Psychology 362: Cognitive Neuroscience
San Diego State University (Fall 2014)
Room HT-140 Time: TH 4-6:40
Instructor: Katherine Turner Office: LS-155
Office: LS-155
Email: [email protected]
Office Hours: By Appointment
Psychology Department Phone: (619) 594-5358 (can leave message)
Graduate Assitants: Andrew Fiscella and Muhammed Mamsa
Email: [email protected] and [email protected]
Undergraduate TA: Shelby Harms [email protected]
Your GA’s and kind are helpful. They are available by appointment. You may meet with your GA to
view your quizzes and to discuss your papers. Your TA is helpful too. Please meet with her to go over
class material and improve your PSY 362 study skills.
Prerequisites: Psychology 101 and 260. Proof of completion of prerequisites required:
Copy of unofficial transcript or degree audit
Welcome!
Welcome to Cognitive Neuroscience! Together, we are about to embark on a journey of
exploration into how and why we think, feel, and act the way we do. This course explores the
cognitive and neural processes that support attention, vision, language, motor control,
navigation, and memory. It introduces basic neuroanatomy, functional imaging techniques, and
behavioral measures of cognition, and discusses methods by which inferences about the brain
bases of cognition are made.
362 Course Objectives:
Throughout your lifetime, the computer has been the dominant metaphor for the mind,
prompting many cognitive psychologists to discuss the mind in terms of "software" issues and
"hardware" issues. While neuroscientist and cognition researchers used to work independently,
a growing number of scientists have recognized the benefit of integrating the disciplines of
cognitive psychology and neuroscience into a unified field: cognitive neuroscience. A cognitive
neuroscientist asks, "How do our brains give rise to cognition?" “The quest to answer this
question, which requires a thorough understanding of both the hardware and the software of
the mind, is the focus of this course. Although the "Decade of the Brain" (1990-1999) has come to
an end, cognitive neuroscience is here to stay. Pick up the New York or LA Times Science
section and you are likely to come across headlines such as: "Brain is a co-conspirator in the
stress loop" (17 Aug 2009), "Where did time go? Do not ask the Brain" (5 Jan 2010), and "Brain
implant turns thought into sound" (2 Jan 2010). From children’s videos such as Baby Einstein to
adult fare as seen in Memento or Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind have their origins in
cognitive neuroscience. Cognitive neuroscience plays a role in decisions that affect almost every
aspect of our lives (e.g., Will brain-scanners eventually replace those new detectors put in place
after the attempted bombing of NW flight 253 over Detroit ?). The goal of this course is to
introduce you to the research behind the headlines, so that you can be a better consumer of the
growing knowledge of the human brain.”
Course Learning Objectives: By the end of this course, you will be able to:
1)
Identify the various theories in cognitive neuroscience
2)
Utilize theories and scientific knowledge in understanding cognitive neuroscience in the
areas of attention, memory, language processing, sensation, perception, emotions, decision
making,
3)
Explain the similarities and differences among the cognitive neuroscience research
methods used by psychologists. (SLO 4.2)
4)
Apply neurospsychological concepts, theories, and research findings as these relate to
everyday life. (SLO 2.4)
5)
Distinguish between the major cellular and brain structures underlying cognition.
6)
Write 3 papers in APA style, discussing in a logical fashion, current issues in social
neuroscience.
7)
Explain the similarities and differences among the cognitive neuroscience research
methods used by psychologists. (SLO 4.2)
Course Texts:
Cognitive Neuroscience: 3rd or 4th Edition Gazzaniga, Ivry, Mangun
Bookstore will sell/rent 4th edition (3rd edition can be found on Amazon)
Mistakes were made (but not by me) (Tavris and Aronson)
Musicophilia: tales of music and the Brain (Sacks)
Additional articles are placed on Blackboard
Office Hours: Office hours will be set by appointment. My office is located at the address listed
at the top of this syllabus in the Life Sciences Building. If you want to see me, please email me to
set up an appointment. Also please feel free to ask questions via email. I check my email
regularly during the day and will try to respond as quickly as possible to your questions. My
email address and phone number are listed on the top of this syllabus.
Attendance: Regular attendance is strongly recommended. Students should note that exam
material will come primarily from lecture material, movies, and the textbook. If you cannot
attend class, it is highly recommended that you borrow notes from another student in the class.
Class Format: The class format will consist primarily of daily lecture, videos, and CD-ROM lab
demonstrations. Students are encouraged to ask questions during lecture. Also, please let me
know if I am going too fast. If any material from the lecture or the reading is unclear, please do
not hesitate to ask for clarification. It is also recommended that students read the assigned
readings prior to the associated lecture. Doing so will create a foundation for lecture material
and will allow you to follow the lectures more easily. I also would strongly recommend
bringing your lecture outlines and PowerPoint slide printouts to class (see below for details on
downloading these items). I will not email completed slides to you.
Blackboard: A Blackboard site has been created for this course at the following address:
https://blackboard.sdsu.edu/webapps/login. Student can log onto the site using their Red ID
and pin. Students can use Blackboard for downloading all lecture outlines and select
PowerPoint slides for each lecture. It is recommended that students download the items for
each lecture and bring them to class. The outlines and handouts will make it easier for students
to follow the lecture and take notes. Grades also will be available on Blackboard.
