Study Guide #1

Egypt Lasted 5000 years – more advanced at the end Had doctors that specialized in head and brain First to documents parts of the brain They documented numerous neurological problems (migraine, epilepsy, strokes) More “how to” type manuals – case studies Edwin Smith papyrus 48 different medical cases Treatment a mix of religion, science, superstition Describes locality due to head injuries Aphasia is linked to the temporal Describes surgeries -- some were successful War/battle injuries Mummified some of the dead to survey what happened to them Rome Bleeding Leaches Blood of slain gladiator for epilepsy Depression is an excess of phlegm and black bile Surgery and opium Public baths/gyms/massage Hospitals – specialized tools Greece Pneuma = life force Humors = balance Chinese 186 BCE Wrote an untitled book on how to treat 52 diseases Treatment seemed to be a mix of religion, science, and superstition (more of a how to guide) Moxibustion – burning herbs on a person “in comparison with western medicine, the Chinese method takes a far different approach” 100 BCE – Neijing Biological cause of illness Qi = life force Sickness is caused when yin and yang were out of balance Diet/exercise/rest Steel needles were the 100 BCE iPhone – acupuncture to restore balance Needles increased level of understanding India 5000 BCE 1000 BCE Atharva veda (medical text) Book on how to treat illnesses Diagnosis: disease is caused by different evil spirits Treatment: kill the spirit, usually with poison Early treatments probably did not work 200 AD – Ayurveda System (science of longevity) Prana = life force Doshas (Internal elements): vata, pitta and kapha Balance of doshas linked to health Imbalance leads to disease Modifications of behavior: exercise/diet/mediations Charaka was leading doctor, developed eye surgery Began using medicines Biological origin of disease Lots of cures for the body, few for the mind – many medications may have been more effective than we thought they were Big Lesson India China The West Bio Cause Bio Cause Bio Cause Life force: prana qi pneuma Balance : doshas yin/yang humors Tx: medicine medicine medicine Unique tx: Yoga Acupuncture Bleeding Localization – idea that you can find the area in the brain that is responsible for a specific function – Math/Memory not localized – Language is Franz Joseph Gall – Phrenology Based on animal research, case studies, and brain injuries Differences between humans and animals Lots of problems – developed map of brain Peopled liked the idea of knowing where things were in the brain Napoleon didn’t like the idea Marie-Jean-Pierre Flourens Localized function in brain stem Cerebellum controls motor function Cortex functions as a whole Recovery of function (compensation) Vivisected animals Proved the brain = mind…again Chloroform & anesthesia David Ferrier Electrical stimulation of monkeys Localization of the Cortex Breakdown of motor cortex Audition: Superior Temporal Gyrus Proposed that the monkey map would fit a human West Riding Lunatic Asylum Medical Reports Beginning of neuropsychology Reticular theory (ideas that brain is all one thing – not cells) Camillo Golgi Super Famous His hometown named itself after him University of Pavia Golgi apparatus and 6 other structures (inside the cells) Silver nitrate staining (allowed for better viewing of the neurons) Demonstrated neurons exist But did not believe in them himself (even won Nobel Prize for the idea) Santiago Ramon y Cajal Believed that neurons exist Found them using Golgi’s techniques Silver nitrate staining (allowed for better viewing of the neurons) Natural Selection Crisis point of population vs. resources Best fit with environment – arms race – based on specific skill (speed/eyesight) Interspecies comp – foxes & rabbits Jean-Baptiste Lamarck (1809) & Alfred Wallace – Other scientists that studied evolution Evolution Darwin – was close to publishing The Origin of Species – when talked to Wallace about his findings Got everything right Created a stir in the scientific community, but not much in regular life The next generation took a step backwards Robert FitzRoy – Gov. of New Zealand (Capt. of HMS Beagle) – disagreed due to Biblical issues Thomas Henry Huxley – had Darwin’s back, and gave examples that were found in England (changing color of moths) Alfred Wallace – had same ideas as Darwin – encouraged him to publish – published concurrently Problems with Evolution Didn’t fit with the 1800s theory of heredity Adaptive traits would be blended out Did not match the fossil record Maladaptive traits clearly exist See Exhibit A (peacock) Gender breakdown It does not maximize offspring (sperm is cheap) Prosocial behavior in humans But if its survival of the fittest Appeared to be in conflict with other theories Also no one liked the idea we came from monkeys Mutation = variation Semiconservative replication (good – not perfect) Adenine & thymine, guanine & cytosine Rare and usually cause problems Mutation usually causes death Duplication, Inversion, Deletion, Insertion, Translocation Adds to diversity DNA Modern Synthesis Combination of Darwin’s theories of evolution and Mendel’s ideas of heredity Genotype: the genetic makeup of an organism Phenotype: the interaction between genes and environment which determines observable traits and characteristics Gregor Mendel Developed idea of genotype/phenotype Studied genetics with pea plants Genetic drift = unification Removes traits that are not selected for (statistical process) Not