Click here to read a BBC Article about the story of Phineas Gage, a man who changed the study of neuroscience forever after a metre-long rod fired through his skull.
I read an article in the latest New Scientist magazine (Sept 2010), which discusses research carried out by Crocket, et.al. (2010) at the University of Cambridge, testing the effects of anti-depressants on willingness to impose negative consequences on another even when it’s for the ‘greater good’.
24 healthy participants were presented with a moral dilemma while they were under the influence of the antidepressant citalopram – a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), which increases brain serotonin levels. The particpants played a game in which they were asked to accept or decline another player’s offer of a share of a sum of money. If they accepted the offer, each player kept their share. If they refused, both players were left empty-handed.
The participants given citalopram were about 10 per cent less willing to inflict harm on someone in order to benefit others compared with those given a placebo. Participants who had taken citalopram were more likely to accept a stingy offer, rather than punishing the other player’s greed by refusing it.
Click here to read the full article
Click here to access a booklet with great advice for improving your self-esteem.
Click here to attempt this brainteaser, reportedly written by Einstein. It is difficult and Einstein said that 98% of the people in the world could not figure it out. Which percentage are you in?
Click here to watch and read about the ‘Game of Death’ where contestants on the show did not realise they were taking part in an experiment to find out whether television could push them to outrageous lengths. The game involved contestants posing questions to another “player”, who was actually an actor, and punishing him with 460 volts of electricity when he answered incorrectly………..
Welcome to my blog and I hope that you thoroughly enjoy A Level Psychology and are ready for some hard work! I advise you to join the British Psychological Society, especially if you would like to read Psychology at University.
Membership has many benefits and will look impressive on your University UCAS application.
Click here to read about the benefits and join!
Click here to read Jonah Leyer’s article published in the NY Times
Following the success of last year’s inaugural competition, Cambridge University’s Department of Social & Developmental Psychology is again hosting an essay competition for sixth-form students. This year, we are inviting essays on the following title:
“In an era of genetics, are psychological studies of environmental influences irrelevant?”
These essays should address issues within developmental and/or social psychology and demonstrate both a breadth of knowledge and ideas and an ability to write with clarity and coherence. Schools and colleges may submit essays from a maximum of three pupils in their first year of study for A-level, Scottish Higher Level or an equivalent qualification. Last year’s winner went on to study psychology at University, but did not actually study psychology at school and so we’d like to emphasize that the competition is open to all students who are thinking about a degree in Psychology.
Click here for more information/ see Shanie/ Challenge Wall
Click here to play the Split Brain Experiments Game
- What is a “split brain”?
- What happens if you surgically remove the connection called corpus calossum between the two brain hemispheres?
- What is the classic split brain experiment?
- What have we learned about the brain from split brain operated patients?
- To which of the hemispheres are the left and right vision fields connected?
- What are the characteristics of the right and left brain hemispheres?
The brain is made up of two halves, or hemispheres. These hemispheres are connected to each other through a system consisting of millions of nerve fibres. Therefore, each hemisphere is continually informed about what is happening in the other. What happens if the connection is broken? In this game you can follow a classic experiment with a patient whose corpus callosum connection has been surgically removed.
In this game you perform the classic split brain experiment used by Nobel Laureate Roger Sperry when he discovered differences between the right and left hemispheres of the brain. See how the patient reacts and try to figure out how come he is acting the way he does. In order to be able to proceed with your research you have to get more money, and when applying for more grants you have to report on your findings. If you manage to make correct conclusions you’ll be awarded with more grants and eventually your research will be published in a scientific journal.