PSY 300 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Cognitive Neuroscience, Pineal Gland, Psy

• School: University of Arizona
• Department: Psychology Main
• Course: PSY 300
• Professor: Matthew Grilli

Document Summary

Cognitive science: study of the mind and its operations (cognoscere = to know ) Galen noticed that blows to the head >cognitive/psychological issues. Drew attention to the brain"s ventricles, that he thought held fluid via lakes and rivers that connected to the body. But a major challenge is that the mind is hidden. Cognitive neuroscience uses behavioral and brain-based techniques to understand where and how our experiences are represented in the brain. Field of cognitive neuroscience is still in its infancy. Galen: (129-199 ad) greek surgeon in roman empire who treated gladiators; at that time the brain was largely ignored; believed that fluids or humors flowed through body. Franz joseph gall: (1758-1828) reasoned that if motor control has a center in the brain, perhaps other cognitive faculties do as well. Phrenology: measuring the size of different regions of the skull; Phrenology gave us the concept of functional specialization: different regions of the brain are specialized for different functions.