The Human Brain Cognitive Process Sensation and Perception Left & Right Brain Dominance Gender Differences.

The Human Brain Cognitive Process Sensation and Perception Left & Right Brain Dominance Gender Differences

Cognitive Process Thinking, Knowing, Remembering: 1. Memory 2. Language 3. Problem Solving 4. Reasoning

Cognitive Process "the process of thinking and "the operation of remembering the mental functions, mental processes of humans *information processing *applying knowledge *can be conscious or unconscious.

Cognitive processes are very important for human behavior, which is very important to psychology! It is about knowledge and the way people use their knowledge. Cognitive Psychology: Intelligence, Language, Thinking, Memory, Attention, Perception, Problem solving

What is Cognition? The process and content of knowing, including thinking, remembering and communicating. how we acquire, process and store information. things going on inside In the brain and nervous system

How do we mentally organize info? By using concepts which are stored in hierarchically organized categories. Ie. group similar things together, in our mind Concept: Chair

Hierarchies: help organize items into categories. Ex: animals Domestic/wild Dogs/cats Mixed/pure

Prototypes Mental image or best example of a category The closer something is to the prototype of a category, the easier it is to recognize it as being in the category.

Language Language production Audience design Speech execution and errors Language understanding Visual representations *multiple languages!

Language Evolution 1 st fossil record of language 50,000+ years ago. May have evolved with walking, running, and tool making.

Language Development Babbling stage: 4 months sounds goo- gah One-word stage: 1yrs old Telegraphic speech: before 2yrs, want juice Complete sentences: 2yrs + *we learn language before we learn #s

We structure knowledge through grammar, semantics, syntax Combine verbal and visual representations *between 1-18yrs, we learn approx 10 words/day, 3,500/year *By end of high school, 60,000 word vocab.

Problem Solving Thinking that is directed towards solving specific problems Move from initial state to goal Initial state Goal state Set of specifications

Can you draw 4 straight lines through a 9 dots w/o lifting your pen off the page?

Obstacles to Problem Solving Confidence Bias eagerness to search for ideas that confirm what we think. Fixation inability to see a problem from a different perspective. Functional Fixedness thinking only of what an item is usually used for. Mental Set use the mind set that has worked in the past.

Reasoning Process of thinking in which conclusions are drawn from a set of facts (directed towards a given goal). Inductive: makes conclusions about the unknown based on probability estimates derived from available evidence or past experience Ex: all school classes are boring, therefore, university next year will be boring too! Deductive: drawing conclusions by logically following two or more statements 1.Mr. Drummond is a teacher 2.Teachers are amazing! 3.(Therefore) Mr. Drummond is AMAZING!!

Sensation and Perception

All psychology is concerned with mental processes. To understand these processes better it is best to break them up into two stages: Sensation Perception

Sensation Sensation is the first stage as it uses the environment to stimulate our sensory organs, sending messages to our brains Our main human senses are: Taste Smell Touch Sound Sight Bodily Movement Sense of balance

In the event of a loss of one of our senses the body/brain compensates by making/training our other senses to be sharper Case Study: Helen Keller

Perception The next stage of the mental processes is Perception: the way we make sense out of our senses The world consists of various kinds and levels of physical energies Our knowledge of the world comes through our sense organs, which react to these energies The sense organs and the brain transform physical energy from environmental stimuli into information about the events around us.

Factors Affecting Perception The Object Itself: tend to see movement, contrast, change, repetition, size and intensity Background and surroundings: dancing in your house alone vs. dancing at the school dance Experiences and feelings: we tend to relate situations to past experiences. Can also be based on need and personal attitudes.

Try these perceptual illusions. Spinning Dancer: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Spinning_ Dancer.gif http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Spinning_ Dancer.gif Which way is she spinning? Can you make her change direction?

Vase vs. Faces

Duck vs. Rabbit

Stair at the dot. Do the circles spin?

Lilac Chaser Follow the Dot. What happens? Stair at the cross. What happens? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lilac- Chaser.gif http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lilac- Chaser.gif

Rorschach Ink Blots The concept of perception has been used in the field of psychology for many years. Test such as the famous Rorschach Ink blots have been used to help unlock the unconscious mind and understand the persons sense of perception What to you see?

Left & Right Brain Dominance

General Info A longitudinal fissure (a deep groove) separates the human brain into two distinct cerebral hemispheres, connected by the Corpus Callosum. Each side is a visual mirror of each other, however, the functions of each hemisphere are very different.

Roger W. Sperry (1913 1994) Nobel price in Medicine in 1981 for his work/theory /research of split-brain and brain dominance His research contributed greatly to understanding the lateralization of brain functions. As a person develops a dominance towards one side of their brain, they tend to have certain characteristics and areas of interest in common

Left Brain Linear reasoning (direct fact retrieval) Numeric computations (exact calculations, numerical comparisons, estimations) Language functions (grammar and vocabulary writing and speech) Logic and thinking More logical, analytical and objective

Left Brain Here are just a few things associated with the Left: Left brain controls the right side of your body Prefer verbal instructions (attentive for long periods) Good at math, like to read (non-fiction), very logical Don`t enjoy `clowning around` Need total quiet to study Usually rational Likes to be organized Skilled at prioritizing ideas Almost never absent minded Uses specific details and facts

Left Brain Student and School In history class, you are able to remember dates and processes. In math class, you enjoy going through long calculations You like the order of science In English class, you have a good understanding of grammar and sentence structure.

