Lecture plan

YouTube Video playlist

Week 3: Introduction and Brief History

  • October 16th, 2023
  • An introduction to the history of neuroscience as a work in progress, from prehistory to antiquity to phrenology and the 19th century to present times.

download Powerpoint slides

Keywords: neuroscience history, ethical considerations in animal and human studies

Required reading:

Optional reading:

  • Pinel, J. P., & Barnes, S. (2021). Biopsychology. → Chapter 1. Biopsychology as a Neuroscience.

  • Feinberg, T. E., & Farah, M. J. (2005). A Historical Perspective on Cognitive Neuroscience. In M. J. Farah & T. E. Feinberg (Eds.), Patient-based approaches to cognitive neuroscience (pp. 3–20). The MIT Press.

Week 4: Nervous system structure and organization

  • October 23rd, 2023

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Keywords: cell structure, (neuro)histology, neurons, glial cells

Required reading:

  • Bear, M., Connors, B., & Paradiso, M. A. (2016). Neuroscience: Exploring the Brain. → Chapter 2. Neurons & Glia.

Optional reading:

Week 5: Neural signalling 1

  • October 30th, 2023

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Keywords: excitability, resting potential, action potential

Required reading:

  • Pinel, J. P., & Barnes, S. (2021). Biopsychology. Pearson.. → Chapter 4. Neural Conduction and Synaptic Transmission.

Optional reading:

Week 6: Neural signalling 2

  • November 6th, 2023

download Powerpoint slides

Keywords: conductivity, chemical synapse, neurotransmitters, electricalsynapse

Required reading:

  • Pinel, J. P., & Barnes, S. (2021). Biopsychology. Pearson.. → Chapter 4. Neural Conduction and Synaptic Transmission.

Optional reading:

  • Bear, M., Connors, B., & Paradiso, M. A. (2016). Neuroscience: Exploring the Brain. → Chapter 5. Synaptic transmission.

Week 7: Nervous system development

  • November 13th, 2023

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Keywords: Neurogenesis, neuronal migration, synaptogenesis, myelination, neuroplasticity, functional reorganization

Required reading:

  • Bear, M., Connors, B., & Paradiso, M. A. (2016). Neuroscience: Exploring the Brain. → Chapter 7. The structure of the Nervous system, only sections between.

  • Bangalore, L. (2007). Brain development. Infobase Publishing. → Chapter 3. Neurogenesis: Birth, Migration, and Differentiation of Neurons.

Optional reading

Week 8: Nervous system anatomy

  • November 20th, 2023

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Keywords: anatomical planes, brain hemispheres, brain lobes, cortical layers,Brodmann map, hippocampus, amygdala, basal ganglia, cerebellum,brainstem, spine, cranial nerves, meninges, vascular system, ventricular system

Required reading:

  • Pinel, J. P., & Barnes, S. (2021). Biopsychology. Pearson.Chapter 3. Anatomy of the Nervous system (only Anatomy of the Central Nervous system section).

  • Bear, M., Connors, B., & Paradiso, M. A. (2016). Neuroscience: Exploring the Brain. → Chapter 7 Appendix. An Illustrated Guide to Human Neuroanatomy.

Optional reading:

Week 9: Visual Neuroscience

  • November 27th, 2023

download Powerpoint slides

Keywords: eye anatomy, phototransduction, light adaptation, central visual pathways, visual cortex

Required reading:

  • Pinel, J. P., & Barnes, S. (2021). Biopsychology. Pearson.Chapter 6. The visual system.

Optional reading

Week 10: Auditory Neuroscience

  • December 4th, 2023

download Powerpoint slides

Keywords: sound features, ear anatomy, auditory pathway, auditory cortex

Required reading:

  • Bear, M., Connors, B., & Paradiso, M. A. (2016). Neuroscience: Exploring the Brain. → Chapter 11. The Auditory and Vestibular Systems.

Optional reading:

  • Sutter, M.L. & Shamma, S.A. (2011). The Relationship of Auditory Cortical Activity to Perception and Behavior. In Winer, J.A., Schreiner, C.E. (Eds.), The auditory cortex (pp. 617–641). Springer.

Week 11: Movement, motor control and motor learning

  • December 11th, 2023

download Powerpoint slides

Keywords: motor neuron, basal ganglia, cerebellum, motor cortex, motor command, forward models, efference copies, sensory-motor interactions, motor learning, cerebellar degeneration

Required reading:

  • Bear, M., Connors, B., & Paradiso, M. A. (2016). Neuroscience: Exploring the Brain. → Chapter 14. Brain Control of Movement.

Optional reading

Week 13: Multisensory Integration

Required reading: slides only

Optional reading:

Week 14: Sleep. Recap and feedback

Required reading:

  • Purves, D., …, & White, L. (2018). Neuroscience. → Chapter 28. Cortical States.

