: Responsible for language, logic, and math.

• Right Hemisphere: Involved in creativity, visual-spatial tasks, and emotion.

Interaction of Nervous and Endocrine Systems

• Nervous System: Uses electrical signals for immediate responses.

• Endocrine System: Uses hormones for long-term regulation.

• Combined Influence: Both systems manage immediate reactions and long-term bodily functions, such as stress responses.

Endocrine System Key Glands and Functions

1. Pituitary Gland: Regulates other glands and controls growth/metabolism.

2. Thyroid Gland: Manages metabolism.

3. Parathyroid Glands: Regulate calcium levels.

4. Adrenal Glands: Control stress response and metabolism.

5. Pancreas: Regulates blood sugar levels.

6. Gonads (Ovaries and Testes): Control reproduction and sexual characteristics.

7. Pineal Gland: Regulates sleep-wake cycle.

Phineas Gage

What Happened:

• Injury: In 1848, Phineas Gage was working on a railroad construction site when an iron rod pierced his skull, traveling through his brain.

• Survival: Surprisingly, he survived the injury, staying conscious and even walking and speaking shortly afterward.

Change in Behavior:

• Before the Accident: Known for being well-mannered, hardworking, and responsible.

• After the Accident: His personality changed dramatically—he became impulsive, irritable, and struggled with decision-making and behavior control.

Significance in Neuroscience:

• Impact: Gage's injury to his frontal lobe helped demonstrate the role of the frontal lobe in controlling behavior, emotions, and decision-making.

• Conclusion: Gage’s case was critical in understanding how damage to specific brain areas can affect personality and behavior.

Eye and Ear Structures and Functions

Eye Structures

1. Cornea

   • Role: Transparent, dome-shaped outer layer covering the front of the eye.

   • Function: Refracts light entering the eye to help focus it, working together with the lens to focus light rays on the retina.

2. Pupil

   • Role: Black circular opening in the center of the iris.

   • Function: Regulates the amount of light entering the eye by adjusting its size—contracting in bright light and dilating in dim light.

3. Iris

   • Role: Colored part of the eye, made up of muscles.

   • Function: Controls the size of the pupil to regulate light intake, responding to light conditions.

4. Lens

   • Role: Transparent, flexible structure located behind the iris and pupil.

   • Function: Focuses light onto the retina. It changes shape (accommodation) to focus on objects at different distances for sharp vision.

5. Retina

   • Role: Innermost layer at the back of the eye, lined with photoreceptor cells.

   • Function: Detects light and converts it into electrical signals, containing rods and cones to detect light intensity and color.

6. Rods and Cones (Photoreceptors)

   • Rods: Sensitive to low light, aiding vision in dim conditions, but do not detect color.

   • Cones: Responsible for color vision, work best in bright light, and are concentrated in the fovea for detailed vision.

7. Macula

   • Role: Small, central part of the retina.

   • Function: Provides sharp, detailed vision, with the fovea at its center crucial for tasks like reading and recognizing faces.

8. Optic Nerve

   • Role: Bundle of nerve fibers carrying visual information from the retina to the brain.

   • Function: Transmits electrical signals from the retina for image processing.

9. Sclera

   • Role: White, outer layer of the eyeball.

   • Function: Provides structural support and protects inner eye components.

10. Vitreous Body (Vitreous Humor)

    • Role: Clear, gel-like substance filling the space between the lens and retina.

    • Function: Helps maintain eye shape and provides a clear path for light to reach the retina.

11. Aqueous Humor

    • Role: Clear fluid in the front of the eye, between the cornea and lens.

    • Function: Nourishes the cornea and lens, maintains intraocular pressure, and supports the eye's shape.

12. Ciliary Body

    • Role: Ring of muscle tissue behind the iris.

    • Function: Controls lens shape to help focus on near and far objects (accommodation).

Ear Structures

1. Outer Ear

   • Pinna (Auricle): The visible part of the ear, captures sound waves and directs them into the ear canal.

   • Ear Canal (External Auditory Canal): Carries sound waves from the pinna to the eardrum, amplifying certain frequencies.

   • Tympanic Membrane (Eardrum): Vibrates in response to sound waves, transferring vibrations to the middle ear.

2. Middle Ear

   • Ossicles (Malleus, Incus, Stapes): Tiny bones that amplify and transfer vibrations from the eardrum to the inner ear.

     • Malleus (Hammer): Attached to the eardrum, transmits vibrations to the incus.

     • Incus (Anvil): Passes vibrations from the malleus to the stapes.

     • Stapes (Stirrup): Transmits vibrations to the oval window of the cochlea.

   • Eustachian Tube: Connects the middle ear to the throat, equalizing pressure in the middle ear with atmospheric pressure.

3. Inner Ear

   • Cochlea: Spiral-shaped, fluid-filled structure with sensory hair cells responsible for hearing. Converts sound vibrations into electrical signals.

   • Oval Window: Membrane-covered opening connecting the middle ear to the cochlea. Stapes vibrates against it, creating pressure waves in cochlear fluid.

   • Round Window: Membrane-covered opening in the cochlea allowing fluid movement in response to sound waves.

   • Hair Cells: Sensory cells in the cochlea that detect pressure waves, converting them into electrical signals.

     • Inner Hair Cells: Responsible for hearing.

     • Outer Hair Cells: Help amplify sound.

   • Auditory Nerve (Cochlear Nerve): Transmits electrical signals from hair cells to the brain for sound interpretation.