Psychology. Theme 2: Part 1. Biopsychology. Name:

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1 Name: Biopsychology Theme 2: Part 1 Psychology

2 Lesson Introduction Module 2: Blopsychologlcal Theme 17 System Limbic Corpus Callosum Cerebral Cortex Figure 2.8 Brain Structures the brainstem, the thalamus, the cerebellum, and the limbic system. They evolved first. They are called lower level brain structures. They include The innermost structures of the brain are similar to the brains of all mammals. Lower Level Brain Structures to study the brain. the field of psychology. You will also learn about the methods that are available In this lesson, you will learn about the brain structures that are important to is a living system made up of billions of individual nerve cells called neurons. pound, it is the most amazing and complex piece of matter in the universe. It Your brain is a true wonder of nature that we take for granted. Pound for sits behind the protective shell of the skull in fluid called cerebrospinal fluid. It LESSON 2: THE BRAIN

3 Brainstem The brainstem is the oldest, most basic part of the brain. It is located where the spinal cord becomes part of the brain. The brainstem is responsible for automatic survival functions. As you move up the spinal cord toward the brain, the first area is the medulla. It is in charge of life support; most notably, breathing, circulation, and swallowing. If you damaged this area, it would lead to your death. Another part of the brainstem is called the reticular formation. It is a network of nerves that goes from the spinal cord to the brain. It is important in controlling wakefulness and arousal. If you damaged this area you would be in a coma. Thai a mu s The thalamus is on top of the brainstem in the very middle of everything. It is the sensory switchboard. Incoming information from your senses funnels into the thalamus. The thalamus then distributes the information to the proper regions of the brain for processing. It is often likened to old-fashioned telephone switchboard operators. Cerebellum () The cerebellum extends from the back of the brain. It is often referred to as the little brain. It works with other regions of the brain to control balance, muscle coordination, and memory (for knowing how to use your body to do things like walk, sit, and so on). It is important in our ability to walk, run, and write smoothly. If you damaged this part of the brain, you would still be able to walk, run, and write, but it would be without much coordination. Limbic System The last of the lower level brain structures is the limbic system. It is located around the thalamus. Three structures make up this system: the hypothalamus, the hippocampus, and the amygdala. The functions of the limbic system help to control memory, fear, aggression, hunger, and thirst. The hypothalamus is located just under the front of the thalamus. It helps control hunger and thirst, the fight-or-flight response in stressful situations, and body temperature. It also plays a large role in the experience of emotion, pleasure, and sexual function. The hippocampus wraps around the thalamus and plays an important role in processing new memories. 1.8 Grade 12 Psychology

4 Cerebral Cortex J Module 2: lopsychoioglcai Theme 19 Rear Left Hemisphere Right Hemisphere WernickWs Area 4 Visual Cortex I Occipital Lobe Broces Area Frontal Lobe Corpus Callosuni Side View Top View Figure 2.9 Lobes and Hemispheres of the Cerebral Cortex called the frontal lobes, parietal lobes, temporal lobes, and occipital lobes. The cerebral cortex is divided into two halves called hemispheres: left and three square metres to hold all of the neurons and neural connections. thirty million neurons in a tissue layer that is only about one third of a more brain tissue to be packed into a small space. There can be an estimated centimetre. If the cortex was not wrinkled, our skull would have to be about eight different areas called lobes. There are four in each hemisphere. They are information processing centre. The wrinkles, which are called fissures, allow The wrinkled outer part of the brain is called the cerebral cortex. It is the right. They look like mirror images of each other. The cerebral cortex has such as fear and anger. The amygdala is important for controlling emotion, especially emotions