Optional reading:

  • Massimini, M. (2014). Toward an Objective Index of Consciousness. In Gazzaniga, M.S. & Mangun, G.R. (Eds.), The Cognitive Neurosciences (pp. 801–809). The MIT Press.

Week 15: An introduction to Cognitive Neuroscience and methods

Keywords: mind-body interaction, cognitive sciences, invasive vs. non-invasive, recording vs. stimulation, temporal resolution, spatial resolution

Required reading:

  • Purves, D., …, & Woldorff, M.G. (2012).Principles of Cognitive Neuroscience. → Chapter 2. The Methods of Cognitive Neuroscience.
  • Ward, J. (2020). The student’s guide to Cognitive Neuroscience. → Chapter 1. Introducing cognitive neuroscience. Cortical States.

Optional reading:

  • Purves, D., …, & Woldorff, M.G. (2012).Principles of Cognitive Neuroscience. → Chapter 1. Cognitive Neuroscience: Definitions, Themes, and Approaches.

Week 16: Human lesion studies and brain stimulation methods

Keywords: brain lesions, transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), transcranial electrical stimulation (tES), Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS)

Required reading:

  • Ward, J. (2020). The student’s guide to Cognitive Neuroscience. → Chapter 5. The lesioned brain and stimulated brain (pp. 87–101).

Optional reading:

  • Adolphs, R. (2016). Human Lesion Studies in the 21st Century. Neuron, 90(6), 1151–1153.
  • Joutsa, J., Lipsman, N., Horn, A., Cosgrove, G. R., & Fox, M. D. (2023). The return of the lesion for localization and therapy. Brain, 146(8), 3146–3155.
  • Kolb, B. (2022). Brenda Milner: Pioneer of the Study of the Human Frontal Lobes. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 15.

Week 17: Electrophysiology

Keywords: electroencephalography (EEG), brain-computer interface (BCI), electrooculogram (EOG), magnetoencephalograpchy (MEG), event-related potential (ERP)

Required reading:

  • Ward, J. (2020). The student’s guide to Cognitive Neuroscience. → Chapter 3. The electrophysiological brain.

Optional reading:

  • McFarland, D. J., & Wolpaw, J. R. (2017). EEG-based brain–computer interfaces. Current Opinion in Biomedical Engineering, 4, 194–200.

Week 18: Eye-tracking and pupillometry

Keywords: fovea, saccade, fixation, smooth pursuit, pupil dilation, calibration

Required reading:

  • Graham, L., … & Stuart, S. (2022). The Eyes as a Window to the Brain and Mind. In Stuart, S. (Editor), Eye Tracking Background, Methods, and Applications (pp. 1–14). Humana Press.

Optional reading:

  • Carter, B. T., & Luke, S. G. (2020). Best practices in eye tracking research. International Journal of Psychophysiology, 155, 49–62.
  • Graham, L., … & Stuart, S. (2022). A Brief History of Eye Movement Research. In Stuart, S. (Editor), Eye Tracking Background, Methods, and Applications (pp. 15–29). Humana Press.

Week 19: Peripheral psychophysiological measures

Keywords: skin conductance response, heart rate variability, electromyograpy, vagal tone

Required reading:

  • Levinson, A., & Hajcak, G. (2020). Peripheral Psychophysiology. The Cambridge Handbook of Research Methods in Clinical Psychology, 118–135.

Optional reading:

  • Tassinary, L. G., Hess, U., & Carcoba, L. M. (2012). Peripheral physiological measures of psychological constructs. In H. Cooper, P. M. Camic, D. L. Long, A. T. Panter, D. Rindskopf, & K. J. Sher (Eds.), APA handbook of research methods in psychology, Vol. 1. Foundations, planning, measures, and psychometrics (pp. 461–488). American Psychological Association.

Week 20: Memory

Keywords: memory systems, short-term memory, episodic memory, long-term memory, consolidation, amnesia, remembering, forgetting

Required reading:

  • Ward, J. (2020). The student’s guide to Cognitive Neuroscience. → Chapter 11. The remembering brain.

Optional reading:

  • Clayton, N. S., & Wilkins, C. (2018). Seven myths of memory. Behavioural Processes, 152, 3–9.

Week 21: Language processing

Keywords: aphasia, semantic memory, language comprehension, language production, transfer abilities

Required reading:

  • Ward, J. (2020). The student’s guide to Cognitive Neuroscience. → Chapter 12. The speaking brain.

Optional reading:

  • Fedorenko, E., Hsieh, P.-J., Nieto-Castañón, A., Whitfield-Gabrieli, S., & Kanwisher, N. (2010). New Method for fMRI Investigations of Language: Defining ROIs Functionally in Individual Subjects. Journal of Neurophysiology, 104(2), 1177–1194.
  • Fedorenko, E., & Thompson-Schill, S. L. (2014). Reworking the language network. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 18(3), 120–126.

