The Human Brain: Lecture Notes

Introduction

Instructor: Nancy Kanwisher
Course: 9.13 - The Human Brain
**Agenda for the Lecture: Brief story, Why/How/What of studying the brain, Course mechanics

Friend named Bob staying over en route to a conference.
Incident: Bob found unconscious, later revived but was woozy.
ER visit: Initial tests inconclusive, suggested a brain scan due to Bob's previous navigational issues.
Scan results: Found a growth (lime-sized meningioma).
Surgery: Successful removal, navigational issues remained.
Testing: Specific issues with spatial navigation but not with other complex multi-part objects (e.g., bicycle, lobster).
Key Takeaways: Different parts of the brain perform different tasks; brain damage to specific areas results in very targeted deficits.

Know Thyself: Understand your brain, which is your identity.
Limits of Knowledge: Explore the limits and capabilities of human cognition.
Advance AI: Learning from human cognition to improve artificial intelligence.
Greatest Intellectual Quest: Discovering how the brain works is one of humanity’s most significant challenges.

Levels of organization: Molecules, neurons, circuits, brain regions, networks
Focus of Course: Relationship between brain and mind, specialized brain machinery for mental functions
**Methods: Cognitive Science Techniques: Psychophysics, perceptual illusions, behavioral observations.
Neuroimaging: fMRI, EEG, MEG, connectivity measures (diffusion tractography), etc.
Neuropsychology: Study patients with brain damage, interventional studies, animal models.

Structure and Specificity: Different brain areas handle different functions.
Extremely Specific Functions: Some brain regions are highly specialized.
Brain's Echo of Mind Architecture: Brain organization reflects mental function layout.
Change and Plasticity: How brains adapt through development, learning, and after injury.
Diverse Study Methods: Behavioral observations, brain images, functional images, etc.
Human vs. Animal Brains: Comparison and significance of specialized human cognitive functions.
Development and Specialization: How mental and brain functions evolve over time.

Midterm: 25% of final grade
Final Exam: 25% of final grade, cumulative but weighted towards second half
Reading and Writing Assignments: Approximately two papers per week, with corresponding short written responses.
Quizzes: About 8 quizzes focused on keeping up with material, using Google Forms
Major Writing Assignment: Design an experiment, due near end of the semester.
**Lecture Structure and Topics: A mix of professor's lectures and guest lectures.

Next Class: Basic neuroanatomy review.
Following Class: Live brain dissection by Ann Graybill.
Subsequent Lectures: High-level vision (motion, color, shape, faces, scenes, bodies), navigation, brain development, blind people's brains, number cognition, neuroeconomics, speech/music perception, language, theory of mind, brain networks, experimental design.

Identify the Question: What is being asked? Start with the abstract.
Find the Findings: What did they discover? Look for relevant results.
Interpretation: Why do the findings matter?
Design and Methods: What did they do and how? Check methods sections.
Data Analysis: How were the data processed? Focus on understanding rather than detailed statistical methods.

Note: Reading papers may require skipping to different sections out of order to answer these questions effectively.

Expect lots of cognitive science material focused on how mental functions tie to specific brain regions.
Prepare for substantial reading and deeper engagement with scientific literature.
First Quiz: Scheduled for February 20th.