INTRODUCTION TO BRAIN

AND BEHAVIOUR I

DR NATHAN RIDOUT
n.ridout@aston.ac.uk
 WELCOME TO BRAIN &
BEHAVIOUR I
☺ Module Convenor: Dr Nathan Ridout (that’s me!!)
Contact: n.ridout@aston.ac.uk
or sign up for an appointment outside my office SW508B
☺ Other lecturer: Dr Gaynor Evans (she’s very nice!)
☺ Course content:
 22 weeks of lectures (week be week guide coming right up!)

☺ Assessment:
 Bi-weekly online quizzes (Starts 16/10/06: 10% final mark)
 Week 12 or 13(TBA): 1 hour unseen class test (6 Short
answer questions on lectures 1-10; 20% final mark)
 Week 26 – 31 (Date TBA): 1 ½ hour unseen written exam
(9 SAQs on lectures 11, 13-23; 70% of final mark)
 WEEK-BY-WEEK GUIDE
 Today: Brain & Behaviour I the structure and function of the
brain (NR)
 Week 2 (12/10): Brain & Behaviour II communication in the
brain (GE)
 Week 3 (19/10):Defining and Studying Abnormal
Behaviour (NR)
 Week 4 (26/10): Issues in Diagnosis (GE)
 Week 5 (02/11): Biological Treatments for Psychiatric
Disorders (NR)
 Week 6 (09/11): Behavioural Treatments for Psychiatric
disorders (GE)
 WEEK-BY-WEEK GUIDE 2
 Week 7 (16/11): Stress and the Autonomic Nervous
System (GE)
 Week 8 (23/11): Unipolar Depression (NR)
 Week 9 (30/11): Bipolar Depression (NR)
 Week 10 (07/12):Phobias and Anxiety (NR)
 Week 11 (14/12): a) revision session b) OCD:
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (NR)
 Week 12 or 13 (08/01/07 – 20/01/07): Class Test (NR)
 WEEK-BY-WEEK GUIDE 3
Week 14 (25/01): PTSD: Post-traumatic Stress
Disorder (NR)
Week 15 (01/02): Substance Abuse (NR)
Week 16 (08/02): Personality Disorders (NR)
Week 17 (15/02): Schizophrenia I (GE)
Week 18 (22/02): Schizophrenia II (GE)
Week 19 (01/03): Autism (GE)
Week 20 (08/03): Childhood Disorders (GE)
 WEEK-BY-WEEK GUIDE 4
 Week 21 (15/03): Brain damage and neuro-
degenerative disorders (GE)
 Week 22 (22/03):Eating Disorders (GE)
 Week 23 (19/04): Self-harm and Suicide (GE)
 Week 24 (26/04): Sexual Psychopathologies (GE)
 Week 25 (03/05): Revision Session (NR & GE)
REMEMBER DON’T PANIC!
This part of the course will
necessarily involve the use of a
number of technical terms –
DON’T PANIC!
You may actually find biological
psychology easier to follow than
some of the more conceptually
based subjects in psychology
However, you must do your bit –
there is a lot of detailed
information in this course and you
have to do the reading!!
 SUPPORTIVE READING
Pinel (2005) Biopsychology (6th Edition)
pages 62-75; Also useful to read pages 2-
18
Alternative reading: Carlson (2001)
Physiology of Behavior (7th Edition) pages
64-88, also pages 2-11 or Wickens (2005)
Foundations of Biopsychology pages 27-
45
Alternatively choose any biopsychology textbook and read the chapters on
the structure & function of the brain
 LEARNING OUTCOMES
By the end of today’s session you should…

Be able to identify the gross divisions of the

cerebral cortex and the primary functions
associated with each of these divisions

