11/30/2016 Syllabus for Introduction to Cognitive Neuroscience

Course Syllabus
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Psych 50: Introduction to Cognitive Neuroscience

Course Description: How does our brain give rise to our abilities to perceive, act and think? Survey of the basic facts, empirical evidence, theories and methods of study in cognitive
neuroscience exploring how cognition is instantiated in neural activity. Representative topics include perceptual and motor processes, decision making, learning and memory, attention, reward
processing, reinforcement learning, sensory inference and cognitive control

Instructor: Justin Gardner, PhD

Oce: Room 300, Jordan Hall (Department of Psychology)

Oce Hours: Thursdays 1-2PM

Email: jlg@stanford.edu

Meeting time:Winter quarter, TTh 10:30AM - 11:50AM

Sections:Required (Fridays at the times listed below)

Location: Building 420 (Jordan Hall), Room 40

Pre-requisite: None

Undergraduate Requirements:Disciplinary Breadth: Natural Sciences, Ways:Scientic Method and Analysis, Ways: Social Inquiry

Teaching Assistants:

Name email Oce hours Oce location Section time Section Room

Anna Khazenzon annakhaz@stanford.edu Mon 12:00 - 1:00 420-412 Fri 11:30-12:20 or 12:30-1:20 420-050

Dan Birman dbirman@stanford.edu Thurs 12:00-1:00 420-326 Fri 9:30-10:20 or 10:30-11:20 420-050

Natalia Vlez nvelez@stanford.edu Wed2:30 - 3:30 420-200 Fri 1:30-2:20 or 2:30-3:20 420-419

Anthony Stigliani astiglia@stanford.edu Mon 10:30 - 11:30 420-432 Fri 11:30-12:20 or 12:30-1:20 160-314

Rosemary Le rkimle@stanford.edu Tue9:00 - 10:00 420-486 Fri 9:30-10:20 or 10:30-11:20 420-419

Oce Hour and email policies:Questions you have are generally questions that others will have, so please share them in sections. We generally prefer that questionsyou have not gotten
answered (even if they are just procedural questions) be asked on thediscussion board on Canvas, rather than sent as individual emails. That wayany of the instructors can reply and fellow
students can benet from the answer. It is not necessary to make an appointment for ofce hours.

Learning goals

We are our brains. The overall goal of this class is to introduce you to the scientic study of how our brains work to make us who we are. This class should prepare you to take more
specialized upper level classes in specic areas of cognitive neuroscience.

After taking this course you should be able to...

...demonstrate familiarity with basic anatomy and physiology of the brain. You should gain familiarity with fundamental terminology and basic knowledge about brain systems and
functions. You should be able to recognize and understand these terms when you encounter them in reading literature (both popular press and primary) or listening to lectures about cognitive
neuroscience. Chapter reading and quizzes will be used to build this knowledge. Examples of basic factual knowledge:

What are neurons and glial cells? What functions do they preform?
What is an action potential? Why is it important for cognitive function? How do ionic currents make it possible?
Where is prefrontal cortex? What might happen to someone if they had damage to it?
What is dopamine? What it is thought to signal in the brain?

...explain how the brain allows us todoeveryday behaviors.Cognitive neuroscience aims to provide explanations for how the brain gives rise to behavior. You should be able to take any
behavior that you engage in like walking, talking or deciding whether to drink a cup of coffee or eat cheese and be able to discuss what might be going on inside the brain to allow you to
preform that behavior. This is not just knowing what parts of the brain are involved in different functions, but being able to apply conceptual models derived from cognitive neuroscience to new
situations. We will practice this through weekly thought questions discussed in section. For example:

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I decideto swing at a pitch while playing whife ball. How would a diffusion model explain myreaction time and choice?
I recognizesomeone I just met, but I can't remember their name.What are the processes in the brain that have and have not worked properly?
I slowly learn to balance on my new RipStik casterboard. How do I sense balance? Would reinforcement learning provide a good theory for how I have learned to do this? If so, what
would my dopamine neurons be doing when I fall off the board?

Topics

We will not cover everything there is to know about cognitive neuroscience in one quarter. Cognitive neuroscience is a rich eld that draws on many disciplines from biology, chemistry,
psychology, computer science, engineering, mathematics, philosophy and beyond. The objective is not to be exhaustive (and exhausting!) in what we cover. Instead the goal is to give you
basic background and conceptual knowledge as outlined above by going in to depth in a few areas to illustrate the concepts and knowledge that structure the scientic study of cognitive
neuroscience.

1. Input Our brains have many sensors and systems that allow us to get information about the outside world. For example, touch, smell, balance, etc. We will use the visual system as a
canonical system for understanding how information about the world gets into the brain. This will allow us to understand what is meant by bottom-up processing from sensory
transduction to cortical streams of processing supporting high-level categorization and sensory inference.
2. Output We will next ip our thinking about the brain from something that passively takes in information and processes it to something that generates movement.
3. Feedback If the brain can act to contract muscles and make movements it can also act on itself to change things like sensory processing. We will discuss in depth a canonical system
that does just that: attention.
4. Broadcast We will next turn from cognitive processes like attention that offer very specic control of information processing to ones that can distribute information widely and modulate
activity across lots of the brain; neuromodulatory systems. We will discuss in-depth the one we know the most about - the dopamine system and its role in reinforcement learning.
5. MemoryMemory will give us a chance to see many of the above concepts put together to explain a cognitive function. It will also show us how neuroscience can inform our
understanding of cognition as we see different systems and process underlie different forms of memory.

