Neuropsychology Notes
WEEK 1
LECTURE 1
General principles
Neuropsychology is a combination of biological, psychological, and social information to
understand humans. A neuropsychologist is a clinician/scientist who is clinical in nature.
Grey matter is made up mostly of neurons’ cell bodies — the parts that handle processing and
thinking. It is where most brain activities like decision-making, movement control, and sensory
processing happen. It looks grey because it has less fat (myelin). White matter is made of nerve
fibers (axons) covered in myelin, a fatty coating that makes signals travel faster between brain
areas. It connects different parts of grey matter, like the brain’s wiring system. Ventricles are
fluid-filled spaces inside the brain. They hold cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), which cushions the brain,
removes waste, and helps keep pressure stable.
Lobes and their main functions (F-POT)
Frontal lobe: feelings, focus, movement
→ Controls thinking, planning, decision-making, and personality
→ Involved in movement (motor cortex)
→ Helps with speech production (Broca’s area)
Parietal lobe: position, perception
→ Processes touch, temperature, and pain (sensory info)
→ Helps with spatial awareness — knowing where your body is in space
Occipital lobe: optics
→ Main centre for vision and visual processing
Temporal lobe: talk and tunes
→ Handles hearing and language understanding (Wernicke’s area)
→ Important for memory and emotion
,Cerebellum (not a lobe, but worth noting):
→ Controls balance, coordination, and fine motor skills
Gyri and Sulci:
• Gyri (singular: gyrus): The raised ridges or “bumps” on the brain’s surface
• Sulci (singular: sulcus): The grooves or “valleys” between the gyri
• They increase the brain’s surface area, allowing more neurons to fit inside the skull.
Limbic system:
→ Hypothalamus – homeostasis
→ Thalamus – relays information
→ Amygdala – emotion
→ Hippocampus – memory conversion
Fissures are deep grooves in the brain that divide it into major parts or lobes (they’re like big sulci).
The main ones are:
→ Longitudinal fissure: separates the left and right hemispheres
→ Central fissure (Rolando’s fissure): separates the frontal and parietal lobes
→ Lateral fissure (Sylvian fissure): separates the frontal/parietal lobes from the temporal
lobe
→ (Optional to note) Parieto-occipital fissure: separates the parietal and occipital lobes
Poles are the extreme ends (or tips) of each lobe:
→ Frontal pole: very front of the brain — linked to higher thinking and planning
→ Temporal pole: bottom front of the temporal lobe — linked to emotion and memory
→ Occipital pole: very back of the brain — main center for visual processing
Evolution by natural selection
Darwin’s theory published in 1859 argued that all organisms are descended from an ancestor that
lived in the remote past. Animals have similar traits due to them being passed on (e.g. nervous
system, brain structure).
,He also used natural selection → (unequal survival and reproduction chances due to
different genes they inherit from parents) to explain how new species evolve and change over
time within a species, Organisms vary in their phenotype → (observable traits). Those with traits
that best help them survive are likely to leave more offspring that have those traits.
Natural selection and heritable factors
Due to an experimentation with plant traits, Gregor Mendel (1857) discovered that traits such as
flower color, height etc are due to heritable factors = genes. He also realized that the environment
plays a role in how genes express traits. Gene (DNA instructions) → protein (worker) → trait
(result) = gene expression.
Genetic Theories
Mendel = classic genetics (heritability)
Lamarck = epigenetic code and phenotypic plasticity
Behavior is caused by genetics, epigenetic, and experience-based learning.
Epigenetics → control system that decides when, where, and how much of each gene gets
used (influences in this way an individual’s behavior, hormones etc) The environment can
influence this process.
Environment + Experience → Genes & Brain → Adaptation & Learning
Things like food, stress, care, → switches genes on/ off, → Animals + Humans then
social life, education etc. which changes the protein adjust behavior and skills
that gets made
⇾ provides input that changes →gene expression + → Helps survival in
which genes are expressed experience reshape brain changing environment
(epigenetics) circuits (neuroplasticity)
Neuroplasticity — ‘cells that fire together, wire together’
Hebbian plasticity is the foundation of neuropsychology. It's a principle of learning in the brain. It
says that connections between neurons (synapses) get stronger when those neurons are active at
the same time. The change of biological, social, and psychological factors causes change in brain
and in the person, which results in change in their mental health as well. This helps explain how
we form memories, learn skills, and adapt after brain injury. Understanding change equals
understanding neuropsychology.
