Term
correlation coefficient (r)
What would a perfect negative correlation coefficient be? positive?
What would the correlation coefficient be if there is no correlation? |
|
Definition
(perf. neg.) -1-------- (no corr.) 0 -------- (perf. pos.) +1
1) -1
2) +1
3) 0 |
|
|
Term
What is Inferential Statistics? |
|
Definition
•This involves testing a difference between two groups.
•provides an assessment of a result’s statistical significance
•expressed as a p-value, indicating the probability of getting the data pattern by chance |
|
|
Term
What problem is there with observational studies? |
|
Definition
•We can’t be sure which observation is the cause and which is the effect.
•Also, there’s the third-variable problem:
•Some other (i.e., third) variable is influencing both variables observed in our study. |
|
|
Term
List evidence for evolution |
|
Definition
•Examination of the resemblance between genomes of various organisms. (molecular)
•The geographic distribution of animals and fossils.
•The fossil record |
|
|
Term
•Evolution by natural selection has shaped behaviors just as much as physical traits.
Knowing this, you may infer that natural selection has favored _____ flexibility. |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
Is there a link between genetics and intelligence? |
|
Definition
YES
•An individual’s level of intelligence is influenced by genetic factors. (verified by twin comparisons) |
|
|
Term
What does the heritability ratio signify? |
|
Definition
•Intelligence is also influenced by environmental factors.
•heritability = genetic variance ∕ total phenotypic variance
•The higher the heritability ratio, the more genetics contribute to the trait. |
|
|
Term
What environmental variations influence the inheritability ratio? |
|
Definition
•In groups with lower socioeconomic status (SES), the heritability may be zero.
•You can have “great genes”, but those won’t overcome a terrible school system!
•Conversely, the better the environment, the more genes matter
•Heritability also increases with a person’s age.
•This may be because people choose environments that amplify their genetic potential. |
|
|
Term
Evolution of Mating:
What are the gender specific roles for men and women in the "Parental Investment Model" (PIM)?
|
|
Definition
•males should mate with as many females as possible.
•females mate just a few times during their lives but try to ensure the well-being of each of their progeny. |
|
|
Term
What are the basic components of a neuron? |
|
Definition
•dendrites
•a cell body
•and an axon |
|
|
Term
What is the main kind of neuron? |
|
Definition
•Most neurons are interneuronsthat connect to other interneurons.
•The nervous system also contains glia:
•These cells have many functions, both during development and in supporting the function of the mature nervous system.
|
|
|
Term
What is resting potential? |
|
Definition
•When the membrane is stable; an excess of positively charged ions will be on the outside, resulting in negative voltage difference. |
|
|
Term
Describe what happens during neuron communication... |
|
Definition
•When the membrane is stimulated, ion channels open:
•leading to an action potential.
•Ion movement leads to an excess of positively charged particles inside the membrane,
•which produces a positive voltage swing.
•The excitation spreads, leading to propagation of the action potential along the axon. |
|
|
Term
Myelinated axons ___ the speed of neuron communication. |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
The "All-or-none law," what is it? |
|
Definition
•The action potential obeys the all-or-none law:
Once it’s launched, further increases in stimulus intensity have no effect on its magnitude. |
|
|
Term
Neurotransmitters make communication between neurons possible by: |
|
Definition
•crossing the synapse
•latching onto receptors on the postsynaptic cell
•triggering a response in that cell |
|
|
Term
Describe the difference between agonistic and antagonistic drugs: |
|
Definition
•Drugs called agonists can enhance a neurotransmitter’s effect; antagonists impede its effect.
•Drugs work by:
•blocking the transmitter’s synaptic reuptake
•counteracting the cleanup enzyme
•mimicking the transmitter’s action |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Electroencephalography (EEG)
•Uses sensitive electrodes on the scalp to measure voltages produced by brain activity |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
•Reveal which brain locations are particularly active at any moment in time while “behaving, thinking, and/or feeling”.
