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Human brain vs computers
Essentials of psychology chapter 6
The theory of cognitivism
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To what extent is it true that the brain is a sophisticated information processor?
The human brain is the most important part of the nervous system. The brain along with the spinal cord makes up the central nervous system and together they control all of the body’s important functions, such as motor functions, speech, vision, hearing and also involuntary functions like breathing. Many of these functions are localised to a specific area of the cerebrum. The cerebrum is split into four lobes; the frontal, parietal, temporal and occipital lobes, which are specialised to carry out their different roles. The cortex is divided into two hemispheres; the left hemisphere is associated with motor control, speech and language functions and logic; whereas the right hemisphere is linked to spatial perception and creativity.
Communication in the brain occurs via neurons which transmit electrical impulses to other neurons by neural conduction (Wickens, 2009). They are connected by synapses which are small gaps between two nerve cells. There are approximately one billion neurons in the brain (Wickens, 2009), meaning that there are even more synapses. Synapses allow electrical impulses to be passed from neurone to neurone as chemical messages in the form of neurotransmitters, since electrical messages cannot cross the synapse.
Cognitivism was developed in the 1960s to help explain what behaviourism and the biological perspective could not. It aims to find out how conscious thought processes can affect behaviours. The theory likens the processes of the mind to the way in which a computer processes information. The modularity of the mind theory was mentioned by Jerry Fodor in his 1983 book ‘Modularity of Mind’. He suggests that the mind is compos...
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...splayed on the screen. However, the brain is not as fast as a computer when completing tasks that involve calculations or retrieving information from the stores. Nevertheless it is capable of understanding emotions and storing data by the depth of processing. It can encode semantically which does not require rehearsal and allows memories to be retrieved easily without cues.
Works Cited
Baddeley, A. (2000). The episodic buffer: a new component of working memory? Trends in Cognitive Science. 4 (11): 417–423.
Jarvis, M. (2000) Theoretical Approaches in Psychology. East Sussex: Routledge.
Lytton, W. W. (2002). From Computer to Brain: Foundations of Computational Neuroscience. New York: Springer-Verlag
Parkin, A.J. (2000) Essential Cognitive Psychology. Sussex: Psychology Press.
Wickens, A. (2009) Foundations of Biopsychology. 2nd ed. Essex: Pearson Education.
A synapse is the space between a presynaptic neuron and postsynaptic neuron. This is the location where chemical and electrical messages are transmitted from one neuron to another. Synapses are essential to neuronal function. They serve as a means of communication between neurons.
The cerebrum is one of the parts of the brain that provides equilibrium when it comes to motor skills and plays a petit role in our concentration and language it also normalize our responses to fear and pleasure, with its appearance as an attached part at the bottom of the brain the cerebrum receives inputs from various parts of the brain and the spinal cord. (Pinel, 2009).
According to Baddeley and Hitch (1974) what constitutes as working memory can be divided into four distinct components which contribute to the processes of memory. They are the phonological loop, the visual spatial sketchpad, the episodic buffer and the central executive (in Passer, Smith, Holt, Bremner, Vliek, 2009).
Kandel, E. R., J. H. Schwarz, and T. M. Jessel. Principles of Neural Science. 3rd ed. Elsevier. New York: 1991.
1. What is the difference between Introduction The brain has many different parts to it which help one function through daily life; parts such as the cerebrum which controls voluntary movement and regulates functions such as thinking, speaking and the ability to recall information. The cerebellum controls the balance and coordination and finally the brain stem, which consists of the medulla oblongata and the spinal cord which controls all involuntary functions such as breathing, heart rate and blood pressure.
The brain has four major lobes. The frontal lobe, the parietal lobe, the occipital lobe, and temporal lobe are responsible for all of the activities of the body, from seeing, hearing, tasting, to touching, moving, and even memory. After many years of debating, scientist presents what they called the localization issue, Garret explains how Fritsch and Hitzig studied dog with conforming observations, but the cases of Phineas Gage’s accident in 1848 and Paul Broca’s autopsy of a man brain in 1861 really grabbed the attention of an enthusiastic scientific community (Garret 2015 p.6)
Davis, Tom. The Theories of the Mind Lectures. Ed. G. Baston. Birmingham University. 9 Nov. 2000
For years philosophers have enquired into the nature of the mind, and specifically the mysteries of intelligence and consciousness. (O’Brien 2017) One of these mysteries is how a material object, the brain, can produce thoughts and rational reasoning. The Computational Theory of Mind (CTM) was devised in response to this problem, and suggests that the brain is quite literally a computer, and that thinking is essentially computation. (BOOK) This idea was first theorised by philosopher Hilary Putnam, but was later developed by Jerry Fodor, and continues to be further investigated today as cognitive science, modern computers, and artificial intelligence continue to advance. [REF] Computer processing machines ‘think’ by recognising information
Wheeler, M. A., Stuss, D, t., & Tulving, D. (1997). Toward a theory of episodic memory: The frontal lobes and autonoetic consciousness: Psychological Bulletin, 121, 331-354
S.A. Clark, T. A. (1988). Receptive fields in the body-surface map in adult cortex defined by temporally correlated inputs. Nature, 332.
The human body is divided into many different parts called organs. All of the parts are controlled by an organ called the brain, which is located in the head. The brain weighs about 2. 75 pounds, and has a whitish-pink appearance. The brain is made up of many cells, and is the control centre of the body. The brain flashes messages out to all the other parts of the body.
Gonzales, M. E. Q. Neural networks and Mental Representation: An essay on Harmony and Rationality. In: Trans/ Form/Ação, São Paulo, v. 14, p.93-108, 1991.
Shawn T. Smith, P. (2011). The User's Guide to the Human Mind. Oakland CA: New Harbinger Publications, Inc.
Zimmermann, Kim Ann. "Nervous System: Facts, Function & Diseases." LiveScience. TechMedia Network, 24 Aug. 2012. Web. 20 May 2014.
The brain is an astonishing product of evolution. This can be seen by our numerous technological developments and society structure. The brain has always been the most important organ for species that had developed past the cellular stage and has always performed the same functions that it does now but has developed constantly to where it is now through growth and a reorganization of its’ primary functions and gained the ability to learn has been something that the human brain does better than other brains. Our brains have not always been like this and many social and biological factors have led us to where they are now.