Week 22: Cognitive mechanisms of reading and writing

Keywords: orthography, lexical decision, phonological awareness, subitizing, dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia

Required reading:

  • Ward, J. (2020). The student’s guide to Cognitive Neuroscience. → Chapter 13. The literate brain.

Optional reading:

  • Chakravarthi, R., Nordqvist, A., Poncet, M., & Adamian, N. (2023). Fundamental units of numerosity estimation. Cognition, 239, 105565.
  • Chung, P. J., Patel, D. R., & Nizami, I. (2020). Disorder of written expression and dysgraphia: definition, diagnosis, and management. Translational Pediatrics, 9(S1),
  • Hulme, C., & Snowling, M. J. (2016). Reading disorders and dyslexia. Current Opinion in Pediatrics, 28(6), 731–735.
  • Rapin, I. (2016). Dyscalculia and the Calculating Brain. Pediatric Neurology, 61, 11–20.

Week 23: Emotions

Keywords: theory of mind, mentalizing, mirroring, emotion perception and regulation, face perception

Required reading:

  • Bear, M., Connors, B., & Paradiso, M. A. (2016). Neuroscience: Exploring the Brain. → Chapter 18. Brain Mechanisms of Emotion.
  • Ward, J. (2020). The student’s guide to Cognitive Neuroscience. → Chapter 16. The social and emotional brain.

Optional reading:

  • Goerlich, K. S. (2018). The Multifaceted Nature of Alexithymia – A Neuroscientific Perspective. Frontiers in Psychology, 9.
  • Hogeveen, J., & Grafman, J. (2021). Alexithymia. Disorders of Emotion in Neurologic Disease, 47–62.

Week 24: Social cognition

Keywords: the social brain, modularity, domain specificity, autism, psychopathy

Required reading:

  • Ward, J. (2017). The Student’s Guide to Social Neuroscience. → Chapter 1. Introduction to social neuroscience.

Optional reading:

  • Kilford, E.J. & Blakemore, S.-J. (2020). Social cognition and social brain development in adolescence. In Poeppel, D., Mangun, G.R. & Gazzaniga, M.S. (Eds.), The Cognitive Neurosciences (pp. 37–46). The MIT Press.
  • Ward, J. (2017). The Student’s Guide to Social Neuroscience. → Chapter 2. The methods of social neuroscience.
  • Wheatley, T. & Boncz, A. (2020). Interpersonal Neuroscience. In Poeppel, D., Mangun, G.R. & Gazzaniga, M.S. (Eds.), The Cognitive Neurosciences (pp. 987–995). The MIT Press.

Week 25: Attention and spatial orientation

Keywords: salience, covert and over orienting, exogenous and endogenous orienting, visual search, hemispatial neglect

Required reading:

  • Ward, J. (2020). The student’s guide to Cognitive Neuroscience. → Chapter 9. The attending brain

Optional reading:

  • Corbetta, M., & Shulman, G. L. (2002). Control of goal-directed and stimulus-driven attention in the brain. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 3(3), 201–215.

Week 26: Structural and functional neuroimaging

Keywords: Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Blood Oxygen Level-Dependent (BOLD) signal, preprocessing, signal-to-noise-ratio (SNR), artifact, timeseries, contrast

Required reading:

  • Westbrook, C. & Talbot, J. (2018). MRI in Practice → Chapter 1. Basic principles.

Optional reading:

  • Westbrook, C. & Talbot, J. (2018). MRI in Practice → Chapter 2. Image weighting and contrast.
  • Westbrook, C. & Talbot, J. (2018). MRI in Practice → Chapter 8. Artifacts.

Week 27: Executive functions

Keywords: working memory, task-setting, impulse control, task-switching

Required reading:

  • Ward, J. (2020). The student’s guide to Cognitive Neuroscience. → Chapter 15. The executive brain.

Optional reading:

  • Blair C. (2017). Educating executive function. Wiley interdisciplinary reviews. Cognitive science, 8(1-2)

Week 28: Computational neuroscience and computational psychiatry

Keywords: precision psychiatry, machine learning, prediction, big data

Required reading:

  • Slides only

Optional reading:

  • Fernandes, B. S., Williams, L. M., Steiner, J., Leboyer, M., Carvalho, A. F., & Berk, M. (2017). The new field of ‘precision psychiatry.’ BMC Medicine, 15(1).
  • Huys, Q. J. M., Maia, T. V., & Frank, M. J. (2016). Computational psychiatry as a bridge from neuroscience to clinical applications. Nature Neuroscience, 19(3), 404–413.
  • Kriegeskorte, N., & Douglas, P. K. (2018). Cognitive computational neuroscience. Nature Neuroscience, 21(9), 1148–1160.