Cognition: Learning and Memory Flashcards

1
Q

What is reflexive memory also called? What is it?

A

Procedural or nondeclarative or implicit

It is memory which is not dependent on awareness / cognitive process, i.e. perceptual and motor skills, although it may apply to the rules of grammar as well

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2
Q

What is declarative memory also called? What are the two types?

A

Explicit memory

  1. Episodic - remembering of events
  2. Semantic - remembering of facts

They are stored differently via the hippocampus

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3
Q

What is working memory?

A

The RAM of your brain - short term memory for temporary use - i.e. looking up a phone number, or how much of something to add to a recipe

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4
Q

What is classic conditioning and what type of memory does it take advantage of?

A

Pairing of a neutral stimulus (ringing a bell) to a meaningful stimulus (the presentation of food). Takes advantage of reflexive memory

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5
Q

What is operant condition and what type of memory does it take advantage of?

A

Pairing a rewarding or punishing stimulus to an action to increase or decrease the frequency. Uses both reflexive and declarative memory (the rat can think, if i push this lever I will get some food)

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6
Q

How might simple types of learning be used therapeutically?

A
  1. Management of psychiatric disorders via operant conditioning
  2. Biofeedback: Relaxation techniques and behavioral modifications in stroke patients
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7
Q

What do the types or phases of memory differ in?

A
  1. How long they last

2. How sensitive they are to disruption

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8
Q

How long does long-term memory last? Is it sensitive to disruption?

A

It is permanent - although it may be hard to retrieve

It is insensitive to disruption

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9
Q

What are two ways in which memory can be disrupted? What type of memory is most sensitive? What will be caused if disrupted?

A
  1. Hypothermia - to slow brain activity
  2. Electroconvulsive shock

Short-term memory in a labile state is most sensitive

If disrupted -> retrograde amnesia

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10
Q

What are protein synthesis and cAMP formation necessary for during a learning trial?

A

Consolidation to long-term memory, although short-term memory will be intact

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11
Q

What is consolidation?

A

Process of converting short-term memories to long-term memories

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12
Q

What happens to rats who are shocked with ECT 1 hour after a learning task?

A

They have no memory of ever completing the task -> retrograde amnesia

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13
Q

What parts of the brain are important for declarative memories?

A

Temporal lobe and especially hippocampus

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14
Q

What happens when patients are stimulated in termporal lobe during awake brain surgery?

A

Vivid memories of past events are brought forward

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15
Q

What happens with temporal lobe lesion, including hippocampus?

A

Long-term memory will still be intact, and short-term memory can be acquired, but there is no consolidation

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16
Q

What type of learning is preserved with hippocampal damage?

A

Reflexive memory - skill learning i.e. playing a piano

17
Q

What area is important for classical conditioning of the eye-blink response (reflexive memory)?

A

Cerebellum -> lateral part

18
Q

What part of the brain is important for conditioned heart rate responses?

A

Amygdala

19
Q

What parts of the brain are involved in complex memory tasks like learning mazes?

A

May involve every part of the cortex equally

20
Q

What part of the brain is involved in spatial working memory, i.e. delayed spatial response? What neurotransmitter is involved?

A

Frontal lobe - around superior frontal sulcus (principal sulcus)

Dopamine is involved

21
Q

What area of the brain functions subnormally in schizophrenics?

A

Frontal lobe - poor working memory

22
Q

Where does the learning of complex motor tasks occur?

A

Cerebellum - for associative learning

23
Q

Where does the non-associative learning for motor tasks occur?

A

At the level of the reflex pathways in the spinal cord

24
Q

When is each side of the brain more likely to be active during a task requiring working memory?

A

Left brain: Verbal memory, remembering letters

Right brain: Location

25
Q

What underlies the synaptic theory of learning?

A

Neuronal changes in learning occur due to changes in synaptic efficiency

26
Q

What is long term potentiation (LTP)?

A

An increased slope of excitatory post-synaptic potentials which constitutes learning -> increased synaptic efficiency

27
Q

What type of stimulation produces early LTP vs late LTP, and how long do they last?

A

Early - single train of stimuli given for 1 second at 100 Hz - lasts 2-3 hours

Late - four trains separated by 10 minutes - lasts 24 hours

Requires the excitation of multiple Schaffer collateral pyramidal cells simultaneously

28
Q

What is the kindling theory of epilepsy?

A

Long-term potentiation mechanisms may underlie the increased frequency of epileptic seizures, as the threshold for the next seizure is reduced everytime they happen

29
Q

What channel is required for LTP, and why?

A

Activation of NMDA channel (a type of glutamate receptor activated in Schaffer collaterals), because it is large enough for calcium to be let into the cell

30
Q

Why is calcium required for LTP? What type of memories is this needed for?

A

Calcium enters the cell and activates a Ca-calmodulin regulated kinase, which phosphorylates the glutamate receptors (AMPA and NMDA), making them more sensitive to glutamate

Creates short-term memories, which may be consolidated into long-term

31
Q

What can inhibit short-term memory formation?

A

Ca-calmodulin regulated kinase inhibitors

32
Q

What is the mechanistic by which presynaptic glutamate release is enhanced?

A

Ca-calmodulin affects the action of nitric oxide synthase, which uses arginine as a substrate. NO travels presynaptically to enhance glutamate release

33
Q

What is the mechanism of late phase LTP via Ca-calmodulin action?

A

Ca-calmodulin activates an adenylyl cyclase, which increases cAMP. cAMP activates cAMP-dependent protein kinase, which phosphorylates CREB-1.

CREB-1 is a nuclear protein which enhances the synthesis and expression of glutamate receptors to increase synaptic efficacy

34
Q

What will CREB-1 deficiency cause?

A

Impaired long-term but not short-term memory

35
Q

Lesion of what part of the brain is likely to cause difficulty remembering patterns?

A

Right (non-dominant) temporal lobe

36
Q

Lesion of what part of the brain is likely to cause difficulty remembering words (i.e. nouns)?

A

Left temporal lobe

37
Q

What part of the brain is responsible for priming?

A

Neocortex

I.e. Identifying something is faster when you’ve already identified it before, like a sketch

38
Q

What part of the brain is involved in associative learning, classical and operant conditioning related to emotions?

A

Amygdala

39
Q

What part of the brain is involved in procedural memory (i.e. skills / habits)?

A

Striatum (in basal ganglia, as opposed to striate cortex)