, The Hebbian assumption of change is the idea that changes in synaptic strength (how strong or
weak a connection is) depend on correlated activity between neurons. If two neurons keep
activating together, their connection strengthens. If one fires, but the other doesn’t → the
connection weakens (sometimes called anti-Hebbian change).
Localization of function
Our understanding of brain function is rooted in individuals with brain damage. Gall gave the first
account of frontal-lobe damage resulting in speech loss. Gall and Spurzheim proposed the first
general theory of localization of function = the idea that different brain regions carry out different
specific functions. They developed phrenology → bumps on the skull reflect underlying brain
functions or personality traits. Even though this theory was wrong, it laid the conceptual
foundation for modern views of functional localization.
⇒ 1860 Paul Broca discovered Broca’s area, which when damaged, causes speech production
problems (evidence localization).
⇒ 1870 Wernicke discovered Wernicke’s area, which when damaged, resulted in difficulties with
understanding language.
Lateralization of functions
Lateralization = one hemisphere of the brain is more dominant for certain functions. Language
production is localized in the hemisphere, and lateralized there as well because the left side is
dominant for the function → i.e. not performed by the other hemisphere. (1860s) Broca had a
patient “Tan” who could understand language but could only say ‘tan’ in response = Broca’s
aphasia (or: expressive/motor aphasia). From the autopsy, they discovered a lesion in the left
frontal lobe (Broca’s area). (1870s) Wernicke had patients who could speak fluently, but made no
sense and could not understand language = Wernicke’s aphasia (or: fluent/receptive aphasia).
The autopsy showed a lesion in the left temporal lobe (Wernicke’s area). This also showed the
functional lateralization and localization of language comprehension.
Wernicke-Geschwind model of auditory language processing:
→ Auditory receptors in the ears converts sound waves into neural signals
→ It goes through the auditory nerve to the temporal lobe (primary auditory cortex) which
detects sounds (e.g. speech)
→ Wernicke’s area which’s function is comprehension, interprets speech meaning
→ Arcuate fasciculus (bundle of fibers curving around the lateral fissure) connects
comprehension to production areas.
→ Broca’s area plans and organizes speech, grammar, and motor programming
WEEK 1
LECTURE 1
General principles
Neuropsychology is a combination of biological, psychological, and social information to
understand humans. A neuropsychologist is a clinician/scientist who is clinical in nature.
Grey matter is made up mostly of neurons’ cell bodies — the parts that handle processing and
thinking. It is where most brain activities like decision-making, movement control, and sensory
processing happen. It looks grey because it has less fat (myelin). White matter is made of nerve
fibers (axons) covered in myelin, a fatty coating that makes signals travel faster between brain
areas. It connects different parts of grey matter, like the brain’s wiring system. Ventricles are
fluid-filled spaces inside the brain. They hold cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), which cushions the brain,
removes waste, and helps keep pressure stable.
Lobes and their main functions (F-POT)
Frontal lobe: feelings, focus, movement
→ Controls thinking, planning, decision-making, and personality
→ Involved in movement (motor cortex)
→ Helps with speech production (Broca’s area)
Parietal lobe: position, perception
→ Processes touch, temperature, and pain (sensory info)
→ Helps with spatial awareness — knowing where your body is in space
Occipital lobe: optics
→ Main centre for vision and visual processing
Temporal lobe: talk and tunes
→ Handles hearing and language understanding (Wernicke’s area)
→ Important for memory and emotion
,Cerebellum (not a lobe, but worth noting):
→ Controls balance, coordination, and fine motor skills
Gyri and Sulci:
• Gyri (singular: gyrus): The raised ridges or “bumps” on the brain’s surface
• Sulci (singular: sulcus): The grooves or “valleys” between the gyri
• They increase the brain’s surface area, allowing more neurons to fit inside the skull.
Limbic system:
→ Hypothalamus – homeostasis
→ Thalamus – relays information
→ Amygdala – emotion
→ Hippocampus – memory conversion
Fissures are deep grooves in the brain that divide it into major parts or lobes (they’re like big sulci).
