Monthly Archives: February 2017

Memory

When it comes to studying, I do well in terms of how I study. In that I mean, I study what I need to study and I don’t study things I already know, and I have found ways to study that work for me and my mind. I make flashcards and study guides that I can read over and I take good notes. However, the issue with my study habits is that I do not devote much time to studying. I tend to not start studying til a night or two before, and I find myself trying to memorize 3 chapters of material in one or two nights. I know that the more efficient way to study and memorize material is to read through the notes and material everyday as I am learning it so that when an exam comes I do not have to cram. For the first exam in Psych 101, I had all the proper materials I needed in order to study- lecture notes, book notes, and flashcards but I decided to not start studying til the night before, which made it hard to study effectively.


Memory

Overall, I very much enjoyed this weeks TED talk. I thought the speaker did an excellent job of conveying her message about how subjective our memories are. The stories that were presented during the talk made me think critically about how much we as human beings rely on our memories. Our memory is crucial for us to be able to do so many different things, but ,as the speaker said, our memories could easily be false. Suggestion is a powerful device, and I dislike the idea that my memories could be so easily tampered with. Personal displeasure aside, I do understand the importance of this research. The more we come to terms with the possible falsehood of our memories, the closer we can come to the truth. Now, I do not personally think that we as a society should  use such suggestive methods to change someone’s memories for their own benefit, such as planting  false memories of them enjoying vegetables. I think that understanding the possible falsehood of memories is important for matters such as court cases, but I do not believe that changing a portion of someone’s identity is a morally correct choice. Using suggestion to make someone like vegetables, which will allow them to become healthier, is taking that person’s freedom of choice from them. To me,  I think having the freedom to choose one’s preferences is an invaluable part of being human, and altering someone’s memories to change their choice is not ethical no matter the benefit they gain.


Memory Improvement

Do you want to improve your study habits and memorization skills, so you can do better on exams? I always want to do better on exams and I usually tend to make satisfactory grades on them; however, my studying methods could use some improvement. When I study for tests I review the notes I have taken in that class, study any homework assignments, complete any available study guides, and read the textbooks for that intended class. I usually do well in these areas but the hardest ones for me, and the ones I need improvement in, include completing the study guides accurately and reading information from the textbook(s).  Completing the study guides are more challenging for me because if I answer the questions incorrectly, and am not given the correct answers before the test to fix my mistakes, I may study the incorrect information and that will negatively affect how I will do on exams. Reading material directly from textbooks is also tough for me because there is usually so much info to cover in them. And for certain subjects, such as science and history courses, it is especially difficult for me to discern what is and is not significant to study.

For my first psychology exam in General Psychology 101C I did not do as well as I wanted. The reason for this is because I did not study every day, and even though I understood a lot of the information discussed in class, I did not keep up with it. There was information on the test that was not discussed in class; however, my psychology teacher did warn the class about this fact. In order to prepare for my next psychology exam, I will see a tutor if I am struggling on a certain subject and spend more time before the test comes to study the information discussed in class and stated in the textbook. I enjoy my psychology class a great deal, and I want to do whatever I can in order to do well in it.


Memory

memory5

In the TED talk the speaker, Elizabeth Loftus, discusses how her job is to study when people remember events or “think” they can recall an event to full extent. Studying when people forget is opposite of what Loftus finds truly important when discussing memory. She goes on to state how there is an even bigger problem in society when people tend to “think” they can recall memories — that can potentially  hurt the individual being accused.

For instance, there are 300 innocent people being convicted due to false memories. With rapidly advanced technology, DNA can help us prove that the individuals did not commit the crimes they are being charged for. People are more likely to believe the victim because we rely on memory to help us recall events. Though, society has the wrong idea of how memory works and how strongly we can rely on it. False memories are common and should be investigated thoroughly to prevent innocent individuals from being hurt.

Loftus, continues by discussing misinformation from witnesses and secondary sources in general.  In the 1990s therapy resulted in huge problems of extreme memories that did not actually occur.  Where do the bizarre memories come from? Dream interpretation, hypnosis, and more psychobabble therapy tactics that the general public seem to find attractive. Loftus and her team conducted an experiment that involved development of false memories by actually planting false memories into the minds of their subjects. This allowed Loftus to test out her theory and also apply is to current circumstances that needed immediate evaluation.

Personally, I do not believe that memory should be tampered with. Not by others or the individual. Memory should be left to function on its own. If a person experiences traumatic events throughout their life, those events should not be repressed or altered into another memory. Tricking the brain is like tricking reality. Your mind and perceptions are your reality, so to falsify memory is to falsify the way you perceive life.


