Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Parenting
I don't see how parenting couldn't have an affect on a child. If the parent decides that beating their child is a good way to parent, the child will most likely grow up to be damaged in some way. That is not a part of genetic coding. Also, just because a child is genetically more likely to have a certain characteristic because his/her biological parents did doesn't mean the characteristic will develop. Nurture determines what features are activated.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Twin Studies/ Other Nature-Nurture Crap
The most important thing I learned from my research is that genes determine nothing on their own; all characteristics are determined during development. They interact with the local environment that is in turn affected by the broader environment. I also learned that twin studies, while they do show a correlation, do not show the causes of the appearance of traits. Another important notion: heritability does not mean heredity. Traits that are 100% heritable can still be heavily influenced by the environment. For example, if the child of two alcoholics is raised in an environment without any alcohol, it will not become an alcoholic, no matter how genetically predisposed it is to be one. I also learned about (unfortunately) Mengele, a German "scientist" during World War II. He performed cruel and unusual experiments on concentration camp twins. He learned nothing of scientific value, of course. A more successful scientific investigator of twins was Bouchard; he is the director of the Minnesota Center for Twin and Adoption Research. He has done longitudinal studies of twins, collecting medical and psychological data from them as they aged.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Psych Research
I. Young People's Personality Disorders
This study looked into the minds of 5000 people between the ages of 19 and 25, and found that 1 in 5 young people have a personality disorder, like anti-social behavior and obsessive/compulsive tendencies. 25% of these people go without treatment, and that half of young people have a psychiatric condition (when you include substance abuse). Researchers believe young people are particularly susceptible because they deal with furthering their education and choosing a career and other important issues, which increases stress and leads to personality disorders. While the sample is large, the age group may be inappropriate; there can be huge differences between a 19 year old and a 25 year old. It's important to look at whether the person is in college, working a job, has a family, etc, before coming to a general conclusion about the disorders of all young people. It's also important to know the background of the subjects; some could have come from unstable environments which would certainly explain their disorders better than their youthfulness.
http://www.psycport.com/showArticle.cfm?xmlFile=ap_2008_12_02_ap.online.all_D94QIUHO0_news_ap_org.anpa.xml&provider=
II. Body-swap Illusion
This study had 87 subjects (weird number, by the way) wear a virtual reality helmet and first watch a mannequin be stimulated at the same time and in the same manner as the subject was being stimulated. Next the researchers would stimulate only the mannequin, yet the subject felt they were being stimulated as well (that they were the mannequin). 80% of the subjects responded to the stimulation of the mannequin. First of all, the test pool is rather limited. Second of all, the subjects were able to see the kitchen knives and other devices used to stimulate before putting the helmet on; the subjects would then get nervous or anticipate what the researcher would do, leading them to respond in the way the researchers wanted them to.
http://www.psycport.com/showArticle.cfm?xmlFile=ap_2008_12_02_ap.online.all_D94QKD880_news_ap_org.anpa.xml&provider=
III. Soldiers Who Have Killed Defend the War
In a study of 68 Iraq War veterans, researchers determined that the soldiers didn't feel more animosity toward Iraqis than soldiers who hadn't been directly involved in an Iraqi fatality, like predicted, but that they felt more animosity toward Americans who didn't support the war. The cause, they claim, is that the soldiers need to justify their killing, so they use the war as an excuse; when someone takes that excuse away, it leads to guilt and all the fun things that come along with murder. Ok. So, the pool is again rather small, making the findings less significant. The information about what sorts of questions and other details are withheld, again making the findings less significant. Because of post traumatic stress disorder and other common psychological ramifications of war, it's hard to get a group of subjects that don't have other traumas; this again makes the study much less credible.
