Saturday, 19 December 2009
Friday, 18 December 2009
Research Proposal
Today I had to submit my research proposal for my thesis project. Here it is, written by myself and Dr Christian Kluge:
Rapid plastic changes in Auditory Cortex: a classical conditioning paradigm
Chris Fassnidge, Dr Christian Kluge and Professor Jon Driver
Aim
This study seeks to determine whether detection and/or discrimination of a pure auditory tone can be improved by classical conditioning, pairing a target frequency with an electric shock
Literature Review
Work by Merzenich, Weinberger, Irvine and others has shown that receptive field properties of neurons in primary auditory cortex (AI) can undergo rapid plastic changes in response to behavioral learning in animals (reviewed in Weinberger 2004, Weinberger 2007, Irvine 2007). Remarkably, these changes occur within minutes. During learning, when a target frequency acquires behavioral relevance a large number of AI pyramidal cells shift their best frequency towards this distinct frequency. This effect has been shown to depend on attention , i.e. behavioural relevance (Polley et al., 2006). Two groups of rats underwent operant conditioning with identical stimulus sets. One group responded to a target frequency and demonstrated tonotopic changes resulting in an increased representation of the target frequency, while the second group performed the task (with exactly the same stimuli) in response to a target loudness which led to changes in the topographic organisation of neurons’ preferred loudness. In non-human primates, Blake et al. (2006) demonstrated a crucial role for active cognitive control and involvement needed for tonotopic re-mapping to occur.
Later mechanistic assessment has revealed that the neurotransmitter acetylcholine (ACh) is crucially involved in these plastic processes. Pairing brief ACh infusions with the purely passive presentation of tones induced changes in the AI tonotopic maps similar to the ones observed in the experiments described above. In addition, stimulation of the nucleus basalis, the main source of corticopetal cholinergic projections, led to identical remapping. These findings are intriguing because they strongly argue against the long-held view that primary sensory cortices are merely passive input structures in which plastic changes of receptive fields occur only during early ontogeny. Instead, the studies summarised indicate that the sensitivity and perhaps even local network resonance patterns can be dynamically adapted to current behavioural requirements.
Very little work has been done in humans on this subject. Thus, we aim to behaviourally determine whether conditioning of one or another frequency can lead to improved performance in detection and/ or discrimination of pure tones, as would be predicted if human receptive fields show similar plasticity to that documented in animals.
Materials and Method
In a within-subject design (with conditioned frequencies counterbalanced over subjects), we will compare the detection (experiment A) as well as the discrimination (experiment B) of pure tones. The detection task will employ a two alternative forced choice (2AFC) scheme in which subjects have to decide which of two successively presented white noise stimuli actually contained a pure tone. In the discrimination experiment, participants will be required to decide whether the second of two successively presented pure tones was higher or lower than the first one. In both experiments tones of a range of frequencies will be used and this part of the experiment will last about 15 minutes.
After this initial detection / discrimination block, subjects will undergo classical conditioning, pairing one distinct target frequency tone with an electric shock to the forearm. After this association is established, the detection / discrimination 2AFC routines are repeated, interleaved with further conditioning blocks (“topping up”). After 40 minutes, the detection / discrimination task will cease to be interupted by further conditioning. The absence of reinforcement of the target frequency will then lead to extinction of the association between frequency and shock (extinction).
A number of potential follow-up studies are conceivable. First, the work by Blake and colleagues (2006) suggests that operant conditioning might be more effective in inducing tonotopic changes. Thus, modifications of the paradigm employing reward or punishment depending on performance are possible. Also, there are potential MEG versions of all experiments described which would, through analysis of early latency auditory components of the evoked magnetic fields, allow for a direct assessment of the underlying neurophysiological principles.
Predicted Outcomes
This series of experiments allows for three possible outcomes:
1. Conditioning may improve tone detection performance but not tone discrimination. This situation would allow for the conclusion that a greater number of neurons areresponding to the target frequency after conditioning but that this improvement does not involve a sharpening of best frequency tuning curves.
