Mirror Neurons are neurons that respond to goal-directed actions performed by oneself or by others (Ward, 2010). Mirror neurons are so named because there are structures found in the brain that become active when a person executes an act or when that person observes the act being executed by another (Goolkasian,2009).
Giacomo Rizzolatti and colleagues were the first ones to observe mirror neurons. In early 1990s, they were investigating neurons in a monkey’s premotor cortex firing as the monkey picked up different object. When one of the investigators picked up a piece of food while the monkey was watching, the monkey’s neurons fired. This led to the discovery of mirror neurons (Goldstein, 2014). Mirror neurons were originally discovered in the ventral pre-motor cortex (area F5) of the monkey’s brain (Sinigaglia & Sparaci, 2010). Although, evidence for mirror neurons in humans is still vague there is still a rich amount of data proving information about the mirror-neuron system. Evidence of this comes from neurophysiological and brain-imaging experiments (Rizzolatti & Craighero, 2004).
EEG, MEG and TMS are methods that have allowed the detection of motor neuron activation during the observation of actions performed by others and therefore mirror-like activity. Other techniques like positron emission tomography (PET) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), rely on recordings of variations in blood flow in various cerebral regions during performance and observation of given motor acts, and have made it possible to localize a mirror neuron system for action (Rizzolatti & Craighero, 2004; Sinigaglia & Sparaci, 2010). There is increasing evidence from neuroimaging studies that core components of a human mirror neuron syste...
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...., Verbeke, W., Dietvorst, R., van den Berg, W., Bagozzi, R., & De Zeeuw, C. (2012). fMRI activities in the emotional cerebellum: a preference for negative stimuli and goal-directed behavior. Cerebellum (London, England), 11(1), 233-245
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Ward, J. (2010). The student's guide to cognitive neuroscience. (2nd ed.). Hove: Psychology Press.
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The medial dorsal nucleus of the thalamus is situated in areas 4 and 6, that is, located in the front of the motor and premotor cortices of the frontal lobe. The medial part of this nucleus (magnocellular part) projects to the ventral medial orbital portion of the prefrontal lobe (Kringelbach, 2005). This particular portion of the prefrontal cortex is called the orbitofrontal cortex of the brain and, it consists of Brodmann area 10, 11 and 47. It receives inputs from the ventral visual stream, and, inputs from the taste, somatosensory and olfactory receptors (Kringelbach, 2005).
Can a mass of networked neurons produce moral human agents? I shall argue that it can; a brain can be morally excellent. A connectionist account of how the brain works can explain how a person might be morally excellent in Aristotle's sense of the term. According to connectionism, the brain is a maze of interconnections trained to recognize and respond to patterns of stimulation. According to Aristotle, a morally excellent human is a practically wise person trained in good habits. What an Aristotelian theory of ethics and a connectionist theory of mind have in common is the assumption that the successful mind/brain has the disposition to behave appropriately in appropriate circumstances. According to Aristotle, the good person knows the right end, desires and chooses to pursue it, and recognizes the right means to it. Thus the good person's brain must be able to form certain moral concepts, develop appropriate behavioral dispositions, and learn practical reasoning skills. I shall argue that this collection of the brain's cognitive capacities is best accounted for by a connectionist theory of the mind/brain. The human condition is both material and moral; we are brain-controlled bodies with ethical values. My essay seeks to understand the relationship between our brains and our values, between how the brain works and how we make moral decisions.
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(Jensen, 2005, p. 69) could be compared with the importance of desired moral reasoning. The
Mirror neurons have been one of the most exciting neurological discoveries in recent years. Some researchers have even gone as far as comparing the discovery of mirror neurons to DNA. Mirror neurons may be analogous to other human sensory systems and some believe that mirror neurons represent their own unique sensory system. Mirror neurons fire when a person or animal performs certain activities as well as when they watch another perform the same activity (Winerman, 2005). Basically, they allow animals and humans to imitate and possibly even learn from others. While the original studies were conducted in monkeys, recent research has extended the theory to humans and other abilities outside of basic motor movements. In this paper, research on mirror neurons in humans, language, and autism will be summarized. In addition, the limitations on this work will be discussed.
Raine, A. & Yang,Y. (2006). Neural foundations to moral reasoning and antisocial behavior. Social, Cognitive, and Affective Neuroscience.
