Summary of Learning Objectives:

Fall 2022 Office Hours - 11:30 - 12:30 T, TH. BioPsy 120. Zoom consultation by appointment Wed 2:30 - 3:30 p.m. email nilsen@lclark.edu.

Day & Date

Topic 

T Aug. 30

Introduction - Memory and Name Games!

Peruse the World Memory Championship Website. Here is a list of a huge number of Memory World Records.

Lab #1 Mnemonic Techniques

Presidents and Name Mnemonics, Coglab 2.0 Exp. Link Word

Lab Write up is found on the class moodle site. It is due (submit on the moodle by Lab class time, Wednesday, Sept. 8th

Animaniacs teach the US presidents with music and mnemonic.

Another spicy way to memorize the presidents with a country vibe with a music video by Jonathon Coulton.

Sporcle is a fun website that has some activities that may help you learn the president's names.

Mnemosyne is a FREE software package that helps you memorize lists of material by optimizing the spacing of rehearsal for Lists of your creation. Use it for the President Lab if you like!

 Beaton(1995).pdf

Read this article before class and be ready to discuss this case study and it's implications for using this strategy for learning foreign vocabulary. What strategies have you used to learn a foreign language or other academic material?

 

W Aug. 31 LAB

No class meeting today. work on Lab #1 Mnemonic Techniques Due on the class moodle on Wednesday, Sept. 7th.

Presidents (or Unforgettable 44) and Name Mnemonics (Using Yo Millard Fillmore book provided by Erik), Coglab 2.0 Exp. Link Word

Short interview introducing the Unforgettable (Fierce) 44 book. Whoopi Goldberg approved!

Morris (2005) Strategies for Learning Proper Names: Expanding Retrieval Practice, Meaning and Imagery.

REACTION PAPER (submit on the moodle before class time today)

This paper presents us with 3 experiments - In layman's terms, describe the name memorization techniques used in these studies. How do they differ in their operational definitions across the experiments. Briefly describe the reasons behind conducting the 2nd and 3rd experiments, why didn't they just stop at 1! Finally, if you were going to tell your mother the best method to help her memorize the names of people on her upcoming National Convention of ????? what would you recommend that she do based on this study?

Beaton et. al. (2005) Facilitation of receptive and productive foreign vocabulary learning using the keyword method: The role of image quality.

Linkword Languagescommercial site derived from research on mnemonics and language learning.

Advance preparation notes (Be ready to work in small group breakout rooms to develop the list [with examples] described below.

Read the Beaton (2005) paper and pay special attention to Appendix 1. what features do you find that distinguish between the "good keyword" versus the "poor keyword" images? Try to come up with a short (5 - 9) list of differences along with recommendations about how to generate effective keyword images. after doing this, check out two languages of the free online demo's at the Linkword Languages website (notice who designed these courses!). Comment on the quality of the keyword images of the demo's using your criteria derived from the research paper (with several illustrative examples). Does Gruneberg practice what he preaches? A brand new updated slick web site for Gruneberg's company can be found at http://www.unforgettablelanguages.com/

T Sep. 6

Moe (2005) Stressing the Efficacy of the Loci Method: Oral Presentation and the Subject-generation of the Loci Pathway with Expository Passages

Kondo (2004) Changes in brain activation associated with use of a memory strategy: a functional MRI study.

Lab Writeup (submit this one on the moodle by 5 p.m. Wednesday Sept. 14th.)

1. For readings - Moe (2005) & Kondo (2004) Focused Question, submit before class.

(1) Ok, so these 2 papers study the mnemonic technique called "The Method of Loci" using very different methodologies. Compare and contrast the research methodology of the papers and what new information they give about the mechanisms underlying the most successful use of this mnemonic device.