5 and plan is due to the frontal lobes. responsible for abstract thought and emotional control. The ability to judge of the brain, behind the eyes. It is believed that this part of the brain is The frontal lobes are the large areas that are located at the top front part 20 Grade 12 Psychology temporal lobes. will learn more about this later in the lesson. Another specialized area, called Wernicke s area, is located in this lobe. You The temporal lobes are located in the vicinity of your ears. The function of Likewise, sound received by the right ear is also processed in both of the a Sound received by the left ear is processed in both of the temporal lobes. these lobes is to process sound sensed by the ears. Temporal Lobes sensory cortex receives sensations from the bottom of the body, progressing down the cortex to the bottom, which processes signals from our face and head. cortex. This area receives incoming touch sensations from the rest of the body. This area is organized like the motor cortex of the frontal lobes. The top of the The parietal lobes are located behind the frontal lobe; nonetheless, they are still on the top part of the brain. The parietal lobes contain the sensory cortex, also called the somato-sensory Parietal Lobes controlled by the largest area on the motor cortex. Another interesting fact is that the bigger parts of your body are not toes. The motor cortex in your right hemisphere controls movement on the the cortex. This means that the top of the motor cortex controls the feet and movement on the right side of your body. bottom of this cortex (by the ears), progressing down the body as you go up It is interesting that the top of the body is controlled by the neurons at the sending signals to our muscles that control our voluntary movements. The motor cortex is located at the back of the frontal lobes. It is responsible for left side of the body and the motor cortex in your left hemisphere controls will learn more about this topic later in the lesson. This area includes Broca s area. It is important in your ability to speak. You Frontal Lobes

6 ) Module 2: Blopsychologlcal Theme 21. Secondary School Tariff. HarperCollinsCollegePubllshers, Reproduced in accordance with Access Copyright Elementary and Figure 2.10: Zlmbardo, Philip G., and Richard J. Gerrig. Psychology and Life. 14th ed. New York, NY: k 5, Poitive emotions Negaive ei Sequences of movements Spatial interpretatio, 5, and numbers afld music I ( Memory for words Menry for shape Word recognition., Facial recognit n commands \ commands i eaponse to complex 1 Responses to sir,l e 4/ - nd writing speaki,ig ) but Qot \ eptitiø.5 Left Hemisphere Right Hemisphere Figure 2.10 Hemispheric Differences called the corpus callosum. a band of neural fibres that connects the two together. This band of fibres is The truth is that your brain is divided into two hemispheres. These two left brain. This is deceiving because you only have one brain, not two. right and left? These hemispheres are often referred to as right brain and hemispheres communicate with each other. They can do this because there is Do you remember that the cerebral cortex is divided into two hemispheres: Hemispheric Differences are processed in the visual cortex in the right occipital lobe, and impulses from the left half of each retina are processed in the visual cortex in the left occipital lobe. It is interesting to know that impulses from the right half of each retina Impulses from the retinas of our eyes are sent to the visual cortex in these lobes. area is to interpret messages from our eyes. away from the eyes. This is strange because one of the major functions of this The occipital lobes are at the very back of the brain. They are the farthest Occipital Lobes

7 Language and Spatial Abilities Each hemisphere of the brain has specific abilities. Language is the best example of a difference between the right and left hemispheres. There are two language areas located in the left hemisphere. They are the two that were mentioned earlier in the lesson: Broca s area and Wernicke s area. Broca s Area Broca s area is located in the frontal lobe. It is involved with the muscle movement that is needed in order to speak. If you damage this area, you can form ideas but you can t turn those ideas into speech that makes any sense. Wernicke s Area Wernicke s area is located in the temporal lobe. It is involved in your ability to understand what someone else says. The right hemisphere has its own specific abilities. It has spatial abilities. This means that it lets you organize things in a given space; for instance, judging distances. It also helps you make connections between words, like connecting ideas and names of things. Split Brain Much of what we know about the functions of the right and left hemispheres comes from studies of people who have damage or disease in parts of their brain. In some patients, the two hemispheres have been split apart from each other at the corpus callosum. Splitting the two hemispheres has been helpful in controlling seizures in epileptic patients. 22 Grade 12 Psychology

8 Module : Blopsychological Theme 23 continued 5. Thinking about the party tomorrow night 4. Listening to a rock concert 3. Daydreaming about what you are going to do later 2. Drawing a map 1. Studying psychology concepts behaviour. hemispheres, explain what each hemisphere does in the space under the on the right hemisphere, put an R on the line. If it involves both an L on the line beside the behaviour. Conversely, if it relies primarily If the following behaviour relies primarily on the left hemisphere, put musical, and emotional tasks. The right hemisphere of the brain is primarily responsible for spatial, symbols, logic, and math. The left hemisphere of the brain is primarily responsible for language, Learning Activity 2.2: Brain

