Lecture 19: Motor Control

Question 1

Human movements are produced by _____.

Answer 1

force generating structures with features an engineer would fing suboptimal

Question 2

Muscles are relatively _____.

Answer 2

slow.

Question 3

Muscles and their interaction with the nervous system are _________.

Answer 3

non-linear.

Question 4

FCA

Answer 4

Force Control Approach

Question 5

FCA: Most everyday tasks require us to move ____.

Answer 5

an limb or the whole body to particular point in space.

Question 6

FCA: Requires rotation at _________.

Answer 6

one or several joints

Question 7

FCA: Requires force production using _______.

Answer 7

the muscular system

Question 8

FCA: The CNS produces _____ changes in muscle force by sending signals to the muscle.

Answer 8

active

Question 9

FCA: force depends on neural signals sent to the muscles and external loading conditions, which change with _____.

Answer 9

the motion

Question 10

FCA: CNS must try and predict changes that will occur to __________ and _______ during the movement.

Answer 10

muscle length and force

Question 11

FCA: the CNS has to compute the signals sent to the neurons in the spinal cord and consider the activation of these motoneurons through _______________

Answer 11

reflex pathways.

Question 12

Generalized Motor Program developed by _______.

Answer 12

Schmidt in the 1970s.

Question 13

Generalized Motor Program is very similar to ______.

Answer 13

force-control approach

Question 14

GMP: Brain stores “movement formulas” expressed as ____________ with particular actions.

Answer 14

mechanical patterns

Question 15

GMP: Support from experiments that demonstrate ______ timing patterns when movements sped up or slowed down

Answer 15

invariant

Question 16

IM

Answer 16

Internal Models

Question 17

IM: CNS computes _____ signals that produce adequate force patterns.

Answer 17

control signals

Question 18

IM: Brain has to take 2 factors into account.

Answer 18

1. All the steps involved in transforming neural signals into mechanical variables
2. Time delays in information transmission from the brain to muscle and from peripheral receptors to the brain

Question 19

IM: Inverse models compute _____________ based on desired mechanical effect

Answer 19

descending neural commands

• Computations are made from sensory signals that deliver some outdated information
• Computed signals from the brain reach muscles after substantial time delay.

Question 20

IM: Direct models compute the effects of current neural commands on the state of the _______.

Answer 20

periphery

-Takes into account possible changes in muscles and limbs due to time delays in neural pathways