Ways of studying the brain

Question 1

What is an fMRI?

Answer 1

• functional magnetic resonance imaging, measures brain activity while performing a task, enables researchers to detect which regions of the brain are rich in oxygen/active

Question 2

What is an EEG?

Answer 2

• Electroencephalogram, records tiny electrical impulses, by measuring characteristic wave patterns, can help diagnose certain conditions of the brain

Question 3

What are ERP’s?

Answer 3

• Event related potentials
• Same technique and equipment of EEGs
• The same stimulus is presented many times allowing the researcher to see what cognitive processes happen in the brain after the stimulus is presented

Question 4

What is a post mortem examination?

Answer 4

• brain is analysed after death to determine whether observed behaviours in a persons life can be linked to structural abnormalities in the brain

Question 5

What is a strength and a weakness of fMRI’s?

Answer 5

• Strength: does not rely on use of radiation, risk-free, non-invasive and straightforward to use, provides images with high-spatial resolution, depicting detail by the mm
• Limitation: Expensive, poor temporal resolution (5 second time lag)

Question 6

What is a strength and a weakness of EEG?

Answer 6

Strength:
- Useful in studying stages of sleep and in diagnosing epilepsy
- High temporal resolution
Limitation:
- Generalised nature of information received, cannot pinpoint exact source of neural activity, cannot distinguish between activities originating in different but nearby locations

Question 7

What is a strength and a weakness of event related potentials?

Answer 7

Strength:
- Good temporal resolution
- Shows specific cognitive processes Wheras EEG data is more generalised information
Weaknesses:
- Poor Spatial resolution
- some things cannot be studied by ERPs as they cannot be presented a large number of times with the same response

Question 8

What is a strength and a weakness of post-mortem examinations?

Answer 8

-Strength:
-Foundational understanding of key processes in the brain, Broca/Wernicke relied on them and on HM’s brain
Limitation:
- Causation issues, observed damage may not be linked to what is thought but another trauma
- Informed consent