“Remember” to Study, Study, Study!

For week 5’s first impression post, we are presented with the topic of memory. For my blog in particular, I will be analyzing and critiquing my own study habits. Later in my post, I will also be critiquing my study techniques for the first exam that was taken and what changes I may make in order to improve my score for Exam 2. Next week (week 6) we will be learning about memory and helpful study techniques in class so that I would be able to compare my own memorization techniques to what research says about improving memory for learned information. Although I believe that I benefit from my study techniques, I am hoping that I am able to learn more from this upcoming week’s lectures. I am hopeful to find different ways to recall information that what I have been practicing thus far. I am quite interested in seeing how alike or different my techniques of studying will stand compared to official research. I am always up to learning new memory/study techniques, especially as classes get more and more difficult.

Overall, the typical way I study for any class is in an analytical process. I typically will color code concepts in clusters, highlight important concepts (again, with various color coding techniques), write out my notes, make flashcards, and sometimes I will make my own review sheet for the exam/test. It is tedious to write down information again and again, but it is quite helpful (I find) so that I will remember it. The colors that I use to color code certain subjects helps me relay back to the main point(s) for the specific concept being asked. Sometimes I will rewrite my notes completely, or put chunks of what is vital to remember on flashcards (again, color coded). I will flip through my flashcards religiously until I know the information that is needed. In other circumstances, I will sometimes make my own review for the test. If I know what types of questions are expected to be asked, I will go further into detail with each. I typically make the review 2-3 days before the exam so that I can have one full day in between before I look back at the review to answer the questions on it without freshly going over the material.

For this class’ first exam, I made few flashcards with main concepts on them. I did not use the flashcard technique for this first exam. Instead, the main method that I used for the first exam was going back through my lecture notes and highlighting the points that I needed to know. I highlighted and/or underlined the concepts that were important to remember and look back over. I also went through the study guide that was provided, and made my own review for the test. After completing the review, I again color-coded the concepts that were important to recall. I did decently well on the first exam compared to the class average, as well as the max/min of the scores. I could have definitely done better, though. If I were to of taken advantage of more of my typical study techniques I think that my score would of came back higher than what it was. I had other classes that I was also studying for (Cellular Biology in particular) that must be reviewed over every day for at least 30 minutes. I think that I need to make a breaking point so that my brain can have a slight ‘resting’ stage from one class to another, especially so when studying for exams. I believe that this will help me retain information better. Next time we have an exam, I will be better prepared. I have already started to make flashcards as we go through each chapter so that it will not be as tedious to get all the material written out in preparation for the exam. I also to plan out more time than what I had before for this exam; we were coming back from softball games in Tennessee and Mississippi. I should have done my homework in a different order than what I did, so that I could have studied more on the bus for the psychology exam. I believe that time management is my greatest hardship for studying.


My Current Study Habits

When it comes time to study for an exam, I first plan which day I will begin studying, along with which days I will be able to study from that day until the exam, given I will have time to. Being an organized person (some might say overly-organized), I find planning to be essential when it comes to successful studying, especially if you plan to study more than one day before the exam, which I always try my best to do. This leads me to my next point, which is I usually start studying for an exam 3 days before it takes place. In addition, I will not study all the material in one day, but rather I spread the material out over the 3 days. Most of the exams I take for my biology courses, for example, cover what seems like an immense amount of material. In this case, what I like to do is study and make sure I understand and remember the first part of the material during the first day of my studying, doing the same for the second and final portions of the material during the second and final days of my studying. It is really helpful to study bits at a time, conquer these bits, and then move on to other bits. I am not the kind of student who is able to cram the day/night before nor do I stay up super late studying. By beginning my studies 3 days in advance and studying for 2 to 3 hours each day, I never have to worry about losing too much sleep or suffering from anxiety as a result of putting off my studying and having to worry about whether or not I will be able to get through all of the material. Another point, which I touched on earlier, is I do not stay up all night, let alone extremely late, studying for an exam. This has been the case for all of my life. My favorite professor even told my class about how the risks tend to outweigh the benefits when it comes pulling an all-nighter. I also am just the kind of person who tends to make stupid mistakes on tests as a result of not being able to really function properly when I am tired.

For certain classes, such as math classes and general/inorganic chemistry classes, I first review the conceptual material and equations, then work problems. For me, working problems before an exam is the best way of practicing the material and applying what I know. For other classes in which I need to memorize names, structures, and functions, I make flash cards. Finally, the most common thing I do when studying is make study sheets. By writing down major points and concepts based on what I know, I am practicing the very thing which will be asked of me on the test: to write down major points and concepts based on what I know and have learned. I also learned early on how important of a role taking breaks has on memory. What I mean by this is that it is best to study a certain amount of material, take a break from it, and then return studying by first trying to recall on your own what you know; I make sure to do this as well.