Current research shows that mental events cause physical events, and scientists believe examining single nerves is the key to understanding how the brain works as a complete unit. Understanding the brain at the nerve cell level will allow scientists to understand how human consciousness works (Blakeslee, 1992). Furthermore, the brain's thalamus is identified as the possible sensory connector because it fires 40 impulses per second that sweep through the entire brain (Blakeslee, 1995a). These findings are a serious implication to Dualism because it states the mind is not physical. If the mind is not physical, it cannot affect the physical body, so the Dualist theory of two-sided interactions between the body and mind are false. The aforementioned argument is supported by many other scientific facts and objections against Dualism.
The nervous system includes the brain and spinal cord of the central nervous system and the ganglia of the peripheral nervous system. The functional unit of the nervous system is a neuron. It is estimated 100 billion neurons reside in the brain with some neurons making anywhere between 10,000 to 100,000 connections with other cells! A distinctive class of neurons, mirror neurons discharge both when the individual executes a motor action and when he/she observes another individual performing that same or similar action. These mirror neurons were discovered by neurophysiologists in the 1990s at the University of Parma, Italy. Using macaque monkeys, these researchers found that neurons of the rostral part of the inferior premotor cortex were activated both when the monkey made goal-directed hand movements (grasping, holding, & tearing) and when the monkey observed specific hand movements done by the experimenters (Pellegrino, et al., 1992). In a monkey’s inferior frontal and inferior parietal cortex, it is estimated that about 10% of neurons have “mirror” properties.
...m. This many have implications for the development of early behavioral interventions aimed at triaging basic mechanisms supported by the mirror-neuron system, rather than correcting more complex behaviors.
Increasing amount of research in recent years has added to developing knowledge of phantom limb pain (PLP). In this research proposal I aim to test the mirror therapy as an effective treatment in PLP. Phantom limb pain occurs in at least 90% of limb amputees. PLP may be stimulated by disconnection between visual feedback and proprioceptive representations of the amputated limb. Therefore, I will research both the neurobiology behind this phenomenon and whether illusions and/or imagery of movement of the amputated limb (mirror therapy) is effective in alleviating PLP of lower limbs. Mirror therapy has been used with noted success in patients who have had upper body amputation, but has not been determined in lower limb amputations. I would like to identify if form of treatment is equally effective in lower limb amputations. Yet, to consider mirror therapy as an effective means of treatment, one must understand PLP in its entirety. The main concern being if a limb is no longer attached to the body, how can neurons in the limb transport signals to the nervous system in order for the body to detect sensations? The biological significance of this project is to determine what occurs on the sensory level to cause PLP. Once that is discovered we can address whether or not mirror therapy is a plausible form of treatment.
Despite the logic of the model, research has gravely challenged this idea of a single mechanism, bouncing back and forth with no definitive conclusion. Several neuroimaging studies have shown overlapping activation in the brain when perceiving and imagining. O’Craven and Kanwisher (2000) investigated brain activations of faces and places during perception and during mental images of faces and places. Similarities between regions activated during imagery and perception for the corresponding task emerged although showing differences in magnitude for imagined and perceived faces and places. Thus, q...
My love for neuroscience began long before my passion for neuroscience research. My favorite aspect of psychology since my initial encounter in Advanced Placement Psychology in high school is the nervous system and brain function in relation to behavior. It is fascinating how something so small serves such an extremely important and vital role in our body and behavior. The intriguing details of the brain fuel my desire to learn more about its functions. After completing the Biological Basis of Behavior and Neural System Courses at the University of Maryland, my knowledge as well as curiosity for the brain heightened.
The brain is the perception responder and critical thought processor. Along with the brain’s control of all physical action and coordination, it has all control over emotional response and impulse. The brain’s dictation of all normality and actions made are only a small concentration of what the brain is truly capable of and scientists are working towards expanding this theory. This has been such a controversial issue, compiled with the hopeful idea of a cure for brain disease, a daunting possibility that could potentially “blur the lines between man and machine” (Kate Kelland, 2012.) It has been a well-known fact that humans only use a small percentage of our actual brain capability. If we were to enhance this, if we could, then what parts of the brain would scientists engineer to its full capacity? The idea may be fathomable to some and favorable to others, but in the chance that it is humanly possible to heighten the brain’s ability to have better critical thinking skills and boosted motor coordination, several parts of the brain would have to be altered first.
Furthermore, the left brain impacts our learning and information processing in a verbal manner. (Budd Jr., 1997) states that the verbal manner me...