Here are some `typical` occupations for left brained individuals Lab scientist Banker Judge Lawyer Mathematician Librarian Sports judge

Right Brain Numerical computation (approx calculations, estimations) Think of figuring what a tip would be based on the taxes at a restaurant. Prosodic language (rhythm and stress - intonation and accentuation) Visual and audio stimuli, spatial manipulation, artistic ability (music, art, 3-D forms). Creativity and Imagination More Intuitive, thoughtful and subjective

Right Brain Here are just a few things associated with the Right: The right brain controls the left side of the body Prefers visual instructions Good at sports Enjoy `clowning around` Prefer group activities/work/studying Prefer to read fiction Can listen to TV or music while studying Likes to organize things to show relation or act things out Occasionally absent minded Very spontaneous and unpredictable

Right Brain Student and School In history class, you enjoy the social aspects the most. You like to explore the effects of things that happened in history. You like the essays, too. You can do well in math class if you apply yourself, but get bored doing long problems Science? boring! You do well in English class too, especially when it comes to reading literature and writing essays. You also do well in creative writing exercises.

Here are some `typical` occupations for right brained individuals: Forrest ranger Wildlife manager Beautician Politician Athlete Artist Craftsman Actor

Conclusion LB more organized, will watch the clock and will analyze information and process it sequentially. Often cautious and will follow rules and schedules. RB dreamers, typically more spontaneous and quick to follow their own gut feelings. BOTH Everyone is different, everyone has characteristics from both types. Some are very equal when it comes to characteristics, and can have strong qualities from both hemispheres.

Left brain more likely to appear on the show Apprentice or jeopardy Right brain more likely to be on Survivor

Brain Dominance Quiz Take the Left/Right Brain Quiz. What type are you? Left, Right or Both? http://homeworktips.about.com/library/brai nquiz/bl_leftrightbrain_quiz.htm http://www.intelliscript.net/test_area/questi onnaire/questionnaire.cgi

Learning Style Quiz The type of brain dominance also affects your study skills, homework habits and grades. Take the learning style quiz... What type of learning style do you have? Visual, Auditory, Kinetic?? http://www.educationplanner.org/education_plan ner/discovering_article.asp?articleName=Learn ing_Styles_Quiz&sponsor=2859 http://homeworktips.about.com/library/quizzes/b l_lstylequiz1.htm

3 Types of Learners 1. Visual Learner 1.Needs to see to understand. Use of diagrams and visual aids important to knowledge and understanding. 2. Auditory Learner 1.Can just listen to a lecture and understand the material. Like to hear and real aloud. 3. Kinaesthetic Learner 1.Learns best by touching and doing. 2.Ex: Science Lab

Success in School Why is this important? Research has shown that (students) can perform better on tests if you understand and change your study habits to fit your personal learning style. Ex: Visual learners might want to use visual aids when studying, like a colourful outline of course test materials. In the end, some students remember best materials theyve seen, some remember things theyve heard, while others may remember things theyve experienced

Dual Brain Theory The two cerebral hemispheres sense and react to the environment independently as a result of the severing of the corpus callosum Traumatic injury or medical procedure to help with epilepsy Studies have indicated the existence of two intact, autonomous minds. Experiment: Have subject wear glasses w 1 lens taped over, then switch. Therefore, able to focus solely on the emotions associated with that hemisphere independently.

Functioning with Half a Brain http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/36032653/ ns/today-today_health/ http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/36032653/ ns/today-today_health/ An epileptic seizure, occasionally referred to as a fit, is defined as a transient symptom of "abnormal excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain Rasmussen Syndrome

Male vs. Female Brains http://videos.howstuffworks.com/discovery/28068- assignment-discovery-the-male-and-female-brain- video.htm

Interesting Facts Total Brain Size: th e average brain weight in men is about 11-12% MORE than the average brain weight in women. Men's heads are also about 2% bigger than women's. Males larger muscle mass, and larger body size require more neurons to control them. Brain Cell #: men have 4% more brain cells than women, and about 100 grams more of brain tissue. may explain why women are more prone to dementia (such as Alzheimer's disease) than men

Corpus Callosum: a woman's brain has a larger corpus callosum, which means women can transfer data between the right and left hemisphere faster than men. Men tend to be more left brained, while women have greater access to both sides. Hypothalamus: is twice as large in men than in women Endocrine and Nervous system (growth, hormones, mood)

Language: two areas in the frontal and temporal lobes related to language were significantly larger in women, thus providing a biological reason for women's notorious superiority in language-associated thoughts. For men, language is most often just in the dominant hemisphere (usually the left side), but a larger number of women seem to be able to use both sides for language. If a woman has a stroke in the left front side of the brain, she may still retain some language from the right front side. Men who have the same left sided damage are less likely to recover as fully.

Orbitofrontal Cortex - Amygdala: a region involved in regulating emotions producing emotional reactions women possess a significantly larger orbitofrontal-to- amygdala ratio (OAR) than men do. women might on average prove more capable of controlling their emotional reactions

Limbic females, on average, have a larger deeper limbic system than males (a set of brain structures that generally support a variety of functions including emotion, behavior, long term memory, etc) women are more in touch with their feelings, they are generally better able to express their feelings than men (but also more susceptible to depression). have an increased ability to bond and be connected to others.

Other Studies Females (higher than men in) empathy verbal skills social skills security-seeking

Males independence dominance spatial mathematical skills rank-related aggression *scientists believe that this is why there are many more male mathematicians, airplane pilots, outdoor guides, mechanical engineers, architects and race car drivers than female ones.

The Human Brain Cognitive Process Sensation and Perception Left & Right Brain Dominance Gender Differences.

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