Course Requirements: You will take 5 quizzes this Semester. You may drop the lowest of the
first quizzes. Each quiz is worth 50 pts. Quizzes will cover material from lectures, movies,
class discussion, and the assigned reading, thus attendance and thoughtful consideration of
class discussions will likely be of benefit when taking quizzes. All students should take the
quizzes at the date and time specified in the syllabus.
There will be no make-up quizzes. However, your grade will be determined by totaling the number of
points you have earned from your four highest exams. That is, I will throw out the score from your
lowest exam when calculating your final grade. Thus, if you need to miss an exam because of illness or
other personal emergency, I will throw out the zero you earned on that exam when calculating your final
grade. The fifth and final quiz is MANDATORY. You cannot drop Quiz 5. There will be No make-up
quizzes.
There is typically a mix of online and in class- quizzes. In class quizzes are unannounced. Please purchase
the red parscore test forms from the bookstore ($0.25 per sheet) in preparation. All quizzes and exams
are multiple choice and TF. The multiple quiz formats will benefit you in three ways: 1) the quizzes will
help you keep caught up in the class; 2) the quizzes will not cover as much material as a midterm exam
would, and 3) the larger number of quizzes will help to average out a low score on a quiz. Course Web
Site: Updates to the syllabus, announcements, office hours, and Lecture outlines will be posted on our
Blackboard website which is accessible through your web portal.
Students with disabilities:
Students with disabilities who believe that they may need accommodations in this class are
encouraged to contact the Academic Resource Center as soon as possible to ensure that such
Accommodations can be implemented in a timely fashion
Religious Observances: The University Policy File includes the following statement on Absence for
Religious Observances: By the end of the second week of classes, students should notify the instructors
of affected courses of planned absences for religious observances. Therefore, if you foresee that the
date of a religious observance coincides with a quiz date, please see me before the end of the second
week of the semester. However, do not wait until the day of the quiz or the day after the quiz to ask for
a make-up quiz.
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100
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
DA
Academic Dishonesty: Academic dishonesty in any form will not be tolerated.
Additional reading may be placed on Blackboard. Faculty are required to report any incident
involving academic dishonesty to the University. See the Student Code section of your Student
Handbook for definitions and regulations concerning cheating and plagiarism.
Top 4 Quizzes = 200
In class practice quizzes = 12
Written Assignments = 64
Book Discussion = 40
Final Exam = 75
Course Total = 391
Course Schedule: TH 4-6:40
ASSIGNMENTS ARE DUE BY 11:00pm ON THE DATE INDICATED IN THE SYLLABUS
Lecture handouts are available on Blackboard by 9pm the night before class.
Chapters listed are from the 4th edition. If you are using the 3rd edition please match the topic to the
chapter in your book.
Lectures
8/28
Introduction- and History
DUE DATE Reading Assignments
8/28
Syllabus and Chapter 1
9/4
Cellular mechanisms and cognition
9/4
9/11
No class, Online Assignment(s)* due
tonight. Online Quiz due Sunday
*online Cognitive tasks plus writing
assignment. Handout with instructions
will be posted on Blackboard.
9/11
9/18
Chapter 3
9/25
Chapter 5 and 6
10/2
10/09
Neuroanatomy Lab and
Development/Methods
Sensation and Perception/Object
recognition
Conclusions / Quiz 2-ONLINE 75
minutes
Language/hemispheric differences
10/09
Quiz 2 due Sunday/Assignment 2
is due tonight
Chapter 4,11
10/16
Control of action
10/16
Chapter 8
10/23
10/23
Musicophilia
10/30
11/06
Musicophilia - Book discussion and
quiz/in-class experiment
Conclusions- Quiz 3-ONLINE 75
minutes
Emotion and Memory
11/06
Quiz 3 due Sunday / Assignment
3 is due tonight
Chapter 10, 8, 9
11/13
Attention and Cognitive Control
11/13
Chapter 7, 12
11/20
Society for Neuroscience Meeting in
DC
11/20
11/27
Thanksgiving
11/27
Review Material with GA and TA!
Responsible for Chapter 13/Quiz
4 is today
Thanksgiving
12/4
Social CognitionMistakes were made but not by me
12/4
12/11
TBD+Quiz 5 due ONLINE 75 minutes
12/11
9/18
9/25
10/2
10/30
Chapter 2 (add/drop deadline)
Quiz 1 due Sunday
Assignment 1 is due tonight
Chapter 13
Mistakes were made but not by
me
Mandatory Quiz due Tuesday the
17th at 11pm
Note: Some topics may be moved to a later date to accommodate course changes. However, project
due dates will not be changed. You will receive an e-mail when a revised syllabus has been posted.
It is your responsibility to download updates.
Please see Specific Assignment rubric for more details
Assignment1
20 points
Brain and Sugar
Assignment 2
20 points
Book Discussion #1
(discussion and quiz)
Assignment 3
20 points
Crime, predators and the
brain
Musicophilia
24 points
Deception
Book Discussion #2
(Discussion and quiz)
20 points
Mistakes were made (but
not by me)
Due September 11th at
11pm
Due October 2nd at
11pm
In class – October 23rd
Mandatory
Due October 30th at
11pm
In Class – December 4th
Mandatory