Localisation of function in the brain

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What is the Holistic theory of the brain?
Believed before the 19th century, all parts of brain involved in processing of thought+action
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How did Phineas Gage change this type of thinking?
Survived an accident in which a 3ft tampering iron shot through his brain, his personality changed which was due to extensive damage to the FL, discovered through autopsy=suggests function is localised
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What does localisation of function mean?
The idea that different parts of the brain are responsible for different behaviours, processes or activities
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What does the word cortex mean?
Refers to the outer layer of the brain, is 3mm thick in humans, separates us from animals as it is more developed
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What is the motor cortex responsible for?
Generation of voluntary movements, in both hemispheres+controls muscles on opposite sides of the body
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What is the somatosensory cortex responsible for?
Uses sensory info from skin to produces sensations+localise them to body regions, diff levels of somatosensory area determine body part sensitivity, in both sides of brain+control other side
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How does the visual cortex work?
Visual processing begins in retina, nerve impulses transmitted to brain via optic nerve, spans both hemispheres+contains diff areas responsible for diff visual info
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How does the auditory cortex work?
In temporal lobes, auditory pathway begins in inner ear, sounds waves converted to nerve impulses, travel via auditory nerve to cortex
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What are the language areas of the brain?
Broca's area, responsible for speech production, and Wernicke's area, responsible for speech comprehension
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Supporting evidence from brain scans
Wernicke's area active during listening task(requiring comprehension)+Broca's area active in a reading task(requiring speech production)
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However, is a complex process like learning this localised?
Between 10+50% of rat's brains were removed and then had to learn a maze, no area found to be more important than any other in rat's ability to learn the maze=indicates learning requires involvement of whole brain
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Why might this animal research be a problem?
However, as much research on localisation involved animals, it cannot generalise to humans=humans have higher cognitive functioning
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How can individual differences affect the theory?
Pattern of activation in response to language activities varies between people+significant gender diffs, been found that women have larger Broca's+Wernicke's areas than men
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Why is plasticity a problem for this theory?
When brain is damaged rest of brain is able to reorganise itself to recover lost function, several cases of stroke victims able to recover abilities
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How did Phineas Gage change this type of thinking?

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Survived an accident in which a 3ft tampering iron shot through his brain, his personality changed which was due to extensive damage to the FL, discovered through autopsy=suggests function is localised

Card 3

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What does localisation of function mean?

Back

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Card 4

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What does the word cortex mean?

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Card 5

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What is the motor cortex responsible for?

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