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=soldiers-who-have-taken-a-life
This study looked into the minds of 5000 people between the ages of 19 and 25, and found that 1 in 5 young people have a personality disorder, like anti-social behavior and obsessive/compulsive tendencies. 25% of these people go without treatment, and that half of young people have a psychiatric condition (when you include substance abuse). Researchers believe young people are particularly susceptible because they deal with furthering their education and choosing a career and other important issues, which increases stress and leads to personality disorders. While the sample is large, the age group may be inappropriate; there can be huge differences between a 19 year old and a 25 year old. It's important to look at whether the person is in college, working a job, has a family, etc, before coming to a general conclusion about the disorders of all young people. It's also important to know the background of the subjects; some could have come from unstable environments which would certainly explain their disorders better than their youthfulness.
http://www.psycport.com/showArticle.cfm?xmlFile=ap_2008_12_02_ap.online.all_D94QIUHO0_news_ap_org.anpa.xml&provider=
II. Body-swap Illusion
This study had 87 subjects (weird number, by the way) wear a virtual reality helmet and first watch a mannequin be stimulated at the same time and in the same manner as the subject was being stimulated. Next the researchers would stimulate only the mannequin, yet the subject felt they were being stimulated as well (that they were the mannequin). 80% of the subjects responded to the stimulation of the mannequin. First of all, the test pool is rather limited. Second of all, the subjects were able to see the kitchen knives and other devices used to stimulate before putting the helmet on; the subjects would then get nervous or anticipate what the researcher would do, leading them to respond in the way the researchers wanted them to.
http://www.psycport.com/showArticle.cfm?xmlFile=ap_2008_12_02_ap.online.all_D94QKD880_news_ap_org.anpa.xml&provider=
III. Soldiers Who Have Killed Defend the War
In a study of 68 Iraq War veterans, researchers determined that the soldiers didn't feel more animosity toward Iraqis than soldiers who hadn't been directly involved in an Iraqi fatality, like predicted, but that they felt more animosity toward Americans who didn't support the war. The cause, they claim, is that the soldiers need to justify their killing, so they use the war as an excuse; when someone takes that excuse away, it leads to guilt and all the fun things that come along with murder. Ok. So, the pool is again rather small, making the findings less significant. The information about what sorts of questions and other details are withheld, again making the findings less significant. Because of post traumatic stress disorder and other common psychological ramifications of war, it's hard to get a group of subjects that don't have other traumas; this again makes the study much less credible.
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=soldiers-who-have-taken-a-life
Thursday, November 13, 2008
The Unexperimented Experiment
Excuse the non-word.
Dr. Vaughn Bell's theoretical experiment involving the investigation of paranoia is an important one. He suggests that mental health professionals judge a person's so-called delusions as severe or based on real circumstances. A private investigator would then research the patient's claims to see how valid they are. I think this would be a great experiment because, as Bell notes, it would allow us to see how much our brain exaggerates fear. It would also help determine whether a person actually has a mental illness or not; I'm sure there are some people out there who are on medication that they don't need to be on. This will never be a realized experiment, but what we would learn from it would be valuable.
Dr. Vaughn Bell's theoretical experiment involving the investigation of paranoia is an important one. He suggests that mental health professionals judge a person's so-called delusions as severe or based on real circumstances. A private investigator would then research the patient's claims to see how valid they are. I think this would be a great experiment because, as Bell notes, it would allow us to see how much our brain exaggerates fear. It would also help determine whether a person actually has a mental illness or not; I'm sure there are some people out there who are on medication that they don't need to be on. This will never be a realized experiment, but what we would learn from it would be valuable.
Other Blogs
As I would consider myself a paranoid person, the blog about paranoia from PsycPORT.com was of interest to me. Basically, it says that paranoia isn't just for schizophrenics and doesn't always require professional help (phew). While the actual figures vary greatly, everyone agrees that paranoia is on the rise. It's not always a bad thing to be more aware of your surroundings, but if the paranoia is too severe, it can cause stress, leading to health problems. Now for Shannon's version of the moral of the story: Unless some dude is following you everywhere and staring up at your bedroom window every night, shut up, you'll be fine.
Next up, we have laughter! Yay! Ever laugh for no reason? Good for you! When you laugh, you release happy hormones and help your body relax and get rid of stress, which sucks. It also strengthens your immune system for some reason... but that can help your body fight cancer and other serious ailments. There are actually "laugh clubs" nowadays-- I know-- that meet and just practice laughing. And you know what's funny?(Haha. Puns.) I was laughing when I read this article. Nothing was amusing about it, I just laughed. So LAUGH PEOPLE! If you need help I'll come to your house and do a funny dance.