9 6. Reading yourtext messages 24 Grade 12 Psycho ogy plasticity. The ability to change is greatest in childhood. The older you are, know this from case studies where damage has occurred because of injury or the information about brain structure and function in one example. the harder it is for your brain tissue to assume new functions. Scientists disease. Before we look at the methods that scientists use, let s incorporate all that brain tissue has the ability to be modified or changed? This is called By now, you should realize that the brain is an amazing thing. Did you know Brain Plasticity Check the answer key. 10. Doing this assignment 9. Doodling 8. Redecorating your room 7. 6x4 2+5 Learning Activity 2.2: Brain (continued) C

10 game. Let s look at how different brain structures are involved in playing a card Module 2: Blopsychologlcal Theme 25 system appetite (popcorn and drinks) storage the particular card game Parietal Lobe Processes sensory input Helps you shift position when Hippocampus Processes memories for Helps you remember how to play other players sensory areas in the cortex cards with any motor movements the game Thalamus Directs messages to the Coordinates the images of the Cerebellum Coordinates voluntary Holds you upright and supports Corpus Callosurn Connects the two hemispheres Keeps both eyes on all the card and judgments not you are pleased with the Frontal Lobe Manages speaking and muscle Allows you to speak to the other movement and balance appropriate card selection through sensory cortex some body parts go to sleep players. players Temporal Lobe Processes auditory information Monitors the voices of the other Medulla Controls heartbeat and Increases heart rate and the opposing players dealt and the body language of breathing breathing during exciting play movement, and makes plans players and judges whether or Occipital Lobe Processes visual information Registers what cards have been Hypothalamus Maintains autonomic nervous Regulates body temperature and Brain Site Function Involvement Frontal Lobe Controls arousal and attention Maintains attention during boring plays Amygdala Involved in emotion Manages your emotions during that brain site is involved in the card game is described. playing a card game. The general brain function is identified and then how The table below identifies how specific brain sites would be involved in Brain Structure and Function: Example

11 Learning Activity 23: Superheroes C) Science fiction writers are always searching for good plots that will capture the interest of their readers. Quite often, they transform normal human beings into superhuman beings some good and some evil. For example, because of a laboratory accident, a person might develop superhuman strength. In this learning activity, you are to create a superhero by pretending that it is possible to magnify or diminish the abilities of a specific region of the human brain. Identify the area that would have to be altered and then create a simple storyline in which the special ability would be useful. Name of superhero What super ability does this superhero possess? C What brain structure is modified? continved 26 Grade 12 Psychology

12 What simple plot would encourage this superhero to come to the rescue? Module 2: Blopsychologlcal Theme n 27 information covered in this lesson to the development of a superhero character. There is no answer key for this learning activity as you are to apply the Learning Activity 2.3: Superheroes (continuedj

13 described below. determining brain functions. Some of the methods scientists have used are A big challenge with respect to brain research has been in creating ways of 28 Grade 12 Psychology Secondary School Tariff. c) HarperCollinsCollegePublishers, Reproduced in accordance with Access Copyright Elementary and Figure 2.11: Zlmbardo, Philip G., and Richard J. Gerrig. Psychology and Life. 14th ed. New York, NY: Photo Credits: Warren Museum, Harvard Medical School surgeons removed parts of the frontal lobe in order to control patients with a mental disability. It resulted in the patients becoming calmer. The most famous example of a lesion is the frontal lobotomy. In the past, never done as an experiment. Surgeons lesion parts of the brain if they think the removal of a brain tumour. that this type of surgery will be beneficial to the patient. An example of this is Lesioning is the removal or destruction of part of the brain. Ethically, this is Lesions 0 Figure 2.11 Skull of Phineas Gage involved in emotional control. one provide researchers with clues about brain function. Gage became highly damage and how his behaviour and personality changed. Accidents like this that damaged the front part of his brain. His doctor took notes on the brain In 1848, a railroad worker named Phineas Gage was involved in an accident emotional and impulsive. This was the first clue that the frontal lobe was Accidents Studying the Brain 0

