PSYC 1000 - Chapter 3 - Part 1

Brain Damage and its Impact

• Damage to Broca's area can lead to difficulty speaking.
• The corpus callosum connects the two halves of the cerebral cortex.
• Splitting the corpus callosum can help control epilepsy.
• Neuroplasticity is the brain's ability to adapt after an injury.
• Practicing singing words can be a therapeutic approach for stroke patients with Broca's aphasia.
• An electroencephalogram (EEG) measures electrical activity in the brain.
• Positron emission tomography (PET) uses a radioactive glucose-like substance to analyze biochemical activity in the brain.
• A major drawback of PET scans is the time it takes to acquire data.
• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) uses magnetic fields to measure hydrogen atom spinning in the brain.
• Functional MRI (fMRI) measures blood flow within the brain.
• Magnetoencephalography (MEG) measures the electrical activity of brain cells directly.
• A lesion is an area of damage in the brain.
• Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) can disrupt or stimulate brain activity, unlike other techniques.
• The brain contains approximately 100 billion individual cells.
• The medulla controls life-sustaining functions like breathing and heart rate.
• Damage to the cerebellum can disrupt motor coordination.
• The cerebellum is located in the hindbrain.
• The midbrain is involved in reflexive movements.
• Tourette's syndrome is believed to be caused by an imbalance in the basal ganglia.
• The nucleus accumbens is associated with reward and pleasure.
• The limbic system is involved in emotion and memory.
• The amygdala plays a role in fear response.
• The hypothalamus regulates essential functions like eating, drinking, and body temperature.
• The thalamus acts as a relay station for sensory information.
• The cerebral cortex is responsible for higher cognitive functions like reasoning and language.
• The wrinkling of the cerebral cortex increases surface area without increasing brain size.
• White matter in the brain appears white due to myelinated axons.
• The frontal lobes are associated with planning and impulse control.
• The primary motor cortex controls voluntary movement.
• The parietal lobes are involved in touch and bodily awareness.
• Damage to the parietal lobe can lead to a loss of touch sensation.
• The occipital lobes are involved in vision.
• Damage to the occipital lobe can cause blindness.
• The temporal lobes are involved in hearing, language, and object recognition.
• The right hemisphere specializes in visual skills and music processing.
• The left hemisphere generally specializes in language and math.
• Neurons are cells that send and receive information.

Brain and Language

• Damage to Broca's area causes difficulty speaking.
• The corpus callosum is a bundle of nerves connecting the two halves of the cerebral cortex.
• Splitting the corpus callosum is used to control epilepsy.

Neuroplasticity

• Neuroplasticity is the brain's ability to adapt after injury.
• Practicing singing words is a therapy for stroke patients with Broca's aphasia to encourage neuroplasticity.

Brain Imaging Techniques

• An electroencephalogram (EEG) measures brain wave patterns produced by electrical activity.
• A positron emission tomography (PET) scan measures biochemical activity in the brain using a radioactive glucose-like substance.
• PET scans have a major drawback of taking a long time to acquire data.
• A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) Scan uses magnetic fields to measure the spinning of hydrogen atoms in the brain.
• A functional MRI (fMRI) measures blood flow within the brain.
• Magnetoencephalography (MEG) measures the electrical activity of brain cells directly.
• A lesion is an area of damage in the brain.
• Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive technique to stimulate or disrupt brain activity.

Brain Structures

• The human brain has approximately 100 billion individual cells.
• The medulla is a structure in the brainstem responsible for life-sustaining functions, such as breathing and heart rate.
• Damage to the cerebellum disrupts motor coordination, such as playing basketball.
• The cerebellum is located in the hindbrain.
• The midbrain is involved in reflexes and movement, such as ducking to avoid being hit by a foul ball.
• The basal ganglia is linked to Tourette's syndrome.
• The nucleus accumbens is a brain region involved in reward and pleasure.
• The limbic system is dedicated to emotion and memory, it includes the amygdala and the hippocampus.
• The amygdala is responsible for fear responses.
• The hypothalamus regulates bodily functions such as eating, drinking, sexual behavior, and body temperature control.
• The thalamus acts as a relay station for incoming sensory information.
• Higher cognitive functions, such as reasoning and language, are located in the cerebral cortex.
• The wrinkling of the cerebral cortex increases its surface area.
• White matter regions of the brain appear white because they are composed of myelinated axons.

Cerebral Cortex Lobes

• The frontal lobes are associated with higher cognitive functions, such as planning and impulse control.
• The primary motor cortex controls voluntary movement.
• The parietal lobes are involved in touch and bodily awareness.
• The somatosensory cortex receives sensory input from the body.
• The occipital lobes are involved in vision.
• The temporal lobes are involved in hearing, language, and object and face recognition.

Hemispheric Specialization

• The right hemisphere is generally more specialized for visual skills and music processing.
• The left hemisphere is more specialized for language and math.

Neurons

• Neurons are responsible for sending and receiving messages throughout the body.
• Neurons are cells that send and receive information.