2. Conditioning may improve tone discrimination performance but not tone detection. This outcome could be interpreted as a potential increased local signal-noise ratio. This situation seems somewhat unlikely, however, since previous studies reported best frequency shifts in large numbers of cells rather than sharpening of existing tuning curves.
3. Finally, if conditioning leads to performance improvements in both detection and discrimination our interpretation would be that although there was an increase in the number of neurons responding to the target frequency, this change does not come at the expense of frequencies around it. In this situation it would be interesting to study the underlying compensatory mechanisms in a later MEG experiment.
Analysis
The data will be analyzed with ANOVA (random effects) using the SPSS statistics software package. Further analysis may be required depending on results.
Timetable
Preparatory work: January - March 2010
(generation of stimuli, programming of the actual experiment, pilot measurements)
Data collection: March - June 2010
(16 to 20 subjects each group)
Analysis and write up: June - July 2010
Budget
Participants will be reimbursed for their time and effort using existing research grants of the ICN attention group. No investment in equipment or software will be neccessary.
Ethics
Full ethical approval will be sought from the Graduate School Research Ethics Committee prior to pilot data collection. The ethics application will be submitted in early January 2010.
References
Blake, D. T., Heiser, M. A., Caywood, M., & Merzenich, M. M. (2006). Experience-dependent adult cortical plasticity requires cognitive association between sensation and reward. Neuron, 52(2), 371-381.
Irvine, D. R. F. (2007). Auditory cortical plasticity: Does it provide evidence for
cognitive processing in the auditory cortex? Hearing Research, 229(1-2), 158-170.
Polley, D. B., Steinberg, E. E., & Merzenich, M. M. (2006). Perceptual Learning Directs Auditory Cortical Map Reorganization through Top-Down Influences. The Journal of Neuroscience, 26(18), 4970–4982.
Weinberger N. M. (2004) Specific long-term memory traces in primary auditory cortex. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 5(4), 279-290.
Weinberger N. M. (2007). Associative representational plasticity in the auditory cortex: a synthesis of two disciplines. Learning & Memory, 14(1-2) 1-16.
Rapid plastic changes in Auditory Cortex: a classical conditioning paradigm
Chris Fassnidge, Dr Christian Kluge and Professor Jon Driver
Aim
This study seeks to determine whether detection and/or discrimination of a pure auditory tone can be improved by classical conditioning, pairing a target frequency with an electric shock
Literature Review
Work by Merzenich, Weinberger, Irvine and others has shown that receptive field properties of neurons in primary auditory cortex (AI) can undergo rapid plastic changes in response to behavioral learning in animals (reviewed in Weinberger 2004, Weinberger 2007, Irvine 2007). Remarkably, these changes occur within minutes. During learning, when a target frequency acquires behavioral relevance a large number of AI pyramidal cells shift their best frequency towards this distinct frequency. This effect has been shown to depend on attention , i.e. behavioural relevance (Polley et al., 2006). Two groups of rats underwent operant conditioning with identical stimulus sets. One group responded to a target frequency and demonstrated tonotopic changes resulting in an increased representation of the target frequency, while the second group performed the task (with exactly the same stimuli) in response to a target loudness which led to changes in the topographic organisation of neurons’ preferred loudness. In non-human primates, Blake et al. (2006) demonstrated a crucial role for active cognitive control and involvement needed for tonotopic re-mapping to occur.
Later mechanistic assessment has revealed that the neurotransmitter acetylcholine (ACh) is crucially involved in these plastic processes. Pairing brief ACh infusions with the purely passive presentation of tones induced changes in the AI tonotopic maps similar to the ones observed in the experiments described above. In addition, stimulation of the nucleus basalis, the main source of corticopetal cholinergic projections, led to identical remapping. These findings are intriguing because they strongly argue against the long-held view that primary sensory cortices are merely passive input structures in which plastic changes of receptive fields occur only during early ontogeny. Instead, the studies summarised indicate that the sensitivity and perhaps even local network resonance patterns can be dynamically adapted to current behavioural requirements.