Be able to identify the location of other

important structures in the brain and outline
their key functions
 THE HUMAN BRAIN
Weighs between 1200-1400 g
Contains between 30 and 100 billion neurons
(Neurons = cells specialised for transmission of electrical impulses)
Contains 300 billion GLIAL cells (neuroglia –
‘nerve glue’) – act like scaffolding and service
neurons
The Human Brain is the most complex and
sophisticated organ in the universe
As far as we are aware!!
 THREE BRAINS FOR THE
PRICE OF ONE
Intermediate Brain (Old Mammalian)
Rational Brain (New
Limbic System Mammalian) Neocortex

Primitive Brain (Reptilian)

FIGURE 1.
 MAIN SUBDIVISIONS OF
THE BRAIN
Forebrain – cerebral cortex, basal
ganglia, limbic system, thalamus,
hypothalamus
Midbrain – tectum, tegmentum
Hindbrain – medulla, pons, cerebellum
Brain stem - comprises medulla, pons,
midbrain and the thalamus
HINDBRAIN STRUCTURES

FIGURE 2.
 FUNCTIONS OF THE
HINDBRAIN STRUCTURES
Medulla (medulla oblongata)
located directly above spinal cord, regulates vital
bodily functions e.g. heartbeat/respiration
Pons
located above the medulla, regulates
attentiveness/arousal, involved in initiating sleep
Cerebellum
hangs directly behind the Pons, integrates
information regarding balance and muscular co-
ordination
MIDBRAIN STRUCTURES

Tectum
(superior and inferior colliculi)

Tegmentum

FIGURE 3.
 FUNCTIONS OF THE
MIDBRAIN STRUCTURES

Tectum (superior and inferior colliculi, located in

brain stem)
Some involvement in motor control; also auditory
and visual processing

Tegmentum (reticular formation, periaqueductal

grey matter, substantia nigra)
Important for attention and arousal
FOREBRAIN STRUCTURES
Cerebral Cortex

FIGURE 4.
FORBRAIN STRUCTURES
Thalamus
Sensory relay station to cortex – all sensory
info passes through here

Basal Ganglia (including the Striatum,

Globus Pallidus & Substantia Nigra)
Linked to the thalamus and are especially
involved in the control of movement
FORBRAIN STRUCTURES II
Hypothalamus
Control of basic motivational functions (The Four F’s)
Feeding (and drinking)
Fighting
Fleeing

Mating
 CEREBRAL CORTEX
The Cortex is divided into two
hemispheres (left & right)
Generally, different functions
are performed by the different
hemispheres (e.g. in 90% of the
population the language centres LEFT RIGHT
are located in the left hemisphere)
The two hemispheres
communicate via the corpus
callosum (a large bundle of
nerve fibres in the centre of the
brain – see Figure 4)
CEREBRAL CORTEX II
Although the cortex appears to be a
solid mass it is actually a flat sheet of
millions of neurons
Area=2,200-2,400 cm2

Av. Thickness = 3mm (1.5-4.5 mm)

Highly convoluted – forming gyri
(sing.=gyrus) and sulci (sing. = sulcus)
HORIZONTAL SECTION THROUGH
THE CEREBRAL CORTEX
Folds/ Gyri White Matter
(Fibres/Axons)

Grey Matter
(Cell bodies/Soma) Valleys/Sulci

FIGURE 5.
 CEREBRAL CORTEX
Both hemispheres of the cerebral
cortex are sub-divided into four lobes:
Frontal lobe
Parietal lobe
Occipital lobe
Temporal lobe

Each lobe carries out a number of

different functions
However, each lobe is largely
associated with one primary function
THE FOUR LOBES OF THE
BRAIN
Central Sulcus

Sylvian/
Lateral
Fissure

FIGURE 6.
PRIMARY FUNCTIONS OF THE
FOUR LOBES
Frontal Lobe: movement, attentional control,
planning, working memory

Parietal Lobe: touch, proprioception

Temporal Lobe: audition, memory
Occipital Lobe: vision, object recognition
 LATERALISATION OF
FUNCTION

FIGURE 7.