(2) Use the Terminology of the Moe Paper to describe the task used and the 2 recall conditions in Kondo (2004). Incorporate the concepts of Oral vs written modality, rehearsal vs. method of loci, experimenter vs subject-generated pathways, expository vs. descriptive vs. narrative passages. Did Kondo use the "optimal" combination of stimuli and task characteristics in their study?

(3)Take the plunge and suggest a thought experiment that combines ideas from both papers to really highlight the differences in brain activation using fMRI recording of people doing Rehearsal vs. Method of Loci Memorization. What results would you expect?

 

W Sep. 7 LAB

We will start off class by showing off our prodigious Memorization Skills of Presidents and the Unforgettable 44!

Alpha and Omega of Memory Research

Maguire (2002) Routes to remembering: the brains behind superior memory

Autistic man is a "Living Camera"

Simon Reinhard setting world record for memorizing card deck (with awesome soundtrack)! Alez Mullen, memory athlete, explains how it is done! (view first 4 minutes)

Einstein's Brain Glial Cells Rock!

Real Rain Man Kim Peak

Brain Man Daniel Tammet learns Icelandic in a week!

Th Sep. 8

Read Chapters 1 - 3 of Hermann Ebbinghaus' landmark Dissertation on Memory.

Hermann Ebbinghaus (1885) Über das Gedechtnis: Untersuchungen zur experimentellen Psychologie. English Translation (Memory: A Contribution to Experimental Psychology)

REACTION PAPER (submit rough draft on moodle by class time today and final version by 5 p.m. Friday Sept 10th)

For chapters 1 - 3, your reaction paper should highlight how he defined memory and it's measurement. Also describe in a few paragraphs what experimental procedures and operational definitions he used to make the study of memory possible from an empirical, scientific standpoint.

T Sep. 13

Read the articles and be ready to discuss them with special attention to the ART theory. Reaction paper to come after you get your Walk On! Stay tuned.

Get Your Walk On! Cognitive Benefits of Walking in Nature and more!

Berman, M. G., Jonides, J., & Kaplan, S. (2008). The cognitive benefits of interacting with nature. Psychological science, 19(12), 1207-1212.

Berman, M. G., Kross, E., Krpan, K. M., Askren, M. K., Burson, A., Deldin, P. J., ... & Jonides, J. (2012). Interacting with nature improves cognition and affect for individuals with depression. Journal of affective disorders, 140(3), 300-305.

Hunter, M. R., Gillespie, B. W., & Chen, S. Y. P. (2019). Urban nature experiences reduce stress in the context of daily life based on salivary biomarkers. Frontiers in psychology, 10, 722.

Silvia, P. J., Fayn, K., Nusbaum, E. C., & Beaty, R. E. Openness to Experience and Awe in Response to Nature and Music: Personality and Profound Aesthetic Experiences.

This is an "Awesome" article that even references an LC Psych. prof! See if you can find out who it is!

 

 

W Sep. 14 LAB

Today we are literally going to take a walk in the park (weather willing) living out the promise of ART theory we discussed in class yesterday! Wear good walking shoes, bring your water bottle and favorite music to walk to if you are so inclined!

I'm just gonna leave this here to help you get your groove on and celebrate September with Earth, Wind & Fire!

I had this single on a vinyl 45 back in 1978 when I was 16!

and here is the video of Earth, Wind & Fire being honored at the 2019 Kennedy Center Show for their contributions to American Culture and Multiple Musical Genres

Post Nature Walk Reflection Paper (Due Tues. Sept. 20th by class time).Assignment 

Th Sep. 15

Group Assignments for Ebbinghaus Presentation

For Chapters 5 - 9, the following groups will prepare a ten - twelve minute presentation for the rest of the class. Have everyone in the group participate in the presentation

(1) What new phenomena is studied in this chapter and what new concepts are defined

(2) choose 1 table of figures and write an explanation of what it reveals

(3) general conclusions and/or "laws" of memory does Ebbinghaus derive from this chapter?

(4) find at least one example of more recent research that has built on Ebbinghaus' contribution in this area.