So I just read a blog about infidelity. And now I'm depressed. Apparently humans aren't meant to be with one person for their entire life; we're not monogamous. One author suggests that while everything else around us has changed, marraige hasn't, which explains the increase in infidelity. And while it is more common than it used to be and our idea of marraige apparently isn't modern enough to fit our lifestyle, infidelity is still painful and socially unacceptable, or at least frowned upon. It's likely you're going to be cheated on and/or greatly hurt by one or more people you're romantically involved with because humans are not monogamous by nature. But that's just according to this article, and they're just a bunch of wankers.
Next up, we have laughter! Yay! Ever laugh for no reason? Good for you! When you laugh, you release happy hormones and help your body relax and get rid of stress, which sucks. It also strengthens your immune system for some reason... but that can help your body fight cancer and other serious ailments. There are actually "laugh clubs" nowadays-- I know-- that meet and just practice laughing. And you know what's funny?(Haha. Puns.) I was laughing when I read this article. Nothing was amusing about it, I just laughed. So LAUGH PEOPLE! If you need help I'll come to your house and do a funny dance.
So I just read a blog about infidelity. And now I'm depressed. Apparently humans aren't meant to be with one person for their entire life; we're not monogamous. One author suggests that while everything else around us has changed, marraige hasn't, which explains the increase in infidelity. And while it is more common than it used to be and our idea of marraige apparently isn't modern enough to fit our lifestyle, infidelity is still painful and socially unacceptable, or at least frowned upon. It's likely you're going to be cheated on and/or greatly hurt by one or more people you're romantically involved with because humans are not monogamous by nature. But that's just according to this article, and they're just a bunch of wankers.
Future Uses of Neuroscience
It's hard to say what the future holds, but neuroscience will have something to do with it. Someday everyone will have little chips in his/her head that connect their thoughts to the objects in their house(the tv, the radio, the computer, maybe we'll get funky and try to talk to the curtains, who knows). Forget about those pesky remotes and all their tiny buttons and complicated workings. We'll have iTunes in our heads! So during class we could play music and the teachers wouldn't know it. Haha. Basically we'll all be voluntarily psychic. If you don't want someone to know something, you'll have some nice sort of firewall to protect that information, but your mind will be able to send messages to people. So yeah. Cool.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
VORB 1
I. The Split Brain
In severe cases of epilepsy, it's necessary to separate the left and right hemispheres of the brain, making a split brain. To separate the brain, you cut through the corpus callosum, thick neural fibers that connect the left and right hemispheres. By doing this, the sides of the brain can't communicate through the conventional pathways. But there is evidence, including a case of Dr. Michael Gazzaniga's, that suggests that the brain doesn't need to communicate for the human to survive. It seems that when the sides can't communicate, one side takes control of the entire body. For example, Joe, Gazzaniga's patient, couldn't see words/objects to the left of a dot, but if he let his brain take over, he could draw the word/object he supposedly hadn't seen. This shows the brain's capacity for modification, or plasticity.
http://thesituationist.wordpress.com/2008/08/26/the-split-brain-and-the-interior-situation-of-theories-of-the-self/
II. Brain Recognizes Transplanted Hand
After a man receives a hand transplant after losing his own in an accident, the brain recognizes it. What the article calls the somatosensory cortex and whatI recognize to be the plain old sensory cortex is responsible for this recognition, as it registers body sensations such as pain. When the hand was lost, the area of the sensory cortex (a part of the parietal lobes) responsible for that hand spent it's time processing facial information (the area that controls the face and the area that controls the hands are close and large) ; that's another perfect example of brain plasticity. But after 35 years of having no hand and minor phantom pain, the area of the brain that was originally responsible for the hand reverted back to it's old function. While his fingers are not represented quite as well on a cortical level, the hand itself works very well under the circumstances.
http://scienceblogs.com/neurophilosophy/2008/10/brain_immediately_recognizes_transplanted_hand.php
In severe cases of epilepsy, it's necessary to separate the left and right hemispheres of the brain, making a split brain. To separate the brain, you cut through the corpus callosum, thick neural fibers that connect the left and right hemispheres. By doing this, the sides of the brain can't communicate through the conventional pathways. But there is evidence, including a case of Dr. Michael Gazzaniga's, that suggests that the brain doesn't need to communicate for the human to survive. It seems that when the sides can't communicate, one side takes control of the entire body. For example, Joe, Gazzaniga's patient, couldn't see words/objects to the left of a dot, but if he let his brain take over, he could draw the word/object he supposedly hadn't seen. This shows the brain's capacity for modification, or plasticity.