•PET = Positron Emission Tomography
•Can trace glucose, or a radioactively tagged molecule
•fMRI = Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging
•Traces a BOLD signal (Blood Oxygen Level Dependent) |
|
|
Term
What are the parts of the nervous system? |
|
Definition
•Central nervous system—brain and spinal cord
•peripheral nervous system (PNS)—includes both efferent and afferent nerves
•The PNS is divided into the somatic nervous system and the autonomic nervous system. |
|
|
Term
What convolutions devide the brain into parts? |
|
Definition
•The frontal lobes, the parietal lobes, the occipital lobes, and the temporal lobes |
|
|
Term
What is the cerebral cortex? |
|
Definition
•The outer surface of forebrain is the cortex. It is a large, thin sheet of tissue crumpled inside the skull. |
|
|
Term
What is the function of the corpus collosum? |
|
Definition
It connects the left and right spheres of the brain, allowing them to communicate with eachother.
(split brain patients and siezures) |
|
|
Term
What are some examples of cortical damage disorders? |
|
Definition
•Apraxias(disorders in action)
•Agnosias(disorders in perception)
•Aphasias (disorders of language)
•Disorders of planning or social cognition |
|
|
Term
Describe the brain's plasticity. |
|
Definition
•The nervous system is plastic—subject to alteration in the way it functions, such as:
•Changes in how much neurotransmitter a presynaptic neuron releases
•Changes in neuron sensitivity to neurotransmitters
•Creating new connections by growing new dendritic spines |
|
|
Term
What is significant about perception and knowledge?
Hint: Empiricists |
|
Definition
•Empiricists: knowledge comes through stimuli that excite the senses
•We get information about distal stimuli through proximal stimuli.
•Perception is built up through learning by association. |
|
|
Term
Psychophysics relate characteristics of a stimulus to the ____ and ____ of its sensory experience. |
|
Definition
Psychophysics relate characteristics of a stimulus to the quality and intensity of its sensory experience. |
|
|
Term
| What are some psychophysical measurements? |
|
Definition
•absolute threshold
•difference threshold
•producing a just-noticeable difference (jnd) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| the jnd is a constant fraction of the intensity of the comparison stimulus |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
•the tendency to respond less to a stimulus that has been present and unchanging for some time |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
•rods: low light intensities, colorless |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
•cones: great light intensities, responsible for sensations of color
•Acuity is greatest in the fovea, where the most cones are located. |
|
|
Term
Normal human color vision is ____, depending on three cone types. |
|
Definition
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| We tend to complete figures which are not presented completely, or identify incomplete shapes. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| To determine what an object is, the perceptual system must first decide what goes with what. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| One of the early steps in seeing a form is to segregate it from its background. |
|
|
Term
| Name five types of perceptual grouping. |
|
Definition
1. Similarity
2. Proximity
3. Good Continuation
4. Closure (completing incomplete lines)
5. Simplicity (interpreting a form in the simplist ways) |
|
|
Term
| Bottom Up vs Top Down processes |
|
Definition
bottom-up (stimulus-driven)
top-down (knowledge-driven) |
|
|
Term
| What TWO cells are on the retina? |
|
Definition
(smaller)Parvo cells:
•color, pattern, and form
(larger)Magno cells:
•motion and depth |
|
|
Term
| What is the difference between the "What" and "Where" systems? |
|
Definition
| The “what” system carries information to the temporal cortex and is crucial for the identification of visual objects; the “where” system carries information to the parietal cortex and conveys information about where a stimulus is located. |
|
|
Term
| What is the binding problem and how is it solved? |
|
Definition
How are the separate pieces of information integrated to form a coherent perceptual whole?
Solved partially by neural synchrony |
|
|
Term
| How does the brain distinguish between proximal and distal stimuli? |
|
Definition
| The relationship between retnal image size and distance |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
a depth cue... (door partially open vs shut)
we achieve constancy through unconscious inference. |
|
|
Term
| What is significant about human attention? |
|
Definition
•Perception is selective.
•Selectivity is produced by orienting and through central adjustments.
•Adjustments depend in part on our ability to prepare ourselves by priming relevant detectors and processing pathways. |
|
|