Chapter 5. Rapidity of Learning Series of Syllables as a Function of Their Length 

Chapter 6. Retention as a Function of the Number of Repetitions

Chapter 7. Retention and Obliviscence as a Function of the Time

Chapter 8. Retention as a Function of Repeated Learning

 A

Chapter 9. Retention as a Function of the Order of Succession of the Members of the Series

A

No Reaction Paper Due, your group presentation will be the basis for evaluation for today.

T Sep. 20

Hunt (1995) The subtlety of distinctiveness: What von Restorff really did

Kishiyama (2004) The von Restorff Effect in Amnesia: The Contribution of the Hippocampal System to Novelty-Related Memory Enhancements

Discussion topics to consider while reading - compare and contrast the methodologies and conclusions. Try to come up with 3 different examples of how the memorial distinctiveness that vonRestorff elucidated has real life practical application.

Amping Up Our Memory - Cognitive Enhancers and Nootropics are onr the bleeding edge of science and pseudoscience.

Here is a shortish overview article on Types of Cognitive Enhancers that are available today.

Savulich, George, et al. "Focusing the neuroscience and societal implications of cognitive enhancers." Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics 101.2 (2017): 170-172.

 

Here is another short article with a bit of overlap and a different perspective.

Augmented memory: a survey of the approaches to remembering more.

Christopher R. Madan* Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada Front. Syst. Neurosci., 03 March 2014 | doi: 10.3389/fnsys.2014.00030

 

Brain Zapping to Boost your smarts!! Science and/or Scam

News Report that Electrical Brain Stimulation may enhance memory! Original Article from Science August 2014!

Reinhart, R. M., & Nguyen, J. A. (2019). Working memory revived in older adults by synchronizing rhythmic brain circuits. Nature neuroscience, 22(5), 820-827.

W Sep. 21

LAB

Lab #2 Serial Memory Lab

Coglab 2.0 Experiments - von Restorff Effect.

Lab write up is found on the class moodle site. It is due (submit on the moodle by class time, Wednesday, Sept. 28th

Th Sep. 22

Facial Emotion - Truth and Deception

Read these 2 articles before class and be prepared to discuss. You will find them on the class google drive. (No reaction paper this time).

Ekman (2003) Darwin, Deception, and Facial Expression

Blow(2006) Perception of Robot Smiles and Dimensions for Human-Robot Interaction Design.

These are links we will look at during class today!

Smile Experiment (do not access before class)

Psychology Today article on the science of smiling (Proceed with caution)

Paul Ekman's F.A.C.E web page including a demo of METT

Ron Gutman's Ted Talk on the Power of Smiles!

Kaspar Robot used to help Autistic kids learn to recognize facial expressions of emotion.

Here is a Robotic Head that is firmly in the Uncanny Valley IMHO!

And a pair of Japanese Robots whose creators say have crossed to the other side of the Uncanny Valley?! You decide!

T Sep. 27

Baddeley 1994 The Magical number seven: Still magic after all these years? I suggest you read this one first.

Read the classic paper by George Miller entitled: The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two: Some Limits on Our Capacity for Processing Information. This paper, written in 1956, helped launch the information processing paradigm in psychology and his 7+/- 2 chunks in STM is certainly the most widely cited "number" in memory research. I am asking you to read the original. This is very dense reading. To help us understand it better I am assigning each of you one of the sections to summarize (in writing) and present orally in class in small group breakout rooms. Be sure to define any terms that need it and to explain any graphs that are in your section. You may need to do a bit of outside research to fully understand the material, try to put it into your own words. You will have 15ish minutes at the beginning of class to ask Erik questions and discuss the material with peers who also wrote on your section before presenting it (individually) in small group breakout rooms. The section assignments are given on the class moodle and below.

Tues., Sept 28th - Miller's Magical Number Writeup due at class time today.

