An empirical study- results of verifiable evidence from a systematic collection and analysis of data that has been objectively observed measured, and undergone experimentationbasic research-research that answers fundamental questions about behaviorsapplied research- research that investigates issues that have implications for everyday life and provides solutions to everyday problemstheory- an integrated set of principles that explains and predicts many, but not all, observed rela-tionships with a given domain of inquiryThree tenants of critical thinking:1) curiosity2) skepticism3) humility*claiming certainty should be a red flag*Importance of a good theory:-falsifiable-simple (parsimonious)-generate ideas for future researchImportant of a good hypothesis-it must be testable-specificImportance of good methodology-results must be reliable and easily replicatedGood measurement- operation definitions- conceptual variables must be quantifiablecase study- examine individual in depthPro: lots of really good infoCon: not necessarily generalizableSurvey:Pro: can get lots of dataCon: self report data is subject to an incredible amount of biases/inconsistencieswatch out for wording effectsNaturalistic Observation-observer bias-observer effect-interrater reliabilitysample- carefully selected segment of a larger group of internetcorrelation=relationship*does not mean 2 variables cause each otherA statistic that represents a correlation can fall between -1 and +1-the closer to -1 and +1 the stronger the relationship-the closer to 0, the weaker the relationshipPositive relationship- the direction of the 2 variables is the sameNegative relationship- there is an inverse relationshipHow do we determine cause and effect?Experiments- manipulation of factors of interest, while controlling for other factrs2 necessary criteria for experiments:1) Random Assignment2) Control GroupPlacebo effect: belief that an inactive treatment of pseudo-manipulated IV has had an effectNeuron- a cell in the nervous system whose function it is to receive and transmit information3 parts:1) cell body (soma)2) dendrite3) axon soma- contains the nucleus of the cell and keeps the cell alivedendrite- a branching treelike fiber; collects information from other cells and sends the info to the somaaxon- transmits information away from the cell body toward other neurons or to the muscles and glandsterminal buttons- form junctions with other cellsmyelin sheath- covers the axon of some neurons and helps speed neural impulses, layer of fatty tissuesynapses- spaces between the cellsresting potential- a state in which the interior of the neuron contains a greater number of nega-tively charged ions than does the area outside the cellNodes of Ranvier- gaps in between the myelin sheaths1000/secneurotransmitter- a chemical that relays signals across the synapses between neuronsreuptake- a process in which neurotransmitters that are in the synapse are reabsorbed into the transmitting terminal buttons*vesicles of neurotransmitters can be found in PRE-SYNAPTIC terminal buttons*agonist- a drug that has chemical properties similar to a particular neurotransmitter and mimics the effects of the neurotransmitter * Alcohol inhibits the excitatory channels on the postsynaptic neuronbrain stem- older and innermost region of the brain*controls the most basic functions of life, including breathing, atten-tion, and motor responsesmedulla- the area of the brain stem that controls heart rate and breathingpons- spherical shape above the medulla, a structure in the brainstem that helps control the movements of the body-balancing and walking, also important for sleeping, waking, dreaming and arousal reticular formation- a long narrow network of neurons, job is to filter out some of the stimuli thatare coming into the brain from the spinal cord and to relay the remainder of the signals to other areas of the brain-plays an important role in walking, eating, sexual activity, and sleeping (controls arousal)superior colliculi- primitive visual inferior colliculi- primitive auditorythalamus- egg shaped structure sitting just above the brain stem that applies more filtering to the sensory information coming from the spinal cord and through the reticular formation and relays some of these remaining signals to the higher brain levels- relays sensory info to the upper re-gions of the brain (sensory switch boards)cerebellum- 2 wrinkled ovals behind the brain stem- functions to coordinate voluntary move-mentslimbic system- largely responsible for memory and emotions, set of distinct and important brain structures located beneath and around the thalamusamygdala- 2 almond shaped clusters, primarily responsible for regulating our perceptions of and reactions to aggression and fearhypothalamus- helps regulate body temperature, hunger, thirst, and sex drive and re-sponds to the satisfactions of these needs by creating feelings of pleasure- bodily maintenance (flight, fight, feed and sexual functioning)hippocampus- 2 horns; stores information in long term memoryAnterior cingulate- error/threat protection cerebral cortex- outer bark like layer of our brain that allows us to use language, acquire complexskills, and create tools and live in social groups (most evolved)cortizalization- folding of the cerebral cortexglial cells- cells that surround and link to the neurons, protecting them, providing them with nu-trients, and absorbing unused neurotransmittersfissures- the folds separating the 4 lobesfrontal lobe- thinking, planning, memory, and judgementparietal- responsible for processing information about touch; receives sensory information and helps us know where our bodies are in space occipital- processes visual infotemporal- hearing and language,motor cortex- the part of the cortex that controls and executes movements of the body by sendingsignals to the cerebellum and the spinal cord (controls voluntary movements)sensory cortex-processes body touch and movement sensationssomatosensory cortex- receives info from different parts of the body, located at the front of the parietal lobevisual cortex- (in occipital cortex) processes visual informationauditory cortex- responsible for hearing and language (in temporal lobe)the frontal lobe/prefrontal cortex is responsible for:• inhibition• abstract though• planning• imagination• consciousness• flexible response to challenge/threat can override limbic system• almost infinite learning abilitiesNeuroplasticity- the
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