Generalization
explanations as examples of general laws which are revealed through experiments
reduction
explanations of complex phenomena in terms of simpler ones
mind-body question
asks how complex mental activities can be generated by physical properties of the brain
dualism
mind and body are separate, body is ordinary matter mind is not
monism
the doctrine that reality is ultimately made up of only one essence, phenomenon of the nervous system
Rene Descartes
17th century French philosopher; wrote Discourse on Method; 1st principle "i think therefore i am"; believed mind and matter were completely separate; known as father of modern rationalism he thought the body was a machine
Reflexes
specific patterns of motor response that are triggered by specific patterns of sensory stimulation, called such by Descartes
Johannes Muller
doctrine of specific nerve energies
specific nerve energies
the doctrine that the receptors and neural channels for the different senses are independent and operate in their own special ways and can produce only one particular sensation each
experimental ablation
the research method in which the function of a part of the brain is inferred by observing the behaviors an animal can no longer perform after that part is damaged
Darwin's theories gave rise to
functionalism
Functionalism
A school of psychology that focused on how our mental and behavioral processes function - how they enable us to adapt, survive, and flourish.
Are brain and body size proportional?
No, brains vary in the amount of neurons per gram of tissue which matters more than size
Neoteny
A slowing of the process of maturation, allowing more time for growth; an important factor in the development of large brains
IACUC
Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee
IRB
Institutional Review Board (human experiments)
informed consent
an ethical principle that research participants be told enough to enable them to choose whether they wish to participate
Neuroethics
a branch of ethics that addresses the dangers and benefits of research investigating the brain
behavioral neuroscientist
A scientist who studies the physiology of behavior, primarily by performing physiological and behavioral experiments with laboratory animals.
explanatory reductionism
understanding components of a system that will ultimately explain behavioral charecteristics
Proximal explanations
physiological and ontogenetic
physiological explanation
relationship between behavior and activity of the brain and other organs
ontogenetic explanation
development within an individual like genes and nutrition
ultimate explanations
functional and phylogenetic
functional explanation
purpose served by particular behavior (adaptation for survival)
phylogenetic explanation
evolutionary organization of the capacity for particular behavior
william james
founder of functionalism; studied how humans use perception to function in our environment
issue with mentalism and dualism
don't agree with law of conservation of energy, can't properly evaluate
primitive visual system
A person is not aware of visual information received by this system, found in fish and reptiles as well as mammals
complex visual system
mammalian" because it evolved later; present in mammals (along with simple system) damage abolishes perception and awareness of stimuli
Blindsight
a condition in which a person can respond to a visual stimulus without consciously experiencing it
split brain
surgical transection of corpus callosum to control seizures
unilateral neglect
damage to right parietal cortex, reported lack of awareness of left half of objects, including self
Wilder Penfield
-stimulated brain with electrical probes while patients underwent surgery for epilepsy
-created maps of sensory and motor cortices
How are kingdoms defined by?
evolution of neurons and muscles
How many kingdoms of living organisms are there?
five
which kingdom is the most recently evolved?
animal
Which primates are our closest relatives?
chimps and bonobos
stabilizing selection
Natural selection that favors intermediate variants by acting against extreme phenotypes
directional selection
occurs when natural selection favors one of the extreme variations of a trait
divergent selection
natural selection removes members near the average, split population in two
convergent selection
shared environmental pressures produce mimicked traits
How has the human brain evolved?
massive increase in brain size and mass as well as brain to body mass ratio. Neoteny has also been important.
rostral encephalization
important functions map onto larger areas of the brain, this is the evolutionary expansion on rostral structures. The elaboration, not the addition, of existing structures
Neocortex in humans
occupies a larger proportion of brain volume than any other species
Human Cortex
contains between 2.6 billion and 14 billion neurons
2-4mm thick, and about the size of a sheet of newspaper when spread out, contains bigger and more branched cells
more complex brain=
facilitated reversal learning
radiator hypothesis
A theory that early hominids enable the brain to grow larger by increasing blood circulation in the brain to improve brain cooling
Abolitionists
demand total cessation of animal use for food, work, companionship and research
Minimalists
Desire reduction in animal research and controls on type of research, distress to animals, and species used