BRAIN

many neurons in the visual cortex (the part of the brain responsible for processing
visual information) are hooked up in such a way as to inhibit each other (Beck &
Kastner, 2009). When one neuron fires, it suppresses the firing of other nearby
neurons. If two neurons that are hooked up in an inhibitory way both fire, then
neither neuron can fire as vigorously as it would otherwise. This competitive
behavior among neurons limits how much visual information the brain can respond
to at the same time.

The brain stem is sometimes referred to as the “trunk” of the brain. It is

responsible for many of the neural functions that keep us alive, including regulating
our respiration (breathing), heart rate, and digestion. The brain stem includes the
medulla, pons, midbrain, and diencephalon (which consists of thalamus and
hypothalamus). Collectively, these regions also are involved in our sleep–wake
cycle, some sensory and motor function, as well as growth and other hormonal
behaviors.
The cerebellum is critical for coordinated movement and posture. More recently,
neuroimaging studies have implicated it in a range of cognitive abilities, including
language. The cerebellum’s influence extends beyond that of movement and
posture, given that it contains the greatest number of neurons of any structure in
the brain.

THE CEREBRAL HEMISPHERES

‘Large brain’ in Latin coined by Aristotle. Cerebral hemispheres are responsible for our cognitive abilities
and conscious experience. They consist of the cerebral cortex and accompanying white
matter as well as the subcortical structures of the basal ganglia, amygdala, and
hippocampal formation. The cerebral cortex is the largest and most visible part of
the brain. It has characteristic gray and convoluted appearance; the folds and
grooves of the cortex are called gyri and sulci (gyrus and sulcus if referring to just
one), respectively.
The occipital lobe is responsible for vision, as is much of the temporal lobe.
The temporal lobe is also involved in auditory processing, memory, and
multisensory integration (e.g., the convergence of vision and audition).
The parietal lobe houses the somatosensory (body sensations) cortex and
structures involved in visual attention, as well as multisensory convergence zones.
The frontal lobe houses the motor cortex and structures involved in motor
planning, language, judgment, and decision-making.
The subcortical structures are so named because they reside beneath the cortex.
The basal ganglia are critical to voluntary movement and as such make contact
with the cortex, the thalamus, and the brain stem. The amygdala and hippocampal
formation are part of the limbic system, which also includes some cortical
structures. The limbic system plays an important role in emotion and, in particular,
in aversion and gratification.
Some functions of the brain are contralateral in the 2 hemispheres, for example
both are responsible for sensory and motor function. Other functions
are lateralized; that is, they reside primarily in one hemisphere or the other. For
example, for right-handed and the majority of left-handed individuals, the left
hemisphere is most responsible for language.
Callosotomy: A surgery in which the corpus callosum is removed

THE GREY AND WHITE MATTER

The gray matter is composed of the neuronal cell bodies (see module, “Neurons”).
The cell bodies (or soma) contain the genes of the cell and are responsible for
metabolism (keeping the cell alive) and synthesizing proteins. In this way, the cell
body is the workhorse of the cell. The white matter is composed of the axons of
the neurons, and, in particular, axons that are covered with a sheath
of myelin (fatty support cells that are whitish in color).

STUDYING THE HUMAN BRAIN

One of the first organized attempts to study the functions of the brain
was phrenology, a popular field of study in the first half of the 19th century.
Phrenologists assumed that various features of the brain, such as its uneven
surface, are reflected on the skull, although this was later proven wrong. phrenology
nonetheless significantly impacted current-day neuroscience and its thinking about
the functions of the brain.
Dissection of the brain, in either animals or cadavers, has been a critical tool of
neuroscientists since 340 BC when Aristotle first published his dissections. Because
the brain can be sliced very thinly, examined under the microscope, and particular
cells highlighted, this method is especially useful for studying specific groups of
neurons or small brain structures; that is, it has a very high spatial resolution.
Virtual dissection studies with living humans are also conducted. Here, the brain is
imaged using computerized axial tomography (CAT) or MRI scanners.

Some researchers induce lesions or ablate (i.e. remove) parts of the brain in animals.

Spatial resolution
A term that refers to how small the elements of an image are; high spatial
resolution means the device or technique can resolve very small elements; in
neuroscience it describes how small of a structure in the brain can be imaged.
Because the brain works by generating electrical signals, it is also possible to
change brain function with electrical stimulation. Transcranial magnetic
stimulation (TMS) refers to a technique whereby a brief magnetic pulse is applied
to the head that temporarily induces a weak electrical current in the brain. But its
application is limited to the surface of the cortex.
Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is similar to TMS except that it
uses electrical current directly, rather than inducing it with magnetic pulses, by
placing small electrodes on the skull. A brain area is stimulated by a low current
(equivalent to an AA battery) for a more extended period of time than TMS. When
used in combination with cognitive training, tDCS has been shown to improve
performance of many cognitive functions such as mathematical ability, memory,
attention, and coordination.

