PSYC 110 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Anterior Pituitary, Pair Bond, Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone
27 Jun 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
Brain has two hemispheres connected by corpus callosum - both are symmetrical in primary sensory and
motor functions, most paths are crossed or contralateral
Large areas in left are specialized for language and comparable areas in the right are specialized for
nonverbal, visuospatial information.
Damage to left - deficits in using and comprehending language, damage to right - deficits in recognizing
faces, reading maps, drawing shapes (spatial relationships)
Split brain - last resort for epilepsy - two hemispheres separated by cutting corpus callosum - shows fall
in seizures but results in person behaving like with different minds and abilities. Split brain destroys
contralateral connections so only one hemisphere receives it.
Left hemisphere interprets a person's own behavior, making "sense" of it even when the two
hemispheres produce contradictory actions
Loss of language from brain damage - aphasia
Damage to Broca's area (left frontal lobe) - speech becomes labored and telegraphic ie minimum words
are used to convey a message - Broca's aphasia/nonfluent aphasia - articulating words and sentences in
fluent manner & transforming grammatically complex sentences into simpler ones to extract
information
Damage to Wernicke's area (left temporal lobe) - difficulty understanding meaning of words that they
have heard and difficulty finding words to express a meaning - heavy use of pronouns and nonsense
words, retains fluency and grammar - Wernicke's aphasia/fluent aphasia
Ventricles of the brain - filled with CSF (empty space)
Issues with CSF production - too much or too little. For example, headache because of dehydration,
excessive alcohol consumption. CSF gets depleted and the areas around generate pain (brain has no
pain receptors). In infancy, it can lead to abnormalities like head enlargement, hydrocephalus (too much
fluid can press on the brain and cause the areas to be maladaptive), in adulthood it can lead to
blockages and your brain will keep producing CSF but its not being transported to all the areas which
might cause it to balloon up and swell the area - concussion,
Patient (44 year old) - lower end of IQ spectrum but nothing compared to the brain composition -
completely empty - shows brains neuroplasticity (the brain's ability to compensate for the missing
matter and continue to support the person's life)
Pineal Gland - seat of the soul - Descartes - only structure in the brain that isn't split in half.
The entrance to the 3rd eye.
This part of the brain is responsible for secreting Melatonin (daily rhythm) and it also secretes DMT
Limbic System: limbus means border - divides the evolutionary older parts of the brain from the new
one (cerebral cortex). Believed to have evolved from olfactory input and is still connected to the nose -
shows why aromas or bad scents can influence our drives, emotions - also connected to basal ganglia
which translates emotions into actions
Amygdala - regulation of basic drives and emotions, threat
Hippocampus - spatial location, memory
Hypothalamus - below the thalamus, not a part of limbic system but closely connected. Primary task -
regulate the internal environment - Homeostasis, balancing all the F's. When you're hungry, they drive
you to eat, regulate fear and anger, metabolism, daily functioning. They do this by regulating your
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Brain has two hemispheres connected by corpus callosum - both are symmetrical in primary sensory and motor functions, most paths are crossed or contralateral. Large areas in left are specialized for language and comparable areas in the right are specialized for nonverbal, visuospatial information. Damage to left - deficits in using and comprehending language, damage to right - deficits in recognizing faces, reading maps, drawing shapes (spatial relationships) Split brain - last resort for epilepsy - two hemispheres separated by cutting corpus callosum - shows fall in seizures but results in person behaving like with different minds and abilities. Split brain destroys contralateral connections so only one hemisphere receives it. Left hemisphere interprets a person"s own behavior, making sense of it even when the two hemispheres produce contradictory actions. Loss of language from brain damage - aphasia. Ventricles of the brain - filled with csf (empty space) Issues with csf production - too much or too little.
