cognitive neuroscience Flashcards
(32 cards)
what did camillo Golgi do
created the Golgi stain:
In the 1870’s developed a staining technique which allowed people to see the cells structures - able to conclude that the nerve net is not continuous.
(affects less than 1% of neurons)
whats a nerve net
A network of nerves
what is the neuron doctrine
the concept that the nervous system is made up of individual cells rather than a continuous network (nerve net)
what is the cell body
metabolic centre - keeps the cell alive
function of the dendrites
to receive signals from other neurons
what are axons (nerve fibres)
long processes that transmit signals to other neurons
whats a neurons role
to transmit signals
what is a synapse
the gap between the neurons axon and the dendrites
what is a neuron circuit
interconnected neurons
what did Cajal find
- denied the nerve net theory by using the Golgi stain in newborn animals’ brains
- discovered synapse’s
- discovered neuron circuit’s
- discovered receptors
what is resting potential
The value which stays the same as long as there are no signals in the neuron. (-70 millivolts)
what is action potential
When an impulse is passed through the neuron - the charge inside the cell rises to +40millivolts compared to the outside of the cell and as the impulse passes through the axon it begins to decrease back down to resting potential. (-70 millivolts)
what is used to record signals from single neurons
microelectrodes
what is a microelectrode and what is it used for
Glass pipettes filled with conductive salt solution which can pick up electrical signals at the electrode tip and conduct the signal back to a recording device.
used to record signals from a single neuron.
problems with single cell recording
invasive method so can mainly only be used on cats, mice and donkeys etc. however can be used in brain surgeries.
two different microelectrodes
recording electrode (inside neuron) reference electrode (outside neuron)
what is a feature detector
a neuron or a group of neurons in the brain that codes for perceptually significatn stimuli
what is hierachichal processing
where signals from many neurons combine and interact
what is the sensory code
how neurons represent various characteristics of the environment
what is specificity coding
the idea that an object can be represented by the firing of a specialized neuron that responds only to that object.
what is population coding
when an object is represented by the pattern of firing of a large number of neurons.
what is sparse coding
when an object is represented by a pattern of firing of only a small number of neurons.
what is the broca’s area in the brain specialized for
speech
What is the Wernicke’s area in the brain specialized for
language comprehension
