Transcript Brain 1
Cognitive Psychology PSYC231 Cognition and the Brain: Basic Principles 1 Dr. Jan Lauwereyns, EA619, ext. 5042 The mind’s computer • The most mysterious thing in the world • The Brain Cerebral cortex Primary Somatosensory cortex Primary Motor cortex Parietal lobe Frontal lobe Primary Visual cortex Primary Auditory cortex Temporal Medulla lobe Spinal cord Occipital lobe Cerebellum Limbic cortex Corpus callosum (largest Hippocampus commissure, connecting the two hemispheres) Pituitary gland Cerebellum Amygdala Pons Medulla Spinal cord Neurons are the Building Blocks Ramon y Cajal The prototypical neuron The electrical message sent down the axon is called the ‘action potential’ Figure 2.8a (p. 31) (a) Action potentials are recorded from neurons with tiny microelectrodes that are positioned inside or right next to the neuron’s axon. These potentials are displayed on the screen of an oscilloscope and are also sent to a computer for analysis. The axon and its terminal Figure 2.10 (p. 33) (a) The axon of the neuron with the receptor reaches the cell body of another neuron. (b) The synapse is the space between the end of one neuron (the presynaptic neuron) and the next neuron (the postsynaptic neuron). Neurotransmitter molecules are released when an action potential reaches the synaptic vesicles of the presynaptic neuron. Following an action potential: Neurotransmitters will be released in the synaptic cleft and influence the post-synaptic neuron… Need to get through the membrane The synaptic cleft Two types of potential can cancel each other out… the process of adding up all incoming potentials is called synaptic integration Figure 2.12 (p. 35) (a) A particular experience causes a neuron to fire and transmitter to be released. The record indicates the rate of nerve firing measured in the postsynaptic neuron due to this initial experience. (b) After continued firing occurs due to repetitions of the experience, structural changes at the synapse occur that result in increased firing to the same stimulus. These changes in the neuron’s firing rate provide a neural record of the experience. The record for a particular experience would involve many neurons. Simple reflex • Action potentials (or nerve impulses) form the language of the brain, like computer bits or morse code The advantage of inhibitory control…