14 The EEG detects brain waves by recording electrical voltages. Wire electrodes action, or thinks about something, there is a change in the pattern of the brain are hooked up to a person and when that person is stimulated, performs an Module 2: Blopsychologlcal Theme 29 Secondary School Tariff. HarperCotllnsCollegePubllshers, Reproduced in accordance with Access Copyright Elementary and Figure 2.12: Zlmbardo, Philip G., and Richard J. Gerrig. Psychology and Life. 14th ed. New York, NY: Hours of sleep B Stage 4 Stage 3 Stage 2 Stage 1 REM REM REM REM REM Awake Figure 2.12 Stages of Sleep stages of sleep and dreaming. consciousness. This method is used in sleep research to identify the different wave. It is because of this method that we know about the different stages of Electroencephalogram (EEG)

15 Computerized Axial Tomography (CAT scan) The CAT scan is like an X-ray. It uses several X-ray cameras that rotate around the brain. When all of these pictures are combined you get a three dimensional picture of the structures of the brain. It doesn t tell you anything about the function of the brain structures. Figure 2.13 CAT Scan 0 30 Grade 12 Psychology

16 location of brain material. brain. The MRI uses magnetic fields to measure the thickness (or density) and The MRI is like the CAT scan because both give you a detailed picture of the Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) - Module 2: Blopsychologlcal Theme 31 Secondary School Tariff. HarperCollinsColiegePublishers, Reproduced in accordance with Access Copyright Elementary and Figure 2.14: Zlmbardo, Philip G., and Richard 3. Gerrig. Psychology and Life. 14th ed. New York, NY: Photo Credits: Rainbow Figure 2.14 Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRJ)

17 Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scan The PET scan lets researchers see what areas of the brain are most active when someone is performing certain tasks. It measures how much of something the brain is using. This could be glucose, neurotransmitters, drugs, or oxygen. The scan takes place in real time. This means that the researchers can see what is going on as the patient thinks about certain things. It has shown researchers which areas of the brain are activated by seeing a word, hearing a word, speaking a word, or thinking a word. C Figure 2.15 PET Scan 0 Figure 2.15: Zlmbardo, Philip G., and Richard J. Gerrig. Psychology and Life. 14th ed. New York, NY: I-IarperCollinsCollegePublishers, Reproduced In accordance with Access Copyright Elementary and Secondary School Tariff. 32 Grade 12 Psychology

18 insight about brain activity during tasks that require a lot of thinking. structure and gives information about blood flow in the brain. This provides and the PET (positron emission tomography) scan. It shows details of brain Module 2: Blopsychologlcal Theme I 33 School Tariff. Benjamin CummIngs, Reproduced in accordance with Access Copyright Elementary and Secondary Figure 2.16: Campbell, Nell A., and Jane B. Reece. BIology. 7th ed. San Francisco, CA: Pearson Education, Figure 2.16 fmrj The fmri combines the technology of the MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fmri)

19 0 amygdala). Lower level brain structures include the brainstem, reticular formation, composed of lower level brain structures and the cerebral cortex. The brain is often described as the most complex system in the universe. It is 34 Grade 12 Psychology parietal, temporal, and occipital lobes. sensory cortex, Broca s area, and Wernicke s areas. surgically invading their bodies. brain scanning tools can study the brains of healthy individuals without have gained insight into the structure and functions of the brain. These It is through case studies and brain scanning tools that researchers The cerebral cortex is divided into two hemispheres that contain frontal, The lobes also contain some specialized areas such as the motor cortex, the thalamus, cerebellum, and limbic system (hypothalamus, hippocampus, and Lesson Summary,1

20 1. Linnea fell while skiing this past winter. When she fell, she hit the back of her head. She now has difficulty moving about. Her movements are 2. Carlos was in a car accident recently. He seems okay except that he continued Module 2: Blopsychologlcal Theme 35 appears to be in forming new memories. has trouble remembering things after the accident. He can remember things that happened in his life prior to the accident but his difficulty movements. jerky and she has to concentrate hard to make even the simplest of damaged (1 mark) and explain what methods could be used to detect the damage (2 marks) for the three scenarios. three situations. Identify the precise area of the brain that has been Describe the brain injury and its impact on behaviour for each of the Assignment 2.1: Brain Injury (9 marks)

21 Assignment 2.1: Brain Injury (continued) 3. To help pay her way for the school s band trip to Brandon, Shawna took a part-time job in the evenings. While she was working, there was a fire and an explosion. The explosion caused a small piece of metal to lodge deeply in her left frontal lobe. She made a complete recovery except that she can t express herself at all; she can only utter one or two words Grade 12 Psychology