Ch 13 Flashcards
Nootropics
Drugs that enhance learning, memory, and attention
Psychostimulants
Ritalin and adderall
Dopamine reuptake inhibitor
Doogie mouse
A transgenic mouse engineered to create more NMDA receptors. They do better on memory tasks
Anterograde amnesia
Someone who has difficulty creating new memories
Retrograde amnesia
Someone who has difficulty remembering the past
Korsakoff syndrome
Chronic alcohol abuse that affects memory
HM
Famous case study in memory research. A man with epilepsy had his temporal lobes removed and then could not convert short term memory to long term memory
Engram
Physiological or anatomical representation of memory
Equipotentiality
The idea that memories are distributed relatively equally around the brain
Episodic memory
A memory of an episode of one’s life
Precuneus
An area of the superior parietal lobe along the longitudinal fissure that plays a role in episodic memory
Semantic memory
General knowledge a person has gained through life
Spatial memory
Memories involved in representing one’s environment
Morris water maze
Involves placing a rat or mouse in cloudy water with a platform just above the surface. The mouse gains spatial memory trying to remember where the platform is
Place cells
Cells in the hippocampus that respond to specific locations
Grid cells
Cells in the hippocampus that respond in a grid-like pattern representing an animal’s environment
Consolidation
Converting short term memory to long term memory
Hebb’s rule
If a synapse is active while a postsynaptic cell is depolarized, then the chemical and structural changes will occur that strengthen the connection between the pre and postsynaptic cells making communication more efficient
Long-term potentiation
A physical representation of learning
AMPA receptors
A glutamate receptor that acts as an Na+ channel
Long term depression
The process of weakening connections between neurons
Neural plasticity
The ability of the brain to constantly change
Sensory memory
Fades quickly. A snapshot of sensory information and, if unimportant, fades a few seconds after
Working memory
A type of short term memory that is specific for solving problems or making decisions