http://thesituationist.wordpress.com/2008/08/26/the-split-brain-and-the-interior-situation-of-theories-of-the-self/
II. Brain Recognizes Transplanted Hand
After a man receives a hand transplant after losing his own in an accident, the brain recognizes it. What the article calls the somatosensory cortex and whatI recognize to be the plain old sensory cortex is responsible for this recognition, as it registers body sensations such as pain. When the hand was lost, the area of the sensory cortex (a part of the parietal lobes) responsible for that hand spent it's time processing facial information (the area that controls the face and the area that controls the hands are close and large) ; that's another perfect example of brain plasticity. But after 35 years of having no hand and minor phantom pain, the area of the brain that was originally responsible for the hand reverted back to it's old function. While his fingers are not represented quite as well on a cortical level, the hand itself works very well under the circumstances.
http://scienceblogs.com/neurophilosophy/2008/10/brain_immediately_recognizes_transplanted_hand.php
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Neurological videos and articles
Videos
I. Endorphins
The brain releases it's own natural morphine called endorphins; these endorphins respond to pain. Our endorphins have identical recognition sites, meaning that our endorphins invoke a similar response as heroine. Our endorphins also effect many other bodily functions are are neurotransmitters, or chemical messages that jump the synapse between the information-receiving part of the neuron, or dendrites.
II. Hormones and the Environment
Hypnoses happens in the cortex with a change in the pattern of brain waves. Brain waves occur through this process: neurons, with dendrites attached (which receive information), send messages to other neurons along axons which are covered by an insulating myelin sheath. When the message reaches a synapse, a neurotransmitter must jump this gap between the neurons. After the neuron receives a certain amount of information (threshold), it has an action potential, sending the message to other neurons. In hypnotism, we can choose which waves we recognize and which we ignore.
Articles
I. Social Relations (Brain Style)
Mirror neurons are a group of neurons in the premotor cortex; they interpret other's actions. Basically, it's where you get your intuitiveness from. It's also why moods are "contagious;" if you see a person laughing or smiling, the mirror neurons in your brain related to laughing or smiling activate, causing you to feel what you perceive they are. The function of these neurons have been linked to autism; they have trouble interpretting the actions of others, making interaction difficult. Their mirror neurons are weaker.
II. Memories are Made of These
Ok. So a group of people were shown clips from various TV shows, pictures of celebrities, etc. Neurologists monitored the neural pathways these clips activated. Later they asked the people to recall some of the video clips; the same neural pathways activated and activated about a second and a half before the person actually recalled it, allowing the neurologists to know which clip/photo they were remembering. This indicates that memory involves the activation of specific neurons in the hippocampus.
I. Endorphins
The brain releases it's own natural morphine called endorphins; these endorphins respond to pain. Our endorphins have identical recognition sites, meaning that our endorphins invoke a similar response as heroine. Our endorphins also effect many other bodily functions are are neurotransmitters, or chemical messages that jump the synapse between the information-receiving part of the neuron, or dendrites.
II. Hormones and the Environment
Hypnoses happens in the cortex with a change in the pattern of brain waves. Brain waves occur through this process: neurons, with dendrites attached (which receive information), send messages to other neurons along axons which are covered by an insulating myelin sheath. When the message reaches a synapse, a neurotransmitter must jump this gap between the neurons. After the neuron receives a certain amount of information (threshold), it has an action potential, sending the message to other neurons. In hypnotism, we can choose which waves we recognize and which we ignore.
Articles
I. Social Relations (Brain Style)
Mirror neurons are a group of neurons in the premotor cortex; they interpret other's actions. Basically, it's where you get your intuitiveness from. It's also why moods are "contagious;" if you see a person laughing or smiling, the mirror neurons in your brain related to laughing or smiling activate, causing you to feel what you perceive they are. The function of these neurons have been linked to autism; they have trouble interpretting the actions of others, making interaction difficult. Their mirror neurons are weaker.
