White Men from History
Who believed that the soul was distributed throughout the whole body?
Aristotle
What are the two visual processing pathways? What are they known for processing?
The Ventral pathway (goes into the temporal lobe) processes objects, shapes, etc.
The Dorsal pathway (goes to the parietal lobe) processes motion and space.
What did Luigi Galvani's "frog experiment" support?
Galvani's stimulation of amputated frog legs demonstrated the electrical messages that travel through the body (neural signaling/action potentials)
What is blindsight?
What is the amygdala involved in?
The process of emotions!
Where did Galen of Pergamon think one's "mental spirit" come from?
The cerebral ventricles
Stripes or columns of neurons that respond preferentially to visual input from your left or right eye
What did the "eye-patch cat" study do?
In the eye patch cat study, researchers covered one eye of a young cat. They observed that the ocular dominance columns of the UNCOVERED eye overtook columns normally associated with the covered eye (due to the uncovered eye receiving visual input while the covered eye did not). This demonstrates the MOVE IT OR LOSE IT/ competitive nature of the developing visual system!
Karen has prosopagnosia meaning her brain can't process faces visually (she can't distinguish between them). This disease is likely due to damage to what brain area?
The fusiform face area
A procedure conducted in ancient societies that included surgically removing a particular bit of one's skull. Eases mental stress? Releases evil spirits?
Describe Descartes "Mind-Body Dualism" theory
This theory proposes that the mind and the body re completely separate entities (completely distinct)
Orientation columns are groups of neurons that respond to certain angles of light (light at specific orientations)
Briefly explain the "three-eyed frog" experiment. What did it demonstrate?
The "three-eyed frog" experiment was an experiment in which the researchers inserted a third eye between the frog's original two eyes. The researchers then used a tracer to observe the effects of a third eye on the optic tectum. They observed ocular dominance columns on one side of the optic tectum (this was due to input from the original and third eye receiving stimuli). This experiment provided more evidence for how the visual system is competitive!
Susan underwent bilateral, surgical removal of visual portions of the parietal lobe. What visual deficits should she expect?
The parietal lobe is where the dorsal pathway is located. This means Susan would struggle visualizing movement and space.
What is topographic organization? (mention the visual and/or sensory system)
Topographic organization in the visual system means that an object's position in space will be reflected by a neuron's position in the visual cortex. Objects that are close to each other in space will have neurons (that will respond to each object) that are also close to each other. This means the map of one's space is reflected by the brain's organization.
Who was Luigi Galvani?
A scientist that stimulated amputated frog legs with electricity. This highlighted the nature of neural signaling!
Extra points (5) if you mentioned Frankenstein!
What are 2 differences between X ganglion (P cells or midget) and Y (M cells or Parasol) ganglion cells?
X ganglion cells (aka P cells) have smaller receptive fields and process more finely tuned details and color. Y ganglion cells (aka M cells) are much larger than X cells and have larger receptive fields. They respond to movement, are low contrast, and not as detailed.
Explain the Ungerleider and Mishkin experiment. Why is it so important for our class?!
In the Ungerleider and Mishkin experiment, researchers lesioned the parietal or temporal lobes and assessed monkeys' visual capabilities using object discrimination and landmark discrimination tasks. Monkeys with parietal lesions struggled on the landmark task while animals with temporal lesions struggled on the object discrimination task. This demonstrated visual parallel pathways, where each pathway resides , and what they process!
Tim underwent surgical removal of
visual portions of the inferotemporal lobe. What visual deficits would you expect?
The inferotemporal lobe is a part of the ventral pathway meaning that there would be issues processing shapes and objects (deeper in this pathway would result in issues processing more complex objects like faces)
What are homeobox genes?
Genes that code for specific regions or parts of the body! A "head to tail" plan along the spinal cord. They are present across species (including fruit flies) which represents their evolutionary conservation!
Why is Hippocrates relevant in the field of cognitive neuroscience?
He was one of the earliest philosophers to identify the brain as the "seat of the soul" and the "control system" for the body
Why do we called the visual system a "grand competition"/ a "competitive system"?
During development, the development of the visual system is dependent on the visual stimuli an individual is exposed to. In this sense, the neurons in the visual system are based on a "move it or lose it" scenario (think of the cat eye patch experiment).
How did cats contribute to our knowledge of orientation columns?
Researchers placed young cats into chambers with only one orientation (or angle/degree of light). After a few weeks, they observed the cats and noticed that cats could only process light in the same degree as the light they were exposed to in the chamber. This demonstrated the presence of orientation columns in visual processing and the "move it or lose it" nature of the visual system during critical periods.
A patient brings in their child with a lazy eye. What would you recommend to correct the child's lazy eye? Why?
The child should wear an eye patch over the dominant (non-lazy eye) which would force the lazy eye to work harder (thus receiving more input of visual stimuli) and that eye's ocular dominance columns to grow stronger.
Who is the best TA?
Hallie (:
(or Erika)