Cognitive neuroscience

Cognitive Neuroscience is an interdisciplinary field of research that combines the study of cognition and the neurosciences. It seeks to understand the neural mechanisms underlying cognitive processes.

History

The term "cognitive neuroscience" was coined by Michael Gazzaniga and George Armitage Miller in the late 1970s. The field has grown rapidly since then, with the development of new technologies such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and positron emission tomography (PET), which allow researchers to observe brain activity in real time.

Key Concepts

Cognitive neuroscience is concerned with several key concepts, including:

• Perception: This involves how we interpret and understand sensory information.
• Attention: This refers to how we focus our cognitive resources on specific information while ignoring other information.
• Memory: This involves how we store and retrieve information.
• Language: This refers to how we understand and produce language.
• Executive functions: These are higher-level cognitive processes that control and manage other cognitive processes.

Methods

Cognitive neuroscientists use a variety of methods to study the brain and cognition, including:

• Neuroimaging: This includes techniques such as fMRI and PET, which allow researchers to observe brain activity in real time.
• Electroencephalography (EEG): This measures electrical activity in the brain.
• Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS): This uses magnetic fields to stimulate specific areas of the brain.
• Neuropsychology: This involves the study of patients with brain damage to understand how different brain regions contribute to cognition.

Applications

The findings from cognitive neuroscience have applications in many areas, including psychology, education, medicine, and artificial intelligence.

See Also

• Cognitive psychology
• Neurobiology
• Neuropsychology
• Cognitive science

References

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