When studying for my first psychology exam, I divided the work into 3 days, as the exam covered 3 chapters. Each day, I would review what I read in a chapter in the book, along with my notes for the chapter. I next made a study sheet summarizing and relating important details from the chapter. Before starting on the next chapter the next day, I would review my study sheet and quiz myself. On the third day, I answered some of the questions found on the practice exam so as make sure I was prepared for the level of detail this exam would consist of. Since taking the exam and starting to learn the material which will be on the second exam, I think I may need to use flashcards this time. This is because one of the chapters is a very detailed one on the anatomy and physiology of the nervous system. I will have to learn the complex names of many structures and what these structures do. I also think I should answer questions from the practice exam each day I study, specifically work on questions which relate to the chapter I already reviewed, instead of only looking at the practice exam on last day after I have covered everything.

 

 


Week 5 First Impression Post – Memory

Hand writing on a notebook

Regardless of which prompt you choose, please use the Tag “Memory” on your post:

Option 1:

Elizabeth Loftus is one of the preeminent researchers in false memories. Her research has shed light on the fallibility of eyewitness testimony, the over-reporting of satanic ritual abuse, and the ease of implanting false memories. Her TED talk outlines much of her research and illuminates the fragility of our memory. Watch the TED talk and discuss your reactions. Make sure to specifically address Loftus’s implication that we could manipulate memory for positive outcomes (like enjoying vegetables) by discussing potential pros and cons and stating whether or not you believe we should consider tampering with memory.

Option 2:

One of the topics we will discuss related to memory is study habits. For this post, critique your current study habits. What do you do well and what do you need to improve. In particular, I want you to discuss how you studied for the first exam in this class and share any changes you might make for the second exam to improve your preparation. We will see how closely your ideas reflect what the research says about improving your memory for learned information.

 

I look forward to seeing what you write!

Ted Talk, Mind of a serial killer

I was drawn to this topic mainly because I have always been fascinated with Murder. I know that sounds terrible and psychotic, but there is a reason why shows like forensic files and murder mystery novels are popular, and that is that murder is interesting. The Ted talk itself was not as interesting in my opinion but it was done quite well and was very informative. During the talk Jim Fallon explained how he studied the brains of psychopathic killers. He talked about three main things that contribute to having the mind of a serial killer. The first contributor to serial killers is genes and how men inherit a specific gene from their mothers that causes them to resist the effects of serotonin. The second was brain damage and how most serial killers have the same specific parts of the brain that are damaged. The last contributor was the environment and how it can cause said genes to become expressed in the individual. Jim Fallon stated during the talk that all three of these things must come together at the right time to cause someone to become a murderer.

The most intriguing part of this talk was the idea that a portion of the population could have the genes to become serial killers. It made me wonder if anyone I know or even anyone in my family could have been or could be murderers. The presenter seems exceptionally trustworthy due to his credentials as a professor and researcher of neuroscience.

A research question I thought of after this Ted talk is weather or not cannibals show the same qualities as serial killers such as the specific brain damage and genes. I’m curious as to if they perceive the people they eat as people or as just another meal. I would conduct this research in the same manner as Jim Fallon. I would have someone look at the brains and genes of the cannibals without knowing that they are cannibals, and determine if they have similar brain damage and genes as serial killers.


Mind Readers Unite

Rebecca Saxe: How we read each other’s minds

Seeing a video suggesting that we would learn about how we as people, read what others are thinking, really caught my eye. I already wrote about how I struggle picking up on silent, social cues as well as being able to tell whether or not the person I was talking to was mad. As a funny personal little anecdote: Just recently, I mustered up the courage to talk to a boy and ask for his number. I texted him as a suggestion from my friend, but, he gave no response after 2 and a half days. Of course now I’m thinking, oh my gosh I made such a mistake. What was I thinking? What is he thinking? Why didn’t he respond? Why hasn’t this boy texted me back? This seems like a trivial problem, but when a boy I’m interested, or any other person in fact, doesn’t respond to my messages (whether that be through facebook messenger, text, DM, email, etc) I get super upset and anxious, wondering about what the other person is thinking on the other side.