Information measurement (Erik)
 
Absolute judgments of unidimensional stimuli (Group 1)

Absolute judgments of multidimensional stimuli (Group 2)

Subitizing (Group 3)

The span of immediate memory (Group 4)

Recoding (Group 5)

W Sep. 28 LAB

Read CogLabWorkingMemoryLab3.pdf in preparation for a discussion of today's lab.

Ted Talk on Working Memory

Good News Neuroracer Research to Train Working Memory in older folks using Dual Task Video Game

Bad News Your Smartphone Reduces Your Brainpower, Even If It’s Just Sitting There. Magazine Article | Original Research Paper

Lab #3 Working Memory Capacity

Coglab 2.0 Experiments - Memory Span, Operation Span

Lab write up assignment is found on the class moodle site. It is due (submitted on the moodle by class time Wed. Oct. 5th)

Introduction to Mind Mapping Concept and Software to support it. Spend time trying out these tools.

After class today you will know how to create a Mind Map of Characteristics, Principles of Operation and Relationships between "System 1" and System 2" set up in Chapter 1 and fleshed out in chapters 2 - 4. You can do this on paper or using any online tools you choose. Upload your mind map to the Class moodle assignment due Tuesday, Oct. 4th by class time. Also bring a printout of your mind map to discuss with a classmate.

WikiPedia Page entry on Mind Mapping.

here are a few links to online mind mapping tools

T Oct. 4

W Oct. 5 LAB

TH Oct. 6

TBD

Thinking Fast and Slow - Class discussion and individual presentations

Read Chapters 10 - 14. Research presentations assigned below

Thinking Fast and Slow - Class discussion and individual presentations

Read Chapters 15 - 23. Research presentations assigned below

A brief mental palate cleanser from Thinking Fast and Slow!

Exploring the Somatic Marker Hypothesis

Cognitive Neuroscientists use case studies, neural network modeling and laboratory-based gambling tasks to understand the role of emotion and cognition in risky decision-making. In this section we will be exploring this topic with the material below.

Before you read the material below, go to this website and fill out the personality inventory and play the Iowa Gambling Card Game that follows. This is the experimental task that is used to test the Somatic Marker Hypothesis in the research papers we will be reading. Doing this game in advance will help you understand the articles better and you will not be biased by knowing about the task before taking it. Take a screen shot of your results if you can to compare your results with the results in Bechara (1997) for the control group.

Next read the Wikipedia Page for the Somatic Marker Hypothesis!

Finally read through the two articles below. Erik e-mailed them to you and you can find them on the google drive class resources page.

The first article below is the first empirical study presenting laboratory evidence for the Somatic Marker Hypothesis (SMH). The followup article present a critique on how Bechara et al. interpreted their results and an alternative view about the relationship between cogniton and emotion in the Iowa Gambling Task! Be ready to engage in argument and debate over this heated topic, GSR's will raise! Which article do you find most persuasive? We will vote on it in class!

Bechara (1997) Deciding Advantageously Before Knowing the Advantageous Strategy.

Maia (2004) A reexamination of the evidence for the somatic marker hypothesis: What participants really know in the Iowa gambling task

Thinking Fast and Slow - Class discussion and individual presentations

Read Chapters 24 - 28. Research presentations as assigned below

T Oct. 25

Thinking Fast and Slow - Class discussion

Read Chapters 29 - 34. Research presentations as assigned below

Discussion and workshop for Final Project Proposals

Upload a 1 - 2 page document containing the basic idea of your research project, including methodology, hypotheses and citation and brief summaries of at least 2 primary source research articles related to your topic. Post this information to the class moodle page by Wed. Nov. 3rd and followup with a consultation with Erik during lab office hours!

Th Oct. 27

Thinking Fast and Slow Read Part V - Two Selves Chapters 35 - 38. We will be discussing the whole section and its real life implications as a class. Here is a word cloud with relevant concepts.

