The Biology

of Mind

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 What We Have in Mind

 Building blocks of the mind: neurons

and how they communicate
(neurotransmitters)
 Systems that build the mind: functions
of the parts of the nervous system
 Supporting player: the slower-
communicating endocrine system
(hormones)
 Star of the show: the brain and its
structures
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Today’s search for the biology of the self: biological
psychology
 Biological psychology
includes neuroscience,
behavior genetics,
neuropsychology, and
evolutionary psychology.
 All of these
subspecialties explore
different aspects of:
how the nature of mind
and behavior is rooted in
our biological heritage.
 Our study of the biology
of the mind begins with
the “atoms” of the mind:
neurons. 3
Neurons and Neuronal Communication:
The Structure of a Neuron

There are billions of neurons

(nerve cells) throughout the body.
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 Action potential:
a neural impulse that travels down an
axon like a wave
Just as “the wave” can flow to
the right in a stadium even
though the people only move
up and down, a wave moves
down an axon although it is
only made up of ion exchanges
moving in and out.

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 When does the cell send
the action potential?...
when it reaches a
threshold How neurons communicate
(with each other):
The neuron  When the The signal is
receives threshold is The action transmitted
signals from reached, the potential to another
other action potential travels down cell.
neurons; starts moving. the axon However, the
some are  Like a gun, it from the cell message
telling it to either fires or it body to the must find a
fire and some doesn’t; more terminal way to cross
are telling it stimulation does branches. a gap
not to fire. nothing. between
 This is known as cells. This
the “all-or- gap is also
none” response. called the
synapse.

The threshold is reached when

excitatory (“Fire!”) signals
outweigh the inhibitory (“Don’t
fire!”) signals by a certain amount.
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 The Synapse
The synapse is a
junction between the
axon tip of the
sending neuron and
the dendrite or cell
body of the receiving
neuron.

The synapse is
also known as the
“synaptic
junction” or
“synaptic gap.”

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 Neurotransmitters
Neurotransmitters
are chemicals
used to send a
signal across the
synaptic gap.

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 Reuptake:
Recycling Neurotransmitters [NTs]

Reuptake:
After the neurotransmitters
stimulate the receptors on
the receiving neuron, the
chemicals are taken back up
into the sending neuron to
be used again.

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Neural Communication:
Seeing all the Steps Together

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 Roles of Different Neurotransmitters
Some Neurotransmitters and Their Functions
Neurotransmitter Function Problems Caused by Imbalances
Serotonin Affects mood, hunger, Undersupply linked to depression;
sleep, and arousal some antidepressant drugs raise
serotonin levels
Dopamine Influences movement, Oversupply linked to schizophrenia;
learning, attention, and undersupply linked to tremors and
emotion decreased mobility in Parkinson’s
disease and ADHD
Acetylcholine Enables muscle action, ACh-producing neurons deteriorate as
(ACh) learning, and memory Alzheimer’s disease progresses
Norepinephrine Helps control alertness Undersupply can depress mood and
and arousal cause ADHD-like attention problems
GABA (gamma- A major inhibitory Undersupply linked to seizures,
aminobutyric acid neurotransmitter tremors, and insomnia
Glutamate A major excitatory Oversupply can overstimulate the brain,
neurotransmitter; producing migraines or seizures; this is
involved in memory why some people avoid MSG
(monosodium glutamate) in food 11
 Serotonin Dopamine
pathways pathways
Networks of neurons that Networks of neurons that
communicate with serotonin communicate with dopamine are
help regulate mood. involved in focusing attention
and controlling movement.

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The Inner and Outer Parts of the Nervous
System
The
The central peripheral
nervous nervous
system system [PNS]
[CNS] consists of
consists of ‘the rest’ of
the brain the nervous
and spinal system.
cord.
The PNS
The CNS gathers and
makes sends
decisions information
for the to and from
body. the rest of
the body.
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More Parts of the Nervous System

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 The
Autonomic
Nervous
System:
The sympathetic
NS arouses
(fight-or-flight)
The
parasympathetic
NS calms
(rest and digest)

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The Body’s “Slow but Sure”
Endocrine Message System
 The endocrine
system sends
molecules as
messages, just like
the nervous system,
but it sends them
through the
bloodstream instead
of across synapses.
 These molecules,
called hormones,
are produced in
various glands
around the body.
 The messages go to The endocrine system refers to a set of
the brain and other glands that produce chemical messengers
tissues. called hormones. 16
 produce hormones such as
Adrenal Glands adrenaline/epinephrine,
noradrenaline/norepinephrine, and
cortisol.

Adrenal Glands
1. The sympathetic
“fight or flight”
nervous system
responds to stress
by sending a
message to
adrenal glands to
release the
hormones listed
Pancreas above.
2. Effect: increased
heart rate, blood
pressure, and
blood sugar. These
provide ENERGY
for the fight or
flight! 17
The Pituitary Gland
 The pituitary gland is the
“master gland” of the
endocrine system.
 It is controlled through
the nervous system by the
nearby brain area--the
hypothalamus.
Pituitary gland
 The pituitary gland
produces hormones that
regulate other glands
such as the thyroid.
 It also produces growth
hormone (especially
during sleep) and
oxytocin, the “bonding”
hormone.
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We can stimulate parts of the brain
to see what happens
 Parts of the brain, and even neurons, can
be stimulated electrically, chemically, or
magnetically.
 This can result in behaviors such as
giggling, head turning, or simulated vivid
recall.
 Researchers can see which neurons or
neural networks fire in conjunction with
certain mental experiences, and even
specific concepts.