all changes are adaption Remnant (Belly Button) No longer no needed A gene pattern between two important patterns (Mutation changes us = genetic drift unifies us – statically process that keeps us as one species) Three laws of Genetics (pea plant study) The Law of Segregation The alleles are different from each other (no blending) The Law of Independent Assortment You get one set of genes from each parent The Law of Dominance Pecking order – one expression is dominant Sexual Selection Asexual Reproduction – increases #s at higher rate more easily Sexual Reproduction – allows for greater variance of genome – contributed to the explosion of different species Inter-sex competition leads for the advantage of one over the other if there isn’t a 50/50 ratio Fitness driven by the other sex Intraspecies competition Has to cost the organism (horns, feathers, beards) Interacts with natural selection Beauty as antiquated index of genetic stability Most beauty indicators are ignored We aren’t infected with parasites and diseases Modern humans kind of have this backwards… More males are dying (war) and more women are procreating 70% of variance comes from women Mismatch – Species will evolve in one area, but will live in in another area When the environment changes faster than a species can evolve many once adaptive traits become maladaptive This is the evolutionary explanation behind most mental illness Environment will change more quickly than our DNA can catch up Humans evolved too quickly – after development of speech and cognition they were able to overcome other species (Ants are another species that have done this) Darwinian Algorithms for Social Behavior (helped us to be a better tribe) We have cognitive mechanisms to detect if someone is breaking a social rule Tooby & Cosmides: Wason selection task (Prove the rule and disprove the rule) Formal logic part of brain is different than social logic (social is larger) We have a system of emotions that make us skilled at reciprocity Feeling of guilt if you don’t assist others around you Feeling of shame – others see that you didn’t help Feeling of anger – others take revenge for not helping Not unique to humans (some monkeys/apes as well) We have a system of morality that seem to try and preserve our tribe When is it okay to do??? Set of questions…. such as when is it okay to sleep with your sister? Across the world people have a set of moral guidelines 5 Domains of Moral System by Jonathan Haigt Harm, Fairness, Authority, Ingroup & Purity We have a negative bias that helps us focus on threats Fixate on threats, harm and danger to us Put more weight/focus on the negative things you hear (hostile media bias) We can create theories on other’s world view Theory of Mind Tribal societies in EEA were made of a bout 250 or so individuals TOM caped at 250 TOM = ability to take another point view Some theories of consciousness believe consciousness was a consequence of TOM (pre-dated consciousness) Environment of Evolution Adaptiveness (the environment we are in shapes how we adapt fish vs. butterflies) Most unlearned reinforces are believed to have developed in our EEA Why are things reinforcing, because they helped our ancestors survive (sex, food, alcohol) Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) Very strong magnet Uses photons to measure contrast Hydrogen has the highest nuclear magnetic resonance so NMR can detect the presence of hydrogen (Looking at hydrogen density) The body is about 80% hydrogen (most of this in the water) Radio Waves = electromagnetic radiation = low energy photons 3 parts of an MRI & 3 magnetic fields The Magnet Apply a strong magnetic field – all of the magnetic partials align and spin together (parallel or anti-parallel) 90% spin up parallel = low energy/more prevalent 10% spin down anti-parallel = high energy/less prevalent The Gradient Coils The field has to be modified so the identification of returning radio waves (see step 4) can be determined The frequency of the returning radio waves is proportional to the magnetic field to which they are subjected to as they relax Basically, changes the field around the body so you can tell where the photons are coming from – changes the frequency of the field so you can see the difference/variance in what it should look like Allows to pinpoint the information you want The Radio Frequency Coil Induces a high energy condition within the protons Makes all the parallel protons spin anti-parallel Then turn it off – then photons are released so you can see them (image) Step 4 = Receive Radio Waves Frequency = location Photon density = proportion of hydrogen, which tells us the tissue type T1 relaxation = recovery of the magnetic vector along the z-axis. Mo parallel to Bo T2 relaxation = the recovery of previous axonal spin along the Mxy fMRI (Functional magnetic resonance imaging) Fun with Deoxygenated Hemoglobin fMRI measures brain activity by detecting changes associated with blood flow. This technique relies on the fact that cerebral blood flow and neuronal activation are coupled. When an area of the brain is in use, blood flow to that region also increases. Testing can be used improperly to show almost anything the researcher would like (dead fish study) BOLD = Blood Oxygenated Level Dependent Blood has iron in it which gives it magnetic properties, the presences of oxygen modifies those properties NMR can be seen more clearly in oxygenated blood Matching to maps Composite of many brains from Montreal Brain Bank