Very little work has been done in humans on this subject. Thus, we aim to behaviourally determine whether conditioning of one or another frequency can lead to improved performance in detection and/ or discrimination of pure tones, as would be predicted if human receptive fields show similar plasticity to that documented in animals.
Materials and Method
In a within-subject design (with conditioned frequencies counterbalanced over subjects), we will compare the detection (experiment A) as well as the discrimination (experiment B) of pure tones. The detection task will employ a two alternative forced choice (2AFC) scheme in which subjects have to decide which of two successively presented white noise stimuli actually contained a pure tone. In the discrimination experiment, participants will be required to decide whether the second of two successively presented pure tones was higher or lower than the first one. In both experiments tones of a range of frequencies will be used and this part of the experiment will last about 15 minutes.
After this initial detection / discrimination block, subjects will undergo classical conditioning, pairing one distinct target frequency tone with an electric shock to the forearm. After this association is established, the detection / discrimination 2AFC routines are repeated, interleaved with further conditioning blocks (“topping up”). After 40 minutes, the detection / discrimination task will cease to be interupted by further conditioning. The absence of reinforcement of the target frequency will then lead to extinction of the association between frequency and shock (extinction).
A number of potential follow-up studies are conceivable. First, the work by Blake and colleagues (2006) suggests that operant conditioning might be more effective in inducing tonotopic changes. Thus, modifications of the paradigm employing reward or punishment depending on performance are possible. Also, there are potential MEG versions of all experiments described which would, through analysis of early latency auditory components of the evoked magnetic fields, allow for a direct assessment of the underlying neurophysiological principles.
Predicted Outcomes
This series of experiments allows for three possible outcomes:
1. Conditioning may improve tone detection performance but not tone discrimination. This situation would allow for the conclusion that a greater number of neurons areresponding to the target frequency after conditioning but that this improvement does not involve a sharpening of best frequency tuning curves.
2. Conditioning may improve tone discrimination performance but not tone detection. This outcome could be interpreted as a potential increased local signal-noise ratio. This situation seems somewhat unlikely, however, since previous studies reported best frequency shifts in large numbers of cells rather than sharpening of existing tuning curves.
3. Finally, if conditioning leads to performance improvements in both detection and discrimination our interpretation would be that although there was an increase in the number of neurons responding to the target frequency, this change does not come at the expense of frequencies around it. In this situation it would be interesting to study the underlying compensatory mechanisms in a later MEG experiment.
Analysis
The data will be analyzed with ANOVA (random effects) using the SPSS statistics software package. Further analysis may be required depending on results.
Timetable
Preparatory work: January - March 2010
(generation of stimuli, programming of the actual experiment, pilot measurements)
Data collection: March - June 2010
(16 to 20 subjects each group)
Analysis and write up: June - July 2010
Budget
Participants will be reimbursed for their time and effort using existing research grants of the ICN attention group. No investment in equipment or software will be neccessary.
Ethics
Full ethical approval will be sought from the Graduate School Research Ethics Committee prior to pilot data collection. The ethics application will be submitted in early January 2010.
References
Blake, D. T., Heiser, M. A., Caywood, M., & Merzenich, M. M. (2006). Experience-dependent adult cortical plasticity requires cognitive association between sensation and reward. Neuron, 52(2), 371-381.
Irvine, D. R. F. (2007). Auditory cortical plasticity: Does it provide evidence for
cognitive processing in the auditory cortex? Hearing Research, 229(1-2), 158-170.
Polley, D. B., Steinberg, E. E., & Merzenich, M. M. (2006). Perceptual Learning Directs Auditory Cortical Map Reorganization through Top-Down Influences. The Journal of Neuroscience, 26(18), 4970–4982.
Weinberger N. M. (2004) Specific long-term memory traces in primary auditory cortex. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 5(4), 279-290.
Weinberger N. M. (2007). Associative representational plasticity in the auditory cortex: a synthesis of two disciplines. Learning & Memory, 14(1-2) 1-16.