NEUROIMAGING
Neuroimaging tools are used to study the brain in action; that is, when it is engaged
in a specific task.
1- Positron emission tomography (PET) records blood flow in the brain. The
PET scanner detects the radioactive substance that is injected into the
bloodstream of the participant just before or while he or she is performing
some task (e.g., adding numbers). Because active neuron populations require
metabolites, more blood and hence more radioactive substance flows into
those regions. PET scanners detect the injected radioactive substance in
specific brain regions, allowing researchers to infer that those areas were
active during the task.
2- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) also relies on blood flow
in the brain. This method, however, measures the changes in oxygen levels in
the blood and does not require any substance to be injected into the
participant.
Both have good spatial resolution but not good temporal resolution because it
takes a couple of seconds for the blood to reach the brain.
3- Electroencephalography (EEG), on the other hand, measures the electrical
activity of the brain, and therefore, it has a much greater temporal resolution.
Like tDCS, electrodes are placed on the participant’s head when he or she is
performing a task. In this case, however, many more electrodes are used, and
they measure rather than produce activity. Because the electrical activity
picked up at any particular electrode can be coming from anywhere in the
brain, EEG has poor spatial resolution; that is, we have only a rough idea of
which part of the brain generates the measured activity.
4- Diffuse optical imaging (DOI) can give researchers the best of both
worlds: high spatial and temporal resolution, depending on how it is used.
Here, one shines infrared light into the brain, and measures the light that
comes back out. DOI relies on the fact that the properties of the light change
when it passes through oxygenated blood, or when it encounters active
neurons. Researchers can then infer from the properties of the collected light
what regions in the brain were engaged by the task. When DOI is set up to
detect changes in blood oxygen levels, the temporal resolution is low and
comparable to PET or fMRI. However, when DOI is set up to directly detect
active neurons, it has both high spatial and temporal resolution.
Because of the varying resolutions of each method, strongest evidence of
functions of brain parts comes from converging evidence.
 SIGMUND FREUD
induction: drawing general conclusions from specific observations.
Deductive reasoning starts with general principles that are applied to specific
instances. When the general principles, or premises, are true, and the structure of
the argument is valid, the conclusion is, by definition, proven; it must be so. A
deductive truth must apply in all relevant circumstances.
Features of good scientific theories are as follows:

Falsifiability is another important feature of a scientific claim. In the early 20th

century, Karl Popper (1902-1994) suggested that science can be distinguished
from pseudoscience (or just everyday reasoning) because scientific claims are
capable of being falsified. That is, a claim can be conceivably demonstrated to be
untrue.
Freud’s theories were detested by Karl popper because he believed them to be
unfalsifiable.
Null-hypothesis significance testing (NHST) assesses the probability that the
collected data (the observations) would be the same if there were no relationship
between the variables in the study. There can be 2 types of errors in this way:
1- type I error—when the researcher concludes there is a relationship between
two variables but, in reality, there is not.
2- type II error, when the data fail to show a relationship between variables
that actually exists.

