Lecture 1: Introduction to 9.13 The Human Brain
Instructor: Prof. Nancy Kanwisher
Agenda
- Brief Story (10 min.)
- Why, How, and What of Studying the Human Brain
- Why study the brain?
- How to study it?
- Overview of course content
- Course Mechanics and Details
- Grading
- Syllabus overview
Story: Medical Incident with Bob
- Context: True story about Bob's medical emergency, highlighting brain functions.
- Incident: Bob collapses, showing signs of spatial disorientation for years.
- Diagnosis: MRI reveals a slowly growing tumor, leading to loss of navigational ability but preserving other functions.
- Point: Demonstrates specific brain functionality and recovery limits after damage.
Themes from Bob's Story
- Brain's Part-Structure: Specific areas handle distinct functions.
- Specialized Brain Functions: Some brain regions are very specialized.
- Brain and Mind Architecture: Brain organization mirrors cognitive processes.
- Brain Plasticity: Adult brains have limited ability to recover function after damage compared to children.
- Studying Methodologies: Importance of diverse methods in neuroscience.
Why Study the Human Brain?
- Self-Knowledge: Understanding the brain is essential to understanding oneself.
- Cognitive Limits: To understand the boundaries of human knowledge and cognition.
- Advancing AI: Knowledge of the brain informs and advances artificial intelligence (e.g., deep learning, object recognition).
- Intellectual Pursuit: It's a profound intellectual quest.
How to Study the Human Brain?
- Levels of Study: Molecular, Neuronal, Circuit, Brain Region, Networks.
- Focus of Course: Understanding how the brain gives rise to the mind.
- Approach: Study varied mental functions, their cognitive and neural bases.
Methods in Human Cognitive Neuroscience
- Psychophysics: Behavioral experiments.
- Neuropsychology: Studying brain-damaged patients.
- Functional MRI: Imaging brain activity.
- Electrophysiology: Recording neuron activity.
- EEG & MEG: Measuring electrical and magnetic brain activity.
Cognitive Functions Explored
- Visual Perception: Color, shape, motion.
- Recognition: Faces, places, bodies, words.
- Audition: Speech and music perception.
- Language: Understanding and producing language.
- Theory of Mind: Understanding others' thoughts and feelings.
- Number Cognition: Instinctive grasp of quantity and numerical operations.
Overarching Questions
- Is there specialized brain machinery for each function?
- How do specific brain regions interact?
- How do these systems develop and evolve?
- Are there comparable systems in other species?
Not Covered in the Course
- Motor Control
- Subcortical Functions
- Detailed Circuit Mechanisms
- Memory
- Reinforcement Learning & Reward
Course Structure & Requirements
- Lectures: Broad themes related to brain and cognition.
- Reading Assignments: Approx. 2 papers/week, some including written responses.
- Quizzes: To ensure understanding and keep up with readings (~8 throughout the course).
- Midterm & Final: Tests covering course material.
- Written Assignment: Design an experiment in cognitive neuroscience.
Schedule Highlights
- Neuroanatomy Intro: Basics of brain structure.
- High-Level Vision: Motion, color, shapes.
- Scene Perception & Navigation: Spatial orientation and navigation.
- Development: How brain functions develop and evolve.
- Special Topics: Speech, music, deep learning models, attention, and awareness.
Final Note
- Goal: Understanding how the brain constructs the mind and different cognitive functions.
- Methods: Using diverse methodologies from cognitive science and neuroscience.
Reminder: Stay engaged with readings and assignments to get the most out of the course.