Moodle Assignment will be to either write a reaction paper or create a mind map comparing and contrasting the research and lived examples of the Experiencing versus Remembering Self that Kahneman presents in this final section of the book.

We will also be reprising the whole Magnus Opus today and assigning small groups to discuss in zoom rooms and present to the class ways that TFS informs our understanding of a few minor topics like

1) COVID Testing, Mitigation Strategies and Vaccination Messaging

2) Global Climate Change

3) Systemic Racism

4) Immigration Policy

5) Health Care Policy

6) Gun Control Policy

T Nov. 1

Psychology of Humor

Please (1) Read the links provided below, (2) watch the videos, (3) take the Humor Styles Questionnaire, and (4) contribute to the class moodle forum by the end of the day on Saturday.  

I want each of us to come up with one question or open ended observation from the course material assigned for today and post it on this forum as a new item by the end of the day on Saturday, Nov. 6th.

By class time on Tuesday, Nov. 9th, each person should respond to at least 3 of the initial postings with your own perspective or answer to the question posed.

(*Make sure that your postings show that you read and engaged with the material and can be answered in a open ended way rather than just a simple YES or NO!*). I will seed the forum with an entry or 2 to give you examples. You can respond to 1 of mine if you choose as part of the 3 assigned responses.

What's so funny, and why, and where?

The Science of Humor Video. Accompanying Overview Paper. What Makes Things Humorous.

Humor comprehension in older adults. Mak(2007).pdf

Humor Modulates the Mesolimbic Reward Centers. Mobbs(2003).pdf

Here is the Humor Styles Questionnaire to take online and a short introduction to the measure and the theory behind it.

Martin, R. A., Puhlik-Doris, P., Larsen, G., Gray, J., & Weir, K. (2003). Individual differences in uses of humor and their relation to psychological well-being: Development of the Humor Styles Questionnaire.Journal of Research in Personality, 37, 48-75.

The Laugh Lab of Dr. Richard Wiseman. Cross Cultural Appreciation of Humor. The original Laugh Lab Final Report from 2002. and a list of 1001 clean jokes from the study!

Gotta Love the Far Side Humor! An animated short.

Laughter Online University Website.

False Memories - In the Lab and Beyond!!

Watson (2004). Attempting to avoid false memories in the Deese/Roediger–McDermott paradigm: Assessing the combined influence of practice and warnings in young and old adults.

Wade (2002). A picture is worth a thousand lies: Using false photographs to create false childhood memories.

Greenberg (2004). President Bush’s False ‘Flashbulb’ Memory of 9/11/01.

False beliefs about fattening foods can have healthy consequences. Alda/Loftus video clip (33:08 - 40:12)

False Memory Lab

We will go over and set up the lab in class. You will run participants using Coglab sometime before Tuesday, Nov. 15th and turn in the lab report on that day.

Slips of the tongue and action: A Theory of Attention Based on Errors!

We will be looking at the cognitive psychology of slips of the tongue (aka Spoonerism) and slips of action.  We all succumb to these odd mistakes that catch us by surprise.  Have you ever ended up in your driveway when you intended to drive somewhere else?  Have you ever been in the shower and forgotten if you shampooed yet?  You know that I have said things that I did not quite intend a number of times in class this term and if you admit it, you do this occasionally as well!  I have two articles with amusing collections of these types of errors and a model of attention that tries to explain them! 

Norman, D. A. (1981). Categorization of action slips. Psychological review, 88(1), 1. (Find it on the Class Google Drive)

Hauptman, Don (2014) ""Pay No Attention To The Can Behind The Merton" A Gallimaufry of New Spoonerisms," Word Ways: Vol. 47 : Iss. 3 , Article 2. 
Available at: https://digitalcommons.butler.edu/wordways/vol47/iss3/2

SPSS and APA Figure Creation Workshop using False Memory dat collected last week.

Music and the Mind!!