B.F. SKINNER

Classical conditioning
A classical CS (e.g., the bell) does not merely elicit a simple, unitary reflex. Pavlov
emphasized salivation because that was the only response he measured. But his
bell almost certainly elicited a whole system of responses that functioned to get the
organism ready for the upcoming US (food). For example, in addition to salivation,
CSs (such as the bell) that signal that food is near also elicit the secretion of gastric
acid, pancreatic enzymes, and insulin. All of these responses prepare the body for
digestion. Additionally, the CS elicits approach behavior and a state of excitement.
flavors associated with stomach pain or illness become avoided and disliked. For
example, a person who gets sick after drinking too much tequila may acquire a
profound dislike of the taste and odor of tequila—a phenomenon called taste
aversion conditioning. The fact that flavors are often associated with so many
consequences of eating is important for animals (including rats and humans) that
are frequently exposed to new foods. And it is clinically relevant.
fear conditioning plays a role in creating many anxiety disorders in humans, such
as phobias and panic disorders, where people associate cues with panic or other
emotional trauma. Here, rather than a physical response (like drooling), the CS
triggers an emotion.
Drug cues have an even more interesting property: They elicit responses that often
“compensate” for the upcoming effect of the drug. For example, morphine itself
suppresses pain; however, if someone is used to taking morphine, a cue that signals
the “drug is coming soon” can actually make the person more sensitive to pain.
Because the person knows a pain suppressant will soon be administered, the body
becomes more sensitive, anticipating that “the drug will soon take care of it.”
Remarkably, such conditioned compensatory responses in turn decrease the
impact of the drug on the body—because the body has become more sensitive to
pain. Overdose is usually not due to an increase in dosage, but to taking the drug in
a new place without the familiar cues—which would have otherwise allowed the
user to tolerate the drug.
A final effect of classical cues is that they motivate ongoing operant behavior. For
example, in the presence of food-associated cues (e.g., smells), a rat (or an
overeater) will work harder for food. And finally, even in the presence of negative
cues (like something that signals fear), a rat, a human, or any other organism will
work harder to avoid those situations that might lead to trauma.
blocking. In this effect, an animal first learns to associate one CS—call it stimulus A
—with a US. Once this association is learned, in a second phase, a second stimulus
—stimulus B—is presented alongside stimulus A, such that the two stimuli are
paired with the US together. However, because the animal has already learned the
association between stimulus A (the bell) and the food, the animal doesn’t learn an
association between stimulus B (the light for instance) and the food. That is, the
conditioned response only occurs during the presentation of stimulus A, because the
earlier conditioning of A “blocks” the conditioning of B when B is added to A.
prediction error, or the chance that a conditioned stimulus won’t lead to the
expected outcome.
Classical conditioning is strongest if the CS and US are intense or salient. It is also
best if the CS and US are relatively new and the organism hasn’t been frequently
exposed to them before. And it is especially strong if the organism’s biology has
prepared it to associate a particular CS and US. For example, rats and humans are
naturally inclined to associate an illness with a flavor, rather than with a light or
tone. Because foods are most commonly experienced by taste, if there is a
particular food that makes us ill, associating the flavor (rather than the appearance
—which may be similar to other foods) with the illness will more greatly ensure we
avoid that food in the future, and thus avoid getting sick. This sorting tendency,
which is set up by evolution, is called preparedness.
This is called spontaneous recovery: following a lapse in exposure to the CS after
extinction has occurred, sometimes re-exposure to the CS (e.g., the smell of
chalkboards) can evoke the CR again (e.g., the agony of detention).
renewal effect: After extinction, if the CS is tested in a new context, such as a
different room or location, the CR can also return. These effects have been
interpreted to suggest that extinction inhibits rather than erases the learned
behavior, and this inhibition is mainly expressed in the context in which it is learned

Instrumental conditioning:
Although you know that green means go, only when you have the green arrow do
you turn. In this regard, the operant behavior is now said to be under stimulus
control. (rat and lever, light on off example.)
The stimulus controlling the operant response is called a discriminative stimulus.
It can be associated directly with the response, or the reinforcer. However, it usually
does not elicit the response the way a classical CS does. Instead, it is said to “set
the occasion for” the operant response. For example, a canvas put in front of an
artist does not elicit painting behavior or compel her to paint. It allows, or sets the
occasion for, painting to occur.
Operant conditioning involves choice:
Another thing to know about operant conditioning is that the response always
requires choosing one behavior over others. The rat chooses to press the lever
instead of sleeping or scratching its ear in the back of the box. The alternative
behaviors are each associated with their own reinforcers. And the tendency to
perform a particular action depends on both the reinforcers earned for it and the
reinforcers earned for its alternatives.
quantitative law of effect acknowledges the fact that the effects of reinforcing
one behavior depend crucially on how much reinforcement is earned for the
behavior’s alternatives. For this reason, alcohol, sex, or drugs may be less powerful
reinforcers if the person’s environment is full of other sources of reinforcement,
such as achievement at work or love from family members.
Cognition in instrumental learning:
reinforcer devaluation effect, The finding that an animal will stop performing an
instrumental response that once led to a reinforcer if the reinforcer is separately
made aversive or undesirable. Reinforcers do not merely stamp in responses; the
animal learns much more than that. The behavior is said to be “goal-directed”
because it is influenced by the current value of its associated goal.
Once goal-directed can become a habit if the instrumental action is performed
continuously over a period of time and is unaffected by the reinforcer devaluation.

Observational learning
Observational learning is a component of Albert Bandura’s Social Learning
Theory (Bandura, 1977), which posits that individuals can learn novel responses via
observation of key others’ behaviors. Observational learning does not necessarily
require reinforcement, but instead hinges on the presence of others, referred to
as social models. Social models are typically of higher status or authority
compared to the observer, examples of which include parents, teachers, and police
officers.
Bandura theorizes that the observational learning process consists of four parts. The
first is attention—as, quite simply, one must pay attention to what s/he is observing
in order to learn. The second part is retention: to learn one must be able to retain
the behavior s/he is observing in memory. The third part is initiation, acknowledges
that the learner must be able to execute (or initiate) the learned behavior. Lastly,
the observer must possess the motivation to engage in observational learning. In
our vignette, the child must want to learn how to play the game in order to properly
engage in observational learning.
Bobo doll experiment: groups of children observed adults interact with the
bobo doll, aggressively and non-aggressively and when given the chance
followed the example of their observations. children in the aggression group
showed less aggressive behavior if they witnessed the adult model receive
punishment for aggressing against Bobo. Bandura referred to this process
as vicarious reinforcement, as the children did not experience the reinforcement
or punishment directly, yet were still influenced by observing it.