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Cognition > Chapter 2: Cognitive Neuroscience > Flashcards

Chapter 2: Cognitive Neuroscience Flashcards

1
Q

Cognitive Neuroscience

A

The study of the physiological bases of cognition

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2
Q

Levels of Analysis

A

Topic can be understood by studying it at a number of different levels of systems

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3
Q

Neurons

A

Cells in nervous system

  • each neuron has a cell body, an axon, and dendrites
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4
Q

The Neuron Doctrine

A

Individual neurons transmit signals in nervous system, and these cells aren’t continuous

  • Ramon y Cajal: used Golgi stain
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5
Q

Nerve Nets

A

Network of continuously interconnected nerve fibers

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6
Q

Resting Potential

A

Difference in charge between inside and outside nerve fiber when fiber is at rest

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7
Q

Action Potential

A

Propogated electrical potential responsible for transmitting neural information and for communication between neurons

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8
Q

Microelectrodes

A

Small wires that are used to record electrical signals from single neurons

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9
Q

Recording Electrode

A

Thin glass/ metal probe that can pick up electrical signals fron single neurons

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10
Q

Reference Electrode

A

Measure difference of charge against recording electrode

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11
Q

Measuring Action Potentials

A
  • Size is not measured

- Rate of firing is measured

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12
Q

Synapse

A

Space between axon and one neuron and dendrite or cell body of another

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13
Q

Neurotransmitter

A

Chemical that is released at synapse in response to incoming action potential
- affect electrical signal of receiving neuron, cross synapse and bind with receiving dendrites

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14
Q

Mind

A

System that creates representations of world, so we can act on it to achieve goals

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15
Q

Principle of Neural Representation

A

Everything a person experiences is based on representations in the person’s nervous system

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16
Q

Feature Detectors

A

Neurons that respond best to a specific stimulus (like orientation, size, or more complex features that make up environmental stimuli)

Ex. Hubel and Wiesel cats

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17
Q

Hierarchical Processing

A

When we perceive different objects we do so in a specific order that moves from lower to higher areas of the brain

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18
Q

Sensory Code

A

How neural firing represents various characteristics of environment

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19
Q

Specificity Coding

A

Representation of a stimulus by the firing of specifically tuned neurons specialized to respond only to specific stimulus

*unlikely to be correct

20
Q

Population Coding

A

Representation of a stimulus by pattern fo firing of a large number of neurons

21
Q

Sparse Coding

A

Representation of a stimulus by a pattern of firing of only a small group of neurons, with the majority of neurons remaining silent

22
Q

Neuropsychology

A

Study of behavior of people with brain damage

23
Q

Cortical Equipotentiality

A

Brain operates as indivisible whole, as opposed to operating based on specialized areas

24
Q

Localization of Function

A
  • Specific functions are served by specific areas of brain
  • Cognitive functioning declines in specific ways when certain areas of brain are damaged
  • Cerebral cortex contains mechanisms responsible for most cognitive functions
25
Broca’s Aphasia
Labored ungrammatical speech and difficulty in understanding some types of sentences
26
Wernicke’s Aphasia
Difficulty in understnading language and fluent, grammatically correct, but incoherent speech
27
Localization of Function: Perception
- Primary recieving areas for the senses | - Coordination of information received from all senses
28
Double Dissociation
- When damage to on part of brain causes function A to be absent while B is present… and damage to another areas causes function B to be absent while function A is present - allows us to identify functions that are controlled by different parts of brain
29
fMRI
Brain imaging technique that measures how blood flow changes in response to cognitive activity
30
Task-related fMRI
fMRI response that occurs in response to specific cognitive task
31
Fusiform face area (FFA)
Area in temporal lobe that contains many neurons that respond selectively to faces
32
Parahippocampal place area (PPA)
Area in temporal lobe that contains neurons that are selectively activated by pictures of indor and outdoor scenes
33
Extrastriate body area (EBA)
Area in temporal cortex that is activated by pictures of bodies and parts of bodies, but not by faces on other objects
34
Distributed Representation
Occurs when specific cognition activate many areas of the brain
35
Central Principle of cognition
Most of our experience is multidimensional
36
Multidimensional
Multidimentional nature of cognition refers to fact that even simple experiences involve combination of different qualities
37
Episodic Memories
Events in person’s life
38
Semantic Memories
Memories for facts
39
Neural Networks
Interconnected areas of brain that communicate with each other 1. Complex structural pathways called networks that form brain’s info highway 2. Within structural pathways there are functional pathways that serve different functions 3. Network operate dynamically, mirroring dynamic nature of cognition 4. Resting state of brain activity, so parts of brain are active all the time, even when there is no cognitive activity
40
Connectome
Indicate “structural description of network of elements and connections forming the human brain”
41
Structural Connectivity
The brain’s “wiring diagram” created by axons that connect brain areas
42
Functional Connectivity
How groups of neurons within the connectome function in relation to types of cognition - extent to which neural activity in separate brain areas is correlated with each other
43
6 common functions
1. Visual: vision; visual perception 2. Somatomotor: movement and touch 3. Dorsal Attention: attention to visual stimuli and spatial locations 4. Executive Control: higher-level cognitive tasks involved in working memory and directing attention during tasks 5. Salience: attending to survival-relevant events in environment 6. Default Mode: mind wandering, and cognitive activity related to personal life-story, social functions, and monitoring internal emotional states
44
Dynamics of Cognition
Flow and activity within and across the brain’s functional networks change based on conditions
45
Default Mode Network
Mode of brain function that occurs when it is at rest - network of structure that are active when person is not involved in specific tasks - involved in processes ranging from attention to memory to creativity

Cognition (11 decks)

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