II. Memories are Made of These
Ok. So a group of people were shown clips from various TV shows, pictures of celebrities, etc. Neurologists monitored the neural pathways these clips activated. Later they asked the people to recall some of the video clips; the same neural pathways activated and activated about a second and a half before the person actually recalled it, allowing the neurologists to know which clip/photo they were remembering. This indicates that memory involves the activation of specific neurons in the hippocampus.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Conflict and Altruism
When I think of conflict, I think of politics. Everyone disagrees about politics. For example, there is a girl whom I have AP US with and we have completely opposite political views. She is a nice person and an intelligent person, and I don't feel aggression towards her, I don't want to cause her harm, but we do often find ourselves at different sides of an argument. Of course we both get a wee bit frustrated with each other at times, because who doesn't like to be right? Oh crap. I act frustrated when I talk to her (sometimes), but I'm saying that I don't have any aggression towards her. Damn cognitive dissonance... anyway, in this case, this external conflict comes from challenging each other's values. There is no resolution as of yet, and I doubt there ever will be. We both believe different things and are sticking to them. No conformity here.
Altruism is an act of unprovoked or unplanned kindness towards another; altruism is selfless. I am a very motherly type of person, meaning I try to take care of people. For example, my friend Courtney had just gotten back to our lunch table and realized that she had forgotten a fork, so I went and got her one. It's not a big deal, it's not like I'm saving lives or anything. But it was minorly helpful. Anyone that improves the welfare of others without regard to their personal benefit or recognition displays altruism. Altruism may best be described as those little acts of kindness that make a person's day, though there are extremely large acts of altruism, like risking your own life to save another's.
Altruism is an act of unprovoked or unplanned kindness towards another; altruism is selfless. I am a very motherly type of person, meaning I try to take care of people. For example, my friend Courtney had just gotten back to our lunch table and realized that she had forgotten a fork, so I went and got her one. It's not a big deal, it's not like I'm saving lives or anything. But it was minorly helpful. Anyone that improves the welfare of others without regard to their personal benefit or recognition displays altruism. Altruism may best be described as those little acts of kindness that make a person's day, though there are extremely large acts of altruism, like risking your own life to save another's.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Video, Article, and Experiment
I. Video
In the video on agression, I learned that the hypothalamus controls anger. Depending on howthe hypothalamus is stimulated with electrodes, an animal can become angry and then calm in an instant. Mark Lerabis (or something like that), a man who assaulted his girlfriend's young daughter, proved this is true in humans as well. He actually had a tumor on his brain which put pressure on his amigdala and hypothalamus, triggering severe anger. After this tumor was removed, he was able to control his anger extremely well.
II. Article
I read the article on digital intimacy. It starts by talking about facebook and how it updates you on every little thing your friends change on his/her profile. Many people find it ridiculous and mundane... until they try it. In a new phenomenon called ambient awareness, people feel close to thier friends when they know what's going on every second of their lives. You come to know a person very well by studying their every day activity. A simile in the article explains it very well: "The little snippets coalesce into a surprisingly sophisticated portrait of your friends’ and family members’ lives, like thousands of dots making a pointillist painting."
III. Experiment
I participated in a study comparing a person's preference for masculinity-femininity in faces of different age and sex. Most people preferred feminine women 83% of the time and more feminine men 62% of the time. I had similar results, especially for men, for I preferred feminine women 94% of the time and I preferred feminine men 63% of the time.
In the video on agression, I learned that the hypothalamus controls anger. Depending on howthe hypothalamus is stimulated with electrodes, an animal can become angry and then calm in an instant. Mark Lerabis (or something like that), a man who assaulted his girlfriend's young daughter, proved this is true in humans as well. He actually had a tumor on his brain which put pressure on his amigdala and hypothalamus, triggering severe anger. After this tumor was removed, he was able to control his anger extremely well.
II. Article
I read the article on digital intimacy. It starts by talking about facebook and how it updates you on every little thing your friends change on his/her profile. Many people find it ridiculous and mundane... until they try it. In a new phenomenon called ambient awareness, people feel close to thier friends when they know what's going on every second of their lives. You come to know a person very well by studying their every day activity. A simile in the article explains it very well: "The little snippets coalesce into a surprisingly sophisticated portrait of your friends’ and family members’ lives, like thousands of dots making a pointillist painting."
III. Experiment
I participated in a study comparing a person's preference for masculinity-femininity in faces of different age and sex. Most people preferred feminine women 83% of the time and more feminine men 62% of the time. I had similar results, especially for men, for I preferred feminine women 94% of the time and I preferred feminine men 63% of the time.
