Colleges Neuropsychology
College 1: Evolution & function of the nervous system
Why is the brain so important? The primary function of the brain is produce behavior. To do so, it
must:
- Receive information about the world
- Integrate information to create a sensory reality
- Make a constant stream of predictions about what to expect
- Produce commands to control the movement of muscles
The make up of the nervous system altogether allows the brain to do so.
What is behavior?
- Relatively fixed behaviors: dependent on heredity (vogel snavels zijn ontwerpen om pines te
openen)
- Relatively flexible behaviors: dependent on learning (muizen kunnen leren van moeder om pines
te openen)
- Complexity of behavior varies considerably in different species depending on complexity of
nervous system
Philosophy of brain and behavior: Aristotle and Mentalism
1. Mentalism
- An explanation of behavior as a function of the nonmaterial mind (soul, something you cannot
see)
- Ancient Greece: Aristotle
(psyche or oul: synonym for mind: an entity once proposed to be the source of human behavior,
that lives after death)
2. Dualism
- Both a nonmaterial mind and the material body contribute to behavior
- Mind directs rational behavior
- Body and brain direct all other behavior via mechanical and physical principles
• Examples: sensation, movement, digestion
- Mind is connected to the body through the pineal gland of the brain
- Mind-body problem: difficult/impossible to explain a nonmaterial mind in command of a
material body
Philosophy of brain and behavior: Darwin and materialism (what we believe in now)
3. Materialism
- Behavior can be explained as a function of the nervous system without considering the mind as a
separate substance
- Related to Darwin
Darwin’s concept of Natural Selection
- Differential success in the reproduction (passing on your genes) of different characteristics /
behavior results from the interaction of organisms with their environment (better adapting
environment – much higher chance that your genes will be passed on)
1
,- Traits / behavior that increase reproductive success and chances of survival will be passed on to
offspring
- Competition is a key concept
= evolution of the nervous system
The modern human brain has the largest size relative to body weight. The higher ratio – the higher
complexity of the brain/behavior.
Deviation from the trend line indicates larger of smaller brain size than average, relative to body
weight.
Neuroplasticity
- The brain is plastic
• Neural tissue has the capacity to adapt to the world by changing how its functions are
organized
• Because the brain can adapt to the world, different spieces could develop
• Neuroplasticity is seen both in the developing brain and in adaptations of brain structure
following injury
Epigenetics
- Study of differences in gene expression related to environment and experience
- Epigenetic factors do not change your genes, but they do influence how your genes operate
- Epigenetic changes can persist throughout a lifetime, and the cumulative effects can make
dramatic differences in how your genes work and how likely a spieces is to pass on its genes →
evolution
Plastic patterns of neural organization: phenotype plasticity: an individual’s
genotype (genetic makeup) interacts with the environment to elicit a specific
phenotype from a large repertoire of possibilities.
Studying brain and behavior in modern humans
- The brain (especially the cortex) is highly flexible
• That means humans can live very different life styles in very different environments, with
equal skill and succes. That also means that indivual differences in brain organization are
huge. The average brain does not exist.
2
,Anatomical & function divisions of the nervous system
Overview of the structure of the brain
- Forebrain: major structure of the brain, consisting of two
almost identical hemispheres (left and right). Prominent
in mammals and birds, responsible for most higher order
conscious behaviors.
- Cerebellum: “little brain”, involved in coordination of
motor and cognitive processes.
- Brainstem: central structures of the brain, including
hindbrain, midbrain, thalamus, hypothalamys. Source of
behavior in simpler animals, responsible for most of our
unconscious behaviors.
- Spinal cord: consists of nerves that carry incoming and
outgoing messages between the brain and the rest of the
body,
including reflexes.
3
, Van boven naar beneden: complex naar minder complex.
Forebrain
Forebrain: Cerebral / Neo cortex
The cerebral cortex is a thin sheet composed of 6 layers of nerve cells folded
many times to fit inside the skull responsible for regulation various mental
activities.
Forebrain: Allocortex Cortex
Evolutionary older part of cortex (also present in simpler brains) consiting of 3 or 4 layers of nerve
cells present in structures of the limbic system (in cingulate cortex, hippocampus, amygdale) as well
as structures related to the olfactory system.
Cingulate cortex: controlling motivational states, attention, self monitoring
Orientation
Brain body orientation: illustrates brain structure location from the frame of reference of the face.