Thursday, 10 December 2009
My apologies, but this may be a rather lengthy, self-indulgent entry.
There are times on this course when I really need to take a deep breath and swallow down the surge of inadequacy that I feel building up inside me. It is something akin to those moments in life when one almost throws up but somehow at the last second manages to swallow down the noxious brew. Both avoid leaving oneself in an unpleasant position, but equally leave you with a revolting taste in your mouth.
A tad overdramatic? Perhaps.
It is fair to say, however, that I often feel out of my depth on this course. Those of you who have read my past entries in this blog will know that my school record was far from exemplary. You will also know that I have felt more than a slither of trepidation at being accepted to study at such a prestigious institution, a world leader no less.
It has not been the finest of weeks. Monday started off optimistically enough, with a meeting at the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience (ICN) to discuss my upcoming research project with my soon-to-be collaborator, Dr Christian Kluge. I left the ICN buzzing at having drawn up an exciting and original piece of research with Dr Kluge, and feeling a lot more confident about what would in the new year become the embryonic stage of my thesis.
How crushed I was then, on returning home to see in my inbox the following words from Dr Kluge:
“There is an ongoing project with quite similar designs that i did not know of. Therefore, we will probably have to re-think what we want to do”.
A lesson in expectations management, perhaps. That’ll teach me to curb my enthusiasm!
Anyway, there was little time to waste, as in seven days I time I would be required to make a brief presentation to my peers and the course administrators outlining my research project. What Dr Kluge proposed was we meet with Professor Jon Driver, one of the directors of the ICN and the man who would be supervising the project that myself and Dr Kluge will spend the next nine months on.
It didn’t go well.
I came across as a bumbling, poorly read amateur. Prof Driver was clearly unimpressed, and Dr Kluge was visibly embarrassed at having brought me into his office. Nevertheless, between us we managed to thrash out a viable research project which certainly has potential to be an exciting piece of work.
The one advantage of making such a poor first impression on such an important figure within the ICN is that there is now only one direction in which his opinion of me can go. The last thing professor Driver asked of me, as he was on his way into a two hour meeting, was to draw up the slides for my presentation on Monday, and to do it before Friday so he could take a look at it.
It was in his inbox by the time he left the meeting.
The best thing about fighting down those feelings of inadequacy is that it resets ones perspective in order that we may replace them with feelings of pride and self-congratulation; quite rare for me to feel and even rarer to voice. But if I am honest I have done bloody well to get here. It can be off-putting at times to hear some of my fellow students list their accomplishments, to reel off terminology that leaves me perplexed, and to have to take the time to explain things to me in simple terms.
I should not lose sight of the fact that I came into this course without a single science A-level, and ten years after a decidedly average performance at GCSE science. In addition, contrary to what some may think, a psychology degree is far from the ideal prerequisite for a cognitive neuroscience MSc, let alone one with as little scientific content as my bachelors degree had. But then again, I had no experience of psychology before undertaking my degree, and emerged with first class honours.
This may all be new to me now, and I may have to endure some snobbery, condescending comments and pangs of self-doubt, but I will learn fast, improve exponentially and come out the other side with one heck of a valuable qualification.
And then, just maybe, repeat the whole cycle again with a PhD.
There are times on this course when I really need to take a deep breath and swallow down the surge of inadequacy that I feel building up inside me. It is something akin to those moments in life when one almost throws up but somehow at the last second manages to swallow down the noxious brew. Both avoid leaving oneself in an unpleasant position, but equally leave you with a revolting taste in your mouth.
A tad overdramatic? Perhaps.
It is fair to say, however, that I often feel out of my depth on this course. Those of you who have read my past entries in this blog will know that my school record was far from exemplary. You will also know that I have felt more than a slither of trepidation at being accepted to study at such a prestigious institution, a world leader no less.
It has not been the finest of weeks. Monday started off optimistically enough, with a meeting at the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience (ICN) to discuss my upcoming research project with my soon-to-be collaborator, Dr Christian Kluge. I left the ICN buzzing at having drawn up an exciting and original piece of research with Dr Kluge, and feeling a lot more confident about what would in the new year become the embryonic stage of my thesis.
