There are various methods that are used to study cortical specialisation. Which can be discussed under separate headings; Clinical/anatomical methods which involve intervention of the brain which is accidental such as injury to and disease of the brain. There are also invasive methods which involve intervention of the brain which is deliberate. Other methods used to study cortical specialisation are non-invasive methods which involve recording the brains activity without making deliberate interventions. Clinical and anatomincal studies compare what people could do before their brain damage with what they can do afterwards.
4 marks 3 studies – HM, KF and Clive W MARK SCHEME – KF – impaired stm, unaffected ltm One study which demonstrates that LTM AND STM are different is the study of HM. HM suffered from brain damage due to an operation he underwent to remove the hippocampus from both sides of his brain this was to reduce the severe epilepsy he suffered from. HM’s personality and intellect remained intact but he could now no longer form new long term memories although he could remember things from before his surgery. This could suggest to us that the hippocampus acts as a ‘gateway’ though which new memories must pass before entering permanent
Emotions define who we are to ourselves, as well to others. They are the central core of psychiatric disorders and can change our physical well-being. Emotional experiences can leave strong traces in the brain, either good or bad. Scientists once thought that memories would only go to one system in the brain. But they have discovered that there are various ways for memories to be formed.
For example: the right hemisphere controls the left side of the body, and the right hemisphere controls the left side. I recently watched a video of Michael Gazzaniga, a professor of psychology, conducting split-brain research on one of his patients (Joe) who suffered from severe epilepsy. He decided to divide the corpus callosum in order to stop the electrical impulses between the two brain hemispheres in the hope of controlling Joe’s seizures. After the intervention, both brain hemispheres continued to function even though they were unable to communicate with each other as before, and the epilepsy was effectively controlled. I was surprised to learn that Joe commented that he didn’t notice any significant changes in his behavior or brain function.
This allows and enables us to act as human beings. Through these three interconnected brain parts we are better able to understand the functions and evolution of each individual brain, which subsequently helps to understand human behavior. The Reptilian Brain, also known as the sensory motor brain, is not only the oldest part of our brain, but it controls all voluntary and involuntary
2) BRAIN DAMAGED STUDIES tells us that certain areas of the brain are used when components of working model are getting used so this tells us that tasks need different parts of the brain so they are really separate systems at work this can be seen by MRI scans. 3) Baddley and hitch: as the working model tells us that if were trying to do two tasks at once they need the same system to do it in the working model then our performance will suffer but if using different parts of the working model then it may work. The weaknesses of the working model 1) Central executive has little support. Most of the
KF was a brain damaged patient from a motorcycle accident which had damaged his short term memory. He had problems with verbal information but not with
The patient was able to speak coherently and his hearing was fine, however, the patient was unable to understand anything that was said to him. What Wernicke discovered through his case study is what is now known as Wernicke’s aphasia, a lesion in the rear parietal/temporal region of the patient’s left brain hemisphere, in other words the bundle of nerves, which connects Wernicke’s and Broca’s areas. This results in the patient having an impaired understanding of speech and reading. It also results in the inability to repeat words, especially ‘non-words’. Another example, which shows how the brain exhibits localization of function, is the case of Clive Wearing.
An individual’s response to their environment can appear as though it is an impulse act. This occurs because information is transmitted to the mind, is processed immediately, and the behavior is the result of completion. Cognition involves discovering, recognizing, studying, investigating, learning, or making decisions (Ruisel, 2010). It is composed of the ways that the mind functions, thinks, and uses information that results in an individual’s behavior. Interdisciplinary Perspective Cognitive psychology is a branch of psychology;
However, less scientific evidence of this can be taken back to a much earlier period when psychosurgery was performed by Neolithic cultures by boring holes in a skull by a process called trepanning. These actions were most likely carried out to “liberate” demons and bad spirits which ancient doctors believed were responsible for madness and brain disease. Seen again in medieval times performed by quack doctors to cure brain damage or madness. Other studies to follow backed up the “Localization” theory in the form of brain tissue stimulation, brain damage case studies, or pure experimentation, which subsequently resulted in the mapping of the brain itself. On September 13th, 1848 a man named Phineas Gage was working as a foreman blasting rock to lay bed for a rail line.