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 EEG:
electroencephalogram
An EEG
(electroencephalogram) is
a recording of the
electrical waves sweeping
across the brain’s surface.
It is useful in studying
seizures and sleep.
PET: positron emission
tomography
The PET scan allows us to see
what part of the brain is active
by tracing where a radioactive
form of glucose goes while the
brain performs a given task.
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 MRI: magnetic
fMRI: functional MRI
resonance imaging

MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) Functional MRI reveals

makes images from signals produced by brain activity and
brain tissue after magnets align the spin function rather than
of atoms. structures.
The arrows below show ventricular Functional MRI
enlargement in a schizophrenic patient compares successive
(right). MRI images taken a
split second apart, and
shows changes in the
level of oxygen in
bloodflow in the brain.

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Areas of the brain and their functions

The brainstem The limbic The cortex (the

and cerebellum: (border) system: outer covering):
• coordinates • manages • integrates
the body emotions, and information
connects
thought to
body

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 The Brainstem:
Pons and Medulla

 The medulla controls the most basic functions such as heartbeat and breathing.
 Someone with total brain damage above the medulla could still breathe
independently, but someone with damage in this area could not.
 The pons helps coordinate automatic and unconscious movements.
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The Thalamus (“Inner Chamber”)

 The thalamus is the

“sensory switchboard” or
“router.”
 All sensory messages,
except smell, are routed
through the thalamus on
the way to the cortex
(higher, outer brain).
 The thalamus also sends
messages from the cortex
to the medulla and
cerebellum.
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 Reticular (“Netlike”) Formation

 The reticular formation is a

nerve network in the
brainstem.
 It enables alertness,
(arousal) from coma to
wide awake (as
demonstrated in the cat
experiments).
 It also filters incoming
sensory information.

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 Cerebellum (“little brain”)
The cerebellum
helps coordinate
voluntary
movement such as
playing a sport.

The cerebellum has many other

functions, including enabling
nonverbal learning and memory.
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The Limbic (“Border”) System
The limbic system coordinates:
 emotions such as fear and
aggression.
 basic drives such as hunger
and sex.
 the formation of episodic
memories.
The hippocampus
(“seahorse”)
 processes conscious,
episodic memories.
 works with the amygdala
to form emotionally
charged memories.
The Amygdala (“almond”)
 consists of two lima bean-
sized neural clusters.
 helps process emotions,
especially fear and
aggression. 27
 The Hypothalamus:
 lies below (“hypo”) the
thalamus. Thalamus
 regulates body temperature and
ensures adequate food and
water intake (homeostasis), and
is involved in sex drive.
 directs the endocrine system via
messages to the pituitary gland.

The Hypothalamus as a Reward Center Riddle: Why did the rat

cross the grid?
Why did the rat want to
get to the other side?
Pushing the pedal that
stimulated the electrode
placed in the
hypothalamus was much
more rewarding than food
pellets. 28
Review of Brain Structures

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 The Cerebral Cortex
The lobes consist of:
 outer grey “bark” structure that is wrinkled in order to
create more surface area for 20+ billion neurons.
 inner white stuff—axons linking parts of the brain.
 180+ billion glial cells, which feed and protect neurons
and assist neural transmission.
300 billion synaptic
connections

The brain has

left and right
hemispheres 30
The Lobes of the Cerebral Cortex:
Preview
involved in speaking and
 Frontal Lobes muscle movements and in
making plans and judgments

 Parietal Lobes include the sensory cortex

include the visual areas;

they receive visual
 Occipital Lobes information from the
opposite visual field

 Temporal Lobes include the auditory

processing areas

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 Functions of the Brain:
The Motor and Sensory Strips
Output: Motor Input: Sensory
cortex (Left cortex (Left
hemisphere hemisphere
section section receives
controls the input from the
body’s right body’s right side)
side)

 Axons Axons
receiving motor sending
signals FROM sensory
the cortex information
TO the cortex 32
 Sensory Functions of the Cortex

 The sensory strip deals

with information from
touch stimuli.
 The occipital lobe deals
with visual information.
 Auditory information is
sent to the temporal
lobe.

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 Association Areas:
Frontal Lobes
 The frontal lobes are
active in “executive
functions” such as
judgment, planning, and
inhibition of impulses.
 The frontal lobes are also
active in the use of
working memory and the
processing of new
memories.

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Parietal Lobe Association Areas
This part of the brain has many functions in the
association areas behind the sensory strip:
managing input from multiple senses
performing spatial and mathematical reasoning
monitoring the sensation of movement

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Temporal Lobe Association Areas

Some abilities managed by association areas in this “by

the temples” lobe:
recognizing specific faces
managing sensory input related to sound, which helps
the understanding of spoken words 36
 Our Two
Hemispheres

Lateralization (“going to one side”)

The two hemispheres serve some different functions.
How do we know about these differences?
Brain damage studies revealed many functions of the
left hemisphere.
Brain scans and split brain studies show more about
the functions of the two hemispheres, and how they
coordinate with each other.
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The intact but lateralized brain
Right-Left Hemisphere Differences
Left Hemisphere Right Hemisphere

Thoughts and logic Feelings and intuition

Details such as “trees” Big picture such as “forest”
Language: words and Language: tone, inflection,
definitions context
Linear and literal Inferences and associations
Calculation Perception
Pieces and details Wholes, including the self

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