How crushed I was then, on returning home to see in my inbox the following words from Dr Kluge:
“There is an ongoing project with quite similar designs that i did not know of. Therefore, we will probably have to re-think what we want to do”.
A lesson in expectations management, perhaps. That’ll teach me to curb my enthusiasm!
Anyway, there was little time to waste, as in seven days I time I would be required to make a brief presentation to my peers and the course administrators outlining my research project. What Dr Kluge proposed was we meet with Professor Jon Driver, one of the directors of the ICN and the man who would be supervising the project that myself and Dr Kluge will spend the next nine months on.
It didn’t go well.
I came across as a bumbling, poorly read amateur. Prof Driver was clearly unimpressed, and Dr Kluge was visibly embarrassed at having brought me into his office. Nevertheless, between us we managed to thrash out a viable research project which certainly has potential to be an exciting piece of work.
The one advantage of making such a poor first impression on such an important figure within the ICN is that there is now only one direction in which his opinion of me can go. The last thing professor Driver asked of me, as he was on his way into a two hour meeting, was to draw up the slides for my presentation on Monday, and to do it before Friday so he could take a look at it.
It was in his inbox by the time he left the meeting.
The best thing about fighting down those feelings of inadequacy is that it resets ones perspective in order that we may replace them with feelings of pride and self-congratulation; quite rare for me to feel and even rarer to voice. But if I am honest I have done bloody well to get here. It can be off-putting at times to hear some of my fellow students list their accomplishments, to reel off terminology that leaves me perplexed, and to have to take the time to explain things to me in simple terms.
I should not lose sight of the fact that I came into this course without a single science A-level, and ten years after a decidedly average performance at GCSE science. In addition, contrary to what some may think, a psychology degree is far from the ideal prerequisite for a cognitive neuroscience MSc, let alone one with as little scientific content as my bachelors degree had. But then again, I had no experience of psychology before undertaking my degree, and emerged with first class honours.
This may all be new to me now, and I may have to endure some snobbery, condescending comments and pangs of self-doubt, but I will learn fast, improve exponentially and come out the other side with one heck of a valuable qualification.
And then, just maybe, repeat the whole cycle again with a PhD.
Thursday, 3 December 2009
Some people are just ahead of their time.
"Men ought to know that from nothing else but the brain come joys, delights, laughter and sports, and sorrows, griefs, despondency, and lamentations. And by this, in an especial manner, we acquire wisdom and knowledge, and see and hear, and know what are foul and what are fair, what are bad and what are good, what are sweet, and what unsavoury... And by the same organ we become mad and delirious, and fears and terrors assail us... All these things we endure from the brain"
Hippocrates, 400 B.C
"Men ought to know that from nothing else but the brain come joys, delights, laughter and sports, and sorrows, griefs, despondency, and lamentations. And by this, in an especial manner, we acquire wisdom and knowledge, and see and hear, and know what are foul and what are fair, what are bad and what are good, what are sweet, and what unsavoury... And by the same organ we become mad and delirious, and fears and terrors assail us... All these things we endure from the brain"
Hippocrates, 400 B.C
Wednesday, 25 November 2009
Neuroplasticity.
Not much to report over the last couple of weeks, I had a reading week recently and actually managed to get rather a lot done, having spent several hours in the library making notes on this and that. It was a much needed 'break' of sorts, if only from the time-tabled activities.
I am currently trying to think of a research project which will form my thesis. I have a pretty good idea who will be supervising me, a guy over at the institute of cognitive neuroscience who is researching plasticity in the auditory cortex.
Plasticity is something that fascinates me greatly, and one book in particular, 'the brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge, was more or less the main reason why I applied for this particular course.
Essentially, plasticity (or neuroplasticity) is the ability of the brain to 'rewire' itself, to make new connections. For the century or so since the 'neuron doctrine' came to the forefront of thinking about the brain, it was believed that the structure of the brain was more or less fixed from adolescence onward. Scientists thought that no new brain cells could be formed, and it a part of the brain was damaged then it was lost for life.