Violating a Social Norm
For my social norm violation, I brushed my teeth at a drinking fountain. Spit in it and everything. Before I did it, I felt kind of excited; I had an excuse to act like the weirdo I am. Afterwords, however, I kind of felt like a wanker. I got sort of worried about what people thought because chances are they'll never know that I was doing an experiment. I did get some funny reactions though. Of course I got many strange looks and double-takes, but some people talked to me. Courtney, who knew I was doing my experiment on Friday, didn't even recognize that it was my experiment. She said "You're weird" and walked away. My friend Stephanie had an interesting reaction. She said "That's so unique. I like that." Later she said she had no idea what I was doing and didn't know what to say. A stupid freshman boy I didn't know asked me "Are you seriously brushing your teeth?" and I nodded. He then said "Woooooooooooow" and walked away. My favorite reaction came from a girl who was looking over her shoulder as she walked and then ran into a guy and almost fell over. Hee hee.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Stanford Prison Experiment
I) The Stanford Prison Experiment was similar to the events at Abu Ghraib because of the poor conditions faced by the residents of the prisons. The guards had to work long shifts and deal with high-stress situations for which they had no formal training. The prisoners were humiliated and dehumanized as well as taunted. Some people would make the fundamental attribution error and blame the events solely on the gurads' personalities, but the situation is responsible. Even the ones who knew it was wrong conformed. The major difference that I see between the two is that the torture at Abu Ghraib was more severe. This is to be expected, as the Stanford Experiment had a controlled environment (... sort of). Another difference is the amount of pleasure the guards got out of torturing their prisoners. Though a third of the guards at Stanford got pleasure out of their authority, the guards at Abu Ghraib seemed to get pleasure out of the torture itself. The images of smiling guards with bloody, naked prisoners speak for themselves.
J) The guards were upset that the experiment was over because they got a rush off of their power. They enjoyed having so much control over another human being and once you have that kind of authority, it's hard to give it up. Also, the guards had a strong group identity and experienced ingroup biased. Had it not been for thinking defetcs like groupthink, someone may have spoken up and stopped the experiment before it really started.
J) The guards were upset that the experiment was over because they got a rush off of their power. They enjoyed having so much control over another human being and once you have that kind of authority, it's hard to give it up. Also, the guards had a strong group identity and experienced ingroup biased. Had it not been for thinking defetcs like groupthink, someone may have spoken up and stopped the experiment before it really started.
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Abu Ghraib Torture
What occurred at Abu Ghraib was primarily the fault of the soldiers; more specifically Charles Graner and Lynndie England, though I'm sure other soldiers not pictured were just as responsible. That's not to say that the higher-ranking officers or officials aren't responsible, for they suggested the abuse or didn't do aything to stop it. The soldiers there fell into a role; they're soldiers, so they're supposed to keep the prisoners in check by whatever means necessary, right? The violence around them was escalating, so they had to keep up, right? When everyone around you is doing something, telling you that that's the way it's supposed to be, it's hard to hold on to your original thought or mindset. But that doesn't excuse anything. Whether they like to think it or not, they were in control the whole time. It was a little harder, fine, but they still had the power of decision. They were the ones who tortured innocent prisoners, they were the ones who humiliated them every day, and they were the ones who could have stopped it. The sad thing is, if one soldier had spoken up, had said that what they were doing was wrong, the illusion may have faded. The soldiers would have realized that what they were doing needed to stop. I thought America was all about being your own person? Oh well.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Influential Picture
Here's the picture--> http://flickr.com/photos/30805787@N07/2885443209/
So. Influence. I have seen this show so much it's unhealthy. It's the thing I put on in the background when I'm cooking or making my lunch (That's right. I make my lunch. Do we have a problem?) I know it's kinda weird, but every now and then someone (who also knows the show quite well, usually my brother... haha) tells me that I sounded like Phoebe or Chandler. So apparently I talk like them. And I can associate the show with pretty much anything, so I end up thinking about it pretty often. And I use actual lines from the show, a lot of the time not even knowing that I'm doing it; I think that I came up with it and had just used the line before (source amnesia! Yay!). And most of the time its ok, but when Ben's around he calls me out. It's ok though. Cause now EVERYONE will know that he knows the show well enough to quote it. HAHAHA!