This talk  basically surrounded the problem of  why it is hard to “know what somebody else wants” as well as “how is it so easy to know people’s minds.” Rebecca, the TED Talk speaker, began with showing a picture of a mother looking down (fondly) at her baby. She said that of course we could assume what the mother was thinking at that moment. Rebecca is a cognitive neuroscientist. She created a project and basically discovered the special place in our brains dedicated especially to think about what other’s might think- called the “Parietal Junction. It’s used just for the purpose of understanding others.

She also points out that it takes an extensive amount of time to develop this skill of understanding others. Understanding beliefs different from their own is something that we learned in psychology that it is no easy task and is not fully developed till adulthood. A standard puzzle false belief task was used. The kid at age 5 understood that other people get false beliefs and understands that there are consequences with those. The kid at age 3 could not see the other’s point of view. So, the three year old comes up with an alternative explanation. At age seven is when another kid finally says that the wind, not the person is to blame. The same is repeated for moral judgement. Rebecca’s study sent kids to get their brain scanned to track ability development. The children’s parietal junction’s This shows again, the continuous development of the human mind, especially in that parietal junction region.

The cognitive and brain system develops slowly. Even in adulthood, some adults vary in degrees of aptitude when thinking of others’ thoughts. Rebecca showed us some evidence that implied that it would be possible to see how adults think and how to actually change those thoughts slightly. I found the adult end results most interesting. Another example was used for the adults. It was basically talking about intent and how much blame if any the culprit should get for giving powder to another that was thought by her to be poison. Using the TMS: Trans-Cranial Magnetic Stimulation tool, a magnetic pulse was passed through the skull into that brain region which temporarily scrambled the neural functions in that space. If there was less activity in that region, people said the culprit deserved a lot of brain. If there was a lot of activity on the right side of the brain, people thought she deserved less brain for the accident.

 

To me, the presenter was very knowledgable as well as trustworthy. She spoke in a tone that was easy to understand and seemed to really say things with an authoritative tone, implying her understand of the research done. The way she stood up and talked as well as giving example after example of what had happened: case studies with kids, bringing up MIT student brains, saying that she took brain scans of both kids and adults,… really convinced me that the material was truthful especially when she seemed to speak with good intentions. Also, she never paused. I find when the presenter smoothly presents her work, I am more inclined to think that he or she knows what he or she is talking about.

A research idea of my own would be to test how long the usual Austin College boy waits to text a girl back. This a petty test, but humor me. Based on the talk, I would use another method to perform some tests asking people of their opinions. I would ask a random selection of boys freshman to senior year to listen to a scenario. It would take a while, but I would say something along the lines of: “A girl named Sophie texts you. You two hit it off and she gives you her number. How long would you wait to text her back.” So, in this case, the boy will need to realize that he should, in the scenario, already show interest in Sophie. Then, I would record all the results of how many hours or days or even if he replies at all. Then, I would find a region of the brain from past literature that showed thoughts about these things and then use that same TMS tool to see what would happen if I were to touch that region in the brain and then I would record my results.

 


Inside the Mind of a Killer

USA - Crime - O.J. Simpson Trial - Armed Robbery and Kidnapping

I chose to watch Jim Fallon’s TED talk about investigating the minds of killers. My own morbid curiosity is what attracted me to this talk. In addition to this, the connection between abnormal behaviors and irregularities in the brain is also something that interests me.

Jim Fallon, a neuroscientist, gave a summary of his research on psychopathic killers. He examined the combination of genes, environment, and brain damage that give rise to psychopathic killers. The main culprit appeared to be damage to the orbital cortex and the anterior part of the temporal lobe. He also identified an X-linked “violence” gene called MAOA. In utero, the MAOA gene causes the brain to be bathed in serotonin. Later in life, this confers a decreased sensitivity of the brain to serotonin. Although having the MAOA gene produces violent tendencies, it alone cannot create a psychopathic killer. Serial killers often have both the MAOA gene and are exposed to violence in early development.

I found the speaker and his findings to be very credible. The jargon that he used to describe his research demonstrated that he had experience in the field of psychology. He discussed factors that shape development (environment, genes, and trauma) that we recently learned about. The mechanism by which the MAOA gene increases somebody’s violent tendencies is also sound. Your brain’s tolerance to a neurotransmitter directly correlates with how often you expose your brain to it. He also mentioned that the study he conducted was double-bind. In this type of experiment, neither the researcher nor the participants knew what group, experimental or control, the participants are in.

In the future, I would like to see if the MAOA gene can be linked to other psychological disorders, since serotonin deficiency is linked to so many other problems. I would use case studies to track the development of individuals with the MAOA gene over the course of their lives. By doing this, I could examine traits that can be attributed to genetics as well as traits that can be attributed one’s environment.