Of course, there has to be some degree of plasticity in the brain, otherwise we couldn't form new memories, but we now know that the brain is far, far more plastic than previously thought.
The most exciting research being done in this field that I am aware of is in the area of sensory substitution, most notably the work carried out by a guy by the name of Paul Bach-y-rita.
Bach-y-rita developed a device which could allow the brain to recover one lost sense from another. If I wanted to sensationalise this, I would say he made blind people see again. But that wouldn't quite do him justice - he made them see out of their tongue.
Sounds insane, but it is actually possible. The key concept here is that we don't see with out eyes, just as we don't hear with our ears. All of our senses are essentially electrical information carried to and processed in the brain. For example, the actual physical image of what you see doesn't get any further than the back of the retina, before it becomes a complex series of electrical pulses that are then carried to the visual areas at the back of the brain.
When somebody is blind, it is generally because of a problem with their eyes, rather than the visual areas of the brain. Therefore if an alternative pathway could be found to get these electrical pulses to the visual cortex, you have vision.
What Bach-y-rita invented was a small device that sits on your tongue and converts a picture from a video camera into electrical information. Imagine a strip of plastic with hundreds of tiny electrical points covering it's surface. Each one of these points is like the pixels that make up a digital image, the brighter the pixel the stronger the electrical pulse. Multiply this over the entire surface of the tongue and you can make up a crude image of your visual field. Apparently, when this device is activated it feels like those old 'popping candy' sweets you can get that fizz in your mouth.
The amazing thing is, over time your brain learns how to process the signals as images, and slowly the signal becomes a valid, if slightly basic, black and white image. Brain scans using MRI machines have even confirmed that this information is being processed in the visual parts of the brain.
So this now becomes a philosophical question - if visual information is being processed in the visual cortex, but it just so happens it is relayed via the tongue by a video camera - is this still eyesight?
Take a look at these two videos and decide for yourself.
I am currently trying to think of a research project which will form my thesis. I have a pretty good idea who will be supervising me, a guy over at the institute of cognitive neuroscience who is researching plasticity in the auditory cortex.
Plasticity is something that fascinates me greatly, and one book in particular, 'the brain that changes itself' by Norman Doidge, was more or less the main reason why I applied for this particular course.
Essentially, plasticity (or neuroplasticity) is the ability of the brain to 'rewire' itself, to make new connections. For the century or so since the 'neuron doctrine' came to the forefront of thinking about the brain, it was believed that the structure of the brain was more or less fixed from adolescence onward. Scientists thought that no new brain cells could be formed, and it a part of the brain was damaged then it was lost for life.
Of course, there has to be some degree of plasticity in the brain, otherwise we couldn't form new memories, but we now know that the brain is far, far more plastic than previously thought.
The most exciting research being done in this field that I am aware of is in the area of sensory substitution, most notably the work carried out by a guy by the name of Paul Bach-y-rita.
Bach-y-rita developed a device which could allow the brain to recover one lost sense from another. If I wanted to sensationalise this, I would say he made blind people see again. But that wouldn't quite do him justice - he made them see out of their tongue.
Sounds insane, but it is actually possible. The key concept here is that we don't see with out eyes, just as we don't hear with our ears. All of our senses are essentially electrical information carried to and processed in the brain. For example, the actual physical image of what you see doesn't get any further than the back of the retina, before it becomes a complex series of electrical pulses that are then carried to the visual areas at the back of the brain.
When somebody is blind, it is generally because of a problem with their eyes, rather than the visual areas of the brain. Therefore if an alternative pathway could be found to get these electrical pulses to the visual cortex, you have vision.
What Bach-y-rita invented was a small device that sits on your tongue and converts a picture from a video camera into electrical information. Imagine a strip of plastic with hundreds of tiny electrical points covering it's surface. Each one of these points is like the pixels that make up a digital image, the brighter the pixel the stronger the electrical pulse. Multiply this over the entire surface of the tongue and you can make up a crude image of your visual field. Apparently, when this device is activated it feels like those old 'popping candy' sweets you can get that fizz in your mouth.