So. Influence. I have seen this show so much it's unhealthy. It's the thing I put on in the background when I'm cooking or making my lunch (That's right. I make my lunch. Do we have a problem?) I know it's kinda weird, but every now and then someone (who also knows the show quite well, usually my brother... haha) tells me that I sounded like Phoebe or Chandler. So apparently I talk like them. And I can associate the show with pretty much anything, so I end up thinking about it pretty often. And I use actual lines from the show, a lot of the time not even knowing that I'm doing it; I think that I came up with it and had just used the line before (source amnesia! Yay!). And most of the time its ok, but when Ben's around he calls me out. It's ok though. Cause now EVERYONE will know that he knows the show well enough to quote it. HAHAHA!
Monday, September 22, 2008
Memory Applications
My new knowledge of memory could actually help me. I could apply techniques like the spacing affect to help me absorb more information for my classes. Also, I now know that making associations with information helps me remember said information. But that's only if I actually apply it. We'll see. The process of recall becomes easier when you have things that trigger what you're trying to remember. Before this unit, I never thought that memories were so easily changed and falsified. Witness testimonies don't hold as much weight anymore. It kind of scares me that I could be recalling a childhood memory that never actually happened. So now I have another way to freak myself out.
P.S. I'm not very eloquent today. Sorry.
P.S. I'm not very eloquent today. Sorry.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Psych Sims
I. Be a Juror
The website provided me with a skinny version of a trial regarding a double homicide/robbery. It provided arguments from both the persecution and the defense and had you vote on if you thought the man was guilty. I honestly don't know what the purpose of it was; possibly the diction favored one side over the other?
II. Object Placement
In this experiment, the website had me look at a white background with 15 or so objects in front of it for a minute. I was then shown a page with the same objects, except some of them switched positions. I was asked to click on all the objects that switched. The simulation wasn't over until you got it perfectly; you had five chances. The purpose was to show you how the more you do something, the better at it you get. It also exercises your implicit memory; I didn't know where the table used to be (the first couple times around), but when I looked at the picture I knew something was wrong with it.
The website provided me with a skinny version of a trial regarding a double homicide/robbery. It provided arguments from both the persecution and the defense and had you vote on if you thought the man was guilty. I honestly don't know what the purpose of it was; possibly the diction favored one side over the other?
II. Object Placement
In this experiment, the website had me look at a white background with 15 or so objects in front of it for a minute. I was then shown a page with the same objects, except some of them switched positions. I was asked to click on all the objects that switched. The simulation wasn't over until you got it perfectly; you had five chances. The purpose was to show you how the more you do something, the better at it you get. It also exercises your implicit memory; I didn't know where the table used to be (the first couple times around), but when I looked at the picture I knew something was wrong with it.
Psych Videos
I. Amnesia
The hippocampus is extremely important to the act of forming new memories. The hipocampus doesn't store memories, but it consolidates memories along with other parts of the brain. An electrical event in the hippocampus called Long Term Protentiation helps the hippocamus consolidate. When a drug that blocks LTP is put into a lab rat, the rat cannot remember anything. Clearly LTP and the hippocampus are two of the most important things involved in memory.
II. Learning as Synaptic Change
Learning involves elimination of older pathways to make new ones; This learning causes biological changes in the brain; cells grow new synaptic connections with other cells, you make new proeins and turn on genes that you did not previously use. Stimulating the same neural pathway for an extended period of time makes that neural pathway stronger; to do this, however, you must get rid of old pathways.
III. Locus of Learning
Penfield, through flawed experiments (no varification of data), determined that memory was stored in the temporal lobe; he would stimulate a part of the brain, disrupting that section's normal functions, and poking around until the patient felt a sensation. Another scientist, Lashley, proved Penfield's theory wrong, discovering through the removal of bits of a rat's brain, that memory is stored all over the cortex.
The hippocampus is extremely important to the act of forming new memories. The hipocampus doesn't store memories, but it consolidates memories along with other parts of the brain. An electrical event in the hippocampus called Long Term Protentiation helps the hippocamus consolidate. When a drug that blocks LTP is put into a lab rat, the rat cannot remember anything. Clearly LTP and the hippocampus are two of the most important things involved in memory.
