9.13: The Human Brain - First Lecture

Jul 18, 2024

9.13: The Human Brain - First Lecture

Instructor: Nancy Camwisher

  • Course Structure:
    • Start with a story (10 minutes)
    • Discuss why, how, and what of studying the human brain
    • Course mechanics and grading
    • Review syllabus

Story Overview

  • True story about Nancy's friend, Bob, focussed on brain organization and recovery post-brain damage.
  • Themes foreshadowed: resilience, privilege, expertise. Not directly course-relevant.

Incident

  • Bob visits Nancy before a conference.
  • Bob collapses; Nancy calls 911.
  • EMTs find nothing initially wrong; Nancy drives Bob to ER.

Hospital Visit

  • ER docs find nothing after initial tests.
  • Nancy requests brain check due to Bob’s previous disorientation episodes.
  • A large mass (size of a lime) is found in Bob's brain; identified as a slow-growing meningioma.

Previous Signs

  • Bob often got lost; notable episodes included directions from his driveway and to the grocery store in his hometown.
  • MRI scan from years before revealed a smaller mass in the same spot.
  • Importance of finding top neurosurgeon emphasized.
  • Surgery successful, but Bob's navigational abilities did not recover.

Specific Cognitive Deficits

  • Tested Bob: couldn't draw floor plans of familiar environments but could draw objects accurately.
  • Bob’s specific deficit in spatial navigation contrasted with other intact navigational capabilities.

Key Themes and Lessons

  1. Brain Structure and Function: Brain comprises specialized parts doing different tasks.
  2. Specificity of Brain Damage: Damage to one area affects a specific function, without necessarily affecting general intelligence.
  3. Recovery Post-Damage: Adults often struggle with recovery post-brain damage compared to children.

Course Overview

Mission and Learning Objectives

  1. Why Study the Brain?

    • Self-understanding: Brain as identity core.
    • Limits of knowledge: Evaluate human cognitive limits.
    • Advancing AI: Insights from brain research aid AI development.
    • Intellectual curiosity: Greatest intellectual quest.

  2. Scientific Approach to Study the Brain

    • Different methods: Behavioral observations, brain scans (anatomical & functional), etc.

Topics Covered This Semester

  • Visual perception (color, shape, motion, faces, scenes, bodies, words)
  • Scene perception and navigation
  • Number processing
  • Speech perception and music appreciation
  • Language understanding and production
  • Theory of Mind (understanding others)
  • Brain networks and interactions
  • Special focus on high-level vision and cognition

Methods and Techniques

  • Behavioral experiments (psychophysics, perceptual illusions)
  • Neuropsychology (studies on patients with specific deficits)
  • Brain imaging techniques (fMRI, EEG, MEG, etc.)
  • Neurophysiology (recordings from neurons)

Course Tasks and Grading

  • Midterm: 25%
  • Final: 25% (Cumulative but weighted toward the second half)
  • Reading assignments: (~2 papers per week, with written responses)
  • Quizzes: On readings (8 quizzes; first is on Feb 20th)
  • Long Written Assignment: (Design an experiment, due near the end of the term)

Important Course Features

  • Human brain dissection by Ann Graybiel in the second class
  • Guest lectures from experts
  • Emphasis on current research and papers
  • Focus on understanding over rote memorization

Final Thoughts and Tips

  • Approach readings strategically: Focus on key questions to guide your reading rather than reading linearly.
  • Participate actively and ask questions to deepen understanding.