The amazing thing is, over time your brain learns how to process the signals as images, and slowly the signal becomes a valid, if slightly basic, black and white image. Brain scans using MRI machines have even confirmed that this information is being processed in the visual parts of the brain.
So this now becomes a philosophical question - if visual information is being processed in the visual cortex, but it just so happens it is relayed via the tongue by a video camera - is this still eyesight?
Take a look at these two videos and decide for yourself.
Monday, 9 November 2009
A little fact.
Hello everyone,
I realise that my last entry was pretty dull, so I found out an interesting little fact to keep your interest.
There are 100-150 billion neurons in the human brain.
Each neuron may connect with around 10,000 other neurons.
If each neuron connected with every other single neuron, our brain would be 12.5 miles in diameter (Nelson & Bower, 1990). This is the size of greater London.
Taken from Jamie Ward's book 'The students guide to cognitive neuroscience', chapter 2.
I realise that my last entry was pretty dull, so I found out an interesting little fact to keep your interest.
There are 100-150 billion neurons in the human brain.
Each neuron may connect with around 10,000 other neurons.
If each neuron connected with every other single neuron, our brain would be 12.5 miles in diameter (Nelson & Bower, 1990). This is the size of greater London.
Taken from Jamie Ward's book 'The students guide to cognitive neuroscience', chapter 2.
Sunday, 8 November 2009
Weeks 4 & 5
Over a month into the course now, and my predominant feeling is exhaustion. I can't particularly explain why, but I am bloody tired. How handy it is then, that next week is a reading week, and it couldn't have been timed better.
There isn't a great deal to report about the last fortnight. We had some interesting lectures and some achingly dull ones. We learnt a little about how computational modelling can help us to understand the brain, had another case study at the hospital, and a whole load more stats.
I got my marks back for the first statistics test as I was handing in the second assignment. I did reasonably well, considering the conditions under which I wrote the last one (see my previous entry on my late-night rewrite). The marks I dropped were, I think, due mostly to the length of time it has been since I had to do any statistical analysis, and a couple of silly mistakes. I feel a lot more confident about the second test, and it would seem that I am back into the swing of things.
My main worry now is the exam in January (the only exam on this course), which is on the neurophysiological side of the course. Of course, this stuff is bloody hard, and Marty has just put a few example questions on his website, which really put the fear into me. As I was rereading my notes on how brain cells communicate with one another, I was struck by just how easy this would be it the brain were intrinsically self-aware. My neurons are firing right now, in many different parts of my brain, as are yours, as are all of ours, all the time, many many times over. We should be experts in this. Given the frequency with which our neurons fire you could argue that it is the single most practised act any human has ever performed.
So why then is this exam shaping up to be such a struggle?
There isn't a great deal to report about the last fortnight. We had some interesting lectures and some achingly dull ones. We learnt a little about how computational modelling can help us to understand the brain, had another case study at the hospital, and a whole load more stats.
I got my marks back for the first statistics test as I was handing in the second assignment. I did reasonably well, considering the conditions under which I wrote the last one (see my previous entry on my late-night rewrite). The marks I dropped were, I think, due mostly to the length of time it has been since I had to do any statistical analysis, and a couple of silly mistakes. I feel a lot more confident about the second test, and it would seem that I am back into the swing of things.
My main worry now is the exam in January (the only exam on this course), which is on the neurophysiological side of the course. Of course, this stuff is bloody hard, and Marty has just put a few example questions on his website, which really put the fear into me. As I was rereading my notes on how brain cells communicate with one another, I was struck by just how easy this would be it the brain were intrinsically self-aware. My neurons are firing right now, in many different parts of my brain, as are yours, as are all of ours, all the time, many many times over. We should be experts in this. Given the frequency with which our neurons fire you could argue that it is the single most practised act any human has ever performed.
So why then is this exam shaping up to be such a struggle?
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