Anterior: voorkant, posterior: achterkant, ventral: onder, dorsal: boven
4
College 1: Evolution & function of the nervous system
Why is the brain so important? The primary function of the brain is produce behavior. To do so, it
must:
- Receive information about the world
- Integrate information to create a sensory reality
- Make a constant stream of predictions about what to expect
- Produce commands to control the movement of muscles
The make up of the nervous system altogether allows the brain to do so.
What is behavior?
- Relatively fixed behaviors: dependent on heredity (vogel snavels zijn ontwerpen om pines te
openen)
- Relatively flexible behaviors: dependent on learning (muizen kunnen leren van moeder om pines
te openen)
- Complexity of behavior varies considerably in different species depending on complexity of
nervous system
Philosophy of brain and behavior: Aristotle and Mentalism
1. Mentalism
- An explanation of behavior as a function of the nonmaterial mind (soul, something you cannot
see)
- Ancient Greece: Aristotle
(psyche or oul: synonym for mind: an entity once proposed to be the source of human behavior,
that lives after death)
2. Dualism
- Both a nonmaterial mind and the material body contribute to behavior
- Mind directs rational behavior
- Body and brain direct all other behavior via mechanical and physical principles
• Examples: sensation, movement, digestion
- Mind is connected to the body through the pineal gland of the brain
- Mind-body problem: difficult/impossible to explain a nonmaterial mind in command of a
material body
Philosophy of brain and behavior: Darwin and materialism (what we believe in now)
3. Materialism
- Behavior can be explained as a function of the nervous system without considering the mind as a
separate substance
- Related to Darwin
Darwin’s concept of Natural Selection
- Differential success in the reproduction (passing on your genes) of different characteristics /
behavior results from the interaction of organisms with their environment (better adapting
environment – much higher chance that your genes will be passed on)
1
,- Traits / behavior that increase reproductive success and chances of survival will be passed on to
offspring
- Competition is a key concept
= evolution of the nervous system
The modern human brain has the largest size relative to body weight. The higher ratio – the higher
complexity of the brain/behavior.
Deviation from the trend line indicates larger of smaller brain size than average, relative to body
weight.
Neuroplasticity
- The brain is plastic
• Neural tissue has the capacity to adapt to the world by changing how its functions are
organized
• Because the brain can adapt to the world, different spieces could develop
• Neuroplasticity is seen both in the developing brain and in adaptations of brain structure
following injury
Epigenetics
- Study of differences in gene expression related to environment and experience
- Epigenetic factors do not change your genes, but they do influence how your genes operate
- Epigenetic changes can persist throughout a lifetime, and the cumulative effects can make
dramatic differences in how your genes work and how likely a spieces is to pass on its genes →
evolution
Plastic patterns of neural organization: phenotype plasticity: an individual’s
genotype (genetic makeup) interacts with the environment to elicit a specific
phenotype from a large repertoire of possibilities.
Studying brain and behavior in modern humans
- The brain (especially the cortex) is highly flexible
• That means humans can live very different life styles in very different environments, with
equal skill and succes. That also means that indivual differences in brain organization are
huge. The average brain does not exist.
2
,Anatomical & function divisions of the nervous system
Overview of the structure of the brain
- Forebrain: major structure of the brain, consisting of two
almost identical hemispheres (left and right). Prominent
in mammals and birds, responsible for most higher order
conscious behaviors.
- Cerebellum: “little brain”, involved in coordination of
motor and cognitive processes.
- Brainstem: central structures of the brain, including
hindbrain, midbrain, thalamus, hypothalamys. Source of
behavior in simpler animals, responsible for most of our
unconscious behaviors.
- Spinal cord: consists of nerves that carry incoming and
outgoing messages between the brain and the rest of the
body,
including reflexes.
3
, Van boven naar beneden: complex naar minder complex.
Forebrain
Forebrain: Cerebral / Neo cortex
The cerebral cortex is a thin sheet composed of 6 layers of nerve cells folded
many times to fit inside the skull responsible for regulation various mental
activities.
Forebrain: Allocortex Cortex
Evolutionary older part of cortex (also present in simpler brains) consiting of 3 or 4 layers of nerve
cells present in structures of the limbic system (in cingulate cortex, hippocampus, amygdale) as well
as structures related to the olfactory system.
Cingulate cortex: controlling motivational states, attention, self monitoring
Orientation
Brain body orientation: illustrates brain structure location from the frame of reference of the face.
Anterior: voorkant, posterior: achterkant, ventral: onder, dorsal: boven
4