II. Learning as Synaptic Change
Learning involves elimination of older pathways to make new ones; This learning causes biological changes in the brain; cells grow new synaptic connections with other cells, you make new proeins and turn on genes that you did not previously use. Stimulating the same neural pathway for an extended period of time makes that neural pathway stronger; to do this, however, you must get rid of old pathways.
III. Locus of Learning
Penfield, through flawed experiments (no varification of data), determined that memory was stored in the temporal lobe; he would stimulate a part of the brain, disrupting that section's normal functions, and poking around until the patient felt a sensation. Another scientist, Lashley, proved Penfield's theory wrong, discovering through the removal of bits of a rat's brain, that memory is stored all over the cortex.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Memory Articles
I. Infant Memory
1. An experiment performed by Carolyn Rovee-Collier seemed to prove that infants have long-term memories.
2. The experiment says that it proves that infants know the difference between one mobile and another random mobile based on the level and timing of a kick. Maybe the mobile they tested with was bright and made the baby excited or maybe it was coincidence.
3. and 4. This article simply reinforces the lesson about infant memory from the textbook.
5. A section of the chapter on memory discussed infant memory and amnesia similarly to the article.
II. Brain Size
1. An experiment sheds some light on why some people who have Alzheimer's Disease in their brain do not show symptoms: a large hippocampus.
2. While the results are promising, the experiment was performed with a mere 12 infected people who didn't show symptoms and only 23 previously diagnosed Alzheimer's patients.
3. The hippocampus is more than a funny word: it does, like, stuff.
4. The article cleared up any misonceptions I had about the function of the hippocampus.
5. The hippocampus was previously revealed to have been important to the function of a person's memory.
III. Estrogen
1. Through an experiment with rats, it has been determined that estrogen helps memory and does other positive things for the brain.
2. The rats hat low estrogen to begin with, so the researchers may have just brought the estrogen back to normal levels, explaining why the addition of estrogen helped.
3. Estrogen is detrimental to all other parts of the body other than the brain.
4. Uh-uh
5. This article, like the book, references the hippocampus in regard to to memory and talks about neurological pathways and such.
1. An experiment performed by Carolyn Rovee-Collier seemed to prove that infants have long-term memories.
2. The experiment says that it proves that infants know the difference between one mobile and another random mobile based on the level and timing of a kick. Maybe the mobile they tested with was bright and made the baby excited or maybe it was coincidence.
3. and 4. This article simply reinforces the lesson about infant memory from the textbook.
5. A section of the chapter on memory discussed infant memory and amnesia similarly to the article.
II. Brain Size
1. An experiment sheds some light on why some people who have Alzheimer's Disease in their brain do not show symptoms: a large hippocampus.
2. While the results are promising, the experiment was performed with a mere 12 infected people who didn't show symptoms and only 23 previously diagnosed Alzheimer's patients.
3. The hippocampus is more than a funny word: it does, like, stuff.
4. The article cleared up any misonceptions I had about the function of the hippocampus.
5. The hippocampus was previously revealed to have been important to the function of a person's memory.
III. Estrogen
1. Through an experiment with rats, it has been determined that estrogen helps memory and does other positive things for the brain.
2. The rats hat low estrogen to begin with, so the researchers may have just brought the estrogen back to normal levels, explaining why the addition of estrogen helped.
3. Estrogen is detrimental to all other parts of the body other than the brain.
4. Uh-uh
5. This article, like the book, references the hippocampus in regard to to memory and talks about neurological pathways and such.
Monday, September 8, 2008
Me
Je mapp'elle Shannon Swiatek. I play tennis and I participate in the drama program with Beth and Kelsey which is pretty fun. Red is an amazing color. My life revolves around music, so in my mind the iPod is the most wicked thing since sliced bread. Which doesn't make a whole lot of sense, cause all you do is make a loaf of bread multiple miniature loaves of bread. So really the phrase should just mention bread as opposed to sliced bread. Or it should mention, like, an automible. Cause they're pretty significant in our society. Kinda caused a revoltuion, you know? I mean you don't see a lot of people without cars. Though cars have lots of negative side effects, unlike sliced bread, so maybe it should be something else. Atleast pick something that's actually cool for that phrase. The whole point of the phrase is to say that something is really cool and new. Sliced bread? Not so cool.
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