The main ones are:
→ Longitudinal fissure: separates the left and right hemispheres
→ Central fissure (Rolando’s fissure): separates the frontal and parietal lobes
→ Lateral fissure (Sylvian fissure): separates the frontal/parietal lobes from the temporal
lobe
→ (Optional to note) Parieto-occipital fissure: separates the parietal and occipital lobes
Poles are the extreme ends (or tips) of each lobe:
→ Frontal pole: very front of the brain — linked to higher thinking and planning
→ Temporal pole: bottom front of the temporal lobe — linked to emotion and memory
→ Occipital pole: very back of the brain — main center for visual processing
Evolution by natural selection
Darwin’s theory published in 1859 argued that all organisms are descended from an ancestor that
lived in the remote past. Animals have similar traits due to them being passed on (e.g. nervous
system, brain structure).
,He also used natural selection → (unequal survival and reproduction chances due to
different genes they inherit from parents) to explain how new species evolve and change over
time within a species, Organisms vary in their phenotype → (observable traits). Those with traits
that best help them survive are likely to leave more offspring that have those traits.
Natural selection and heritable factors
Due to an experimentation with plant traits, Gregor Mendel (1857) discovered that traits such as
flower color, height etc are due to heritable factors = genes. He also realized that the environment
plays a role in how genes express traits. Gene (DNA instructions) → protein (worker) → trait
(result) = gene expression.
Genetic Theories
Mendel = classic genetics (heritability)
Lamarck = epigenetic code and phenotypic plasticity
Behavior is caused by genetics, epigenetic, and experience-based learning.
Epigenetics → control system that decides when, where, and how much of each gene gets
used (influences in this way an individual’s behavior, hormones etc) The environment can
influence this process.
Environment + Experience → Genes & Brain → Adaptation & Learning
Things like food, stress, care, → switches genes on/ off, → Animals + Humans then
social life, education etc. which changes the protein adjust behavior and skills
that gets made
⇾ provides input that changes →gene expression + → Helps survival in
which genes are expressed experience reshape brain changing environment
(epigenetics) circuits (neuroplasticity)
Neuroplasticity — ‘cells that fire together, wire together’
Hebbian plasticity is the foundation of neuropsychology. It's a principle of learning in the brain. It
says that connections between neurons (synapses) get stronger when those neurons are active at
the same time. The change of biological, social, and psychological factors causes change in brain
and in the person, which results in change in their mental health as well. This helps explain how
we form memories, learn skills, and adapt after brain injury. Understanding change equals
understanding neuropsychology.
, The Hebbian assumption of change is the idea that changes in synaptic strength (how strong or
weak a connection is) depend on correlated activity between neurons. If two neurons keep
activating together, their connection strengthens. If one fires, but the other doesn’t → the
connection weakens (sometimes called anti-Hebbian change).
Localization of function
Our understanding of brain function is rooted in individuals with brain damage. Gall gave the first
account of frontal-lobe damage resulting in speech loss. Gall and Spurzheim proposed the first
general theory of localization of function = the idea that different brain regions carry out different
specific functions. They developed phrenology → bumps on the skull reflect underlying brain
functions or personality traits. Even though this theory was wrong, it laid the conceptual
foundation for modern views of functional localization.
⇒ 1860 Paul Broca discovered Broca’s area, which when damaged, causes speech production
problems (evidence localization).
⇒ 1870 Wernicke discovered Wernicke’s area, which when damaged, resulted in difficulties with
understanding language.
Lateralization of functions
Lateralization = one hemisphere of the brain is more dominant for certain functions. Language
production is localized in the hemisphere, and lateralized there as well because the left side is
dominant for the function → i.e. not performed by the other hemisphere. (1860s) Broca had a
patient “Tan” who could understand language but could only say ‘tan’ in response = Broca’s
aphasia (or: expressive/motor aphasia). From the autopsy, they discovered a lesion in the left
frontal lobe (Broca’s area). (1870s) Wernicke had patients who could speak fluently, but made no
sense and could not understand language = Wernicke’s aphasia (or: fluent/receptive aphasia).
The autopsy showed a lesion in the left temporal lobe (Wernicke’s area). This also showed the
functional lateralization and localization of language comprehension.
Wernicke-Geschwind model of auditory language processing:
→ Auditory receptors in the ears converts sound waves into neural signals
→ It goes through the auditory nerve to the temporal lobe (primary auditory cortex) which
detects sounds (e.g. speech)
→ Wernicke’s area which’s function is comprehension, interprets speech meaning
→ Arcuate fasciculus (bundle of fibers curving around the lateral fissure) connects
comprehension to production areas.
→ Broca’s area plans and organizes speech, grammar, and motor programming