In their everyday communication, parents do not only speak but also sing with their infants. However, it remains unclear whether infants’ can discriminate speech from song or prefer one over the other. The present study examined the ability of 6- to 10-month-old infants (N = 66) from English-speaking households in London, Ontario, Canada to discriminate between auditory stimuli of native Russian-speaking and native English-speaking mothers speaking or singing to their infants. Infants listened significantly longer to the sung stimuli compared to the spoken stimuli. This is the first study to demonstrate that, even in the absence of other multimodal cues, infant listeners are able to discriminate between sung and spoken stimuli, and furthermore, prefer to listen to sung stimuli over spoken stimuli.

Music therapy intervention using singing training may be useful for dementia patients by improving the neural efficacy of cognitive processing. 

The purpose of this study was to review the current evidence related to playing a musical instrument being a potentially protective mechanism against cognitive decline among older adults. 11 studies all showed that music playing was correlated with positive outcomes on cognitive ability; more high-quality research is needed in this area to understand mechanisms behind potential cognitive protection of music.

Meditation and the Brain

Neural correlates of attentional expertise in long-term meditation practitioners. Brefczynski(2007).pdf

Short-term meditation training improves attention and self-regulation Tang(2007).pdf

Loving-Kindness Meditation Increases Social Connectedness Hutcherson(2008).pdf

Buddha’s Brain: Neuroplasticity and Meditation Davidson(2007).pdf

Way out there. The god helmet! and brain damage induced religious experience

Happy Turkey (or Tofu) travel day!

Final Project - Draft of Introduction, Lit Review and Methodology due at 5 p.m. Today

Happy Turkey (or Tofu) day!

Introduction to Sensory-Sensory, Sensory-Motor Interactions, Illusions and Delusions!

Good six minute Overview Video of Synesthesia with Witthorft Shoutout!

Hearing Colors, Tasting Shapes. RamaHubbardSciAm_2003.pdf. Vilayanur S. Ramachandran and Edward M. Hubbard. Scientific American. p 52 - 59. May, 2003.

SYNESTHETIC COLORS DETERMINED BY HAVING COLORED REFRIGERATOR MAGNETS IN CHILDHOOD Witthorft(2006).pdf

Synesthesia Overview and Case Studies

Synesthesia Immersion Video - Colorful Acoustic Letters!

Musical Color 360 Immersive video

Rama - Lama- chandran NOVA video on Secrets of the Mind on Phantom Limb Syndrome will be shown in class. Be prepared to be intrigued!

Phantom Limb Therapy

A controlled pilot study of the utility of mirror visual feedback in the treatment of complex regional pain syndrome (type 1). McCabe(2003).pdf

Investigating the efficacy of a virtual mirror box in treating phantom limb pain in a sample of chronic sufferers. Murray(2006).pdf

Phantom Fun, Somatosensory Strangeness, and Kinesthetic Quirks.

Touching a Rubber Hand: Feeling of Body Ownership Is Associated with Activity in Multisensory Brain Areas. Ehrsson(2005).pdf

Rubber Hand Video (don't watch until class time)

First Person Experience of Body Transfer in Virtual Reality

Phantom Sensory Remapping

VR for Phantom Pain Relief

Human Cognition Through the Lens of Social Engineering Cyberattacks

Bhusal, C. S. (2021). Systematic Review on Social Engineering: Hacking by Manipulating Humans. Journal of Information Security, 12, 104-114.

Montañez, R., Golob, E., & Xu, S. (2020). Human cognition through the lens of social engineering cyberattacks. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 1755.

1st draft of Results and Discussion Section due on class moodle page Due at class time today.

We will be conducting a prof. directed peer review during class today

Workshop to Create Data sets for Final Project

Monday Dec. 12th

8:30 - 11:30

Erik will be available in the classroom for consultation on your final paper. Signup will be provided.

Final Papers are due in electronic form, uploaded to the moodle by 11:59:59 p.m. on the evening of Wednesday, Dec 14th.