Along the way, various topics will come up - emotion, language, decision-making, consciousness, free-will, psychoactive drugs, disease, mental illness, brain metabolism, brain-machine
interfaces, mind-control - we will try tot these into the above frameworks for thinking about the brain. Undoubtedly, there will be a part of cognitive functioning that we do not cover (hey, why
havent we talked about why I sneeze when I see a bright light? - you are wired funny. Yes, thats true. It really happens). You will have opportunities in sections to take the framework that are
discussed in lectures and apply them to understanding other things that were not covered. So, for example, in section we might talk about somatosensory or olfactory systems and how they
are the same or different from the visual system.

Ethics and morality

Some aspects of the material covered in a cognitive neuroscience course may bring up ethical and moral considerations for you that you feel strongly about. For instance, it might challenge
your religious beliefs. It might challenge notions of when someone should be culpable for behavior that is abhorrent but for which they might not have control. They may challenge your notions
of self, of memory, of personality. All these are extremely important issues since they bear on how we act as a society, how we educate, how we deal with crime and punishment, how we think
about who we are and how we act with others.Much foundational work in cognitive science has been done using animal experiments which raise important questions of how we weight
humane treatment of animals against the quest for knowledge and betterment of human society and health.

We encourage you all to think about these issues openly and frankly as they should be in an academic environment like Stanford. Having said that, we hope that you will come in with as open
a mind as possible and not pre-judge what you are learning about. We will have opportunities in sections at the beginning and end of the quarter to discuss issues related to ethical and moral
considerations that come out of the study of cognitive neuroscience.

Textbook

Chapter readings will be from the following textbook, but will be supplemented by occasional readings posted on Canvas. The textbook is available in the Stanford bookstore and is held on
reserve at the Falconer Biology Library.

Principles of Cognitive Neuroscience, 2nd Edition (2013) Dale Purves, Roberto Cabeza, Scott A. Huettel, Kevin S. LaBar, Michael L. Platt and Marty G. Woldorff. Sinauer Associates, Inc.

Note that we are using the 2nd edition of the textbook.The rst edition of the textbook has similar material, but is organized differently so is not recommended. If you
use the 1st edition youwill be responsible for making the correct mapping to the assigned readings in the 2nd edition. Also note that quizzes will be based on material
of the 2nd edition and we will not be able tomake any special accommodations regarding use of older editions of the textbook.

Schedule

Date Assignment Topic Reading

Overview
Tu 1/5 First class, no quiz Introduction Chapter 1
Input
Th 1/7 Quiz due by 9AM Sensory processing Chapter 3
Section: Fri 1/8 Thought question due by 8AM Ethics TBD
Tu 1/12 Quiz due by 9AM Sensory processing Chapter 4
Th 1/14 Sensory decision making: evidence accumulation

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Section: Fri 1/15 Thought question due by 8AM Evidence accumulation lab
Output
Tu 1/19 Quiz due by 9AM Motor systems Chapter 5
Th 1/21 Quiz due by 9AM Action potential Appendix: Neural Signaling (pdf)
Section: Fri 1/22 Thought question due by 8AM Action potential
Tu 1/26 Quiz due by 9AM Energy consumption in the brain Chapter 2
Feedback
Th 1/28 Quiz due by 9AM Attention Chapter 6
Section: Fri 1/29 Thought question due by 8AM Methods jigsaw
Tu 2/2 Quiz due by 9AM Attention Chapter 7
Th 2/4 Quiz due by 9AM ExecutiveControl Chapter 13
Section: Fri 2/5 Thought question due by 8AM Attention
Tu 2/9 Midterm (In class, usual time, usual place)
Th 2/11 Quiz due by 9AM Evolution / development Chapter 15
Section: Fri 2/12 Thought question due by 8AM Sheep's brain dissection
Broadcast
Tu 2/16 Quiz due by 9AM Value based decision making Chapter 14
Th 2/18 Reinforcement learning
Section: Fri 2/19 Thought question due by 8AM Reinforcement learning lab
Tu 2/23 Quiz due by 9AM Emotion Chapter 10
Memory
Th 2/25 Quiz due by 9AM Memory:Different systems Chapter 8
Section: Fri 2/26 Thought question due by 8AM Memory
Tu3/1 Quiz due by 9AM Memory: Pattern completion and separation Chapter 9 (Select Readings)
Th3/3 Quiz due by 9AM Memory: LTP and synapses Appendix: Neural Signaling Pt 2 (in les)
Section: Fri3/4 Thought question due by 8AM LTP and synapses
Tu3/8 Spatial cognition
Th3/10 Quiz due by 9AM Social cognition Chapt 11
Section: Fri3/11 Thought question due by 8AM Potential societal implications of cognitive neuroscience
Th3/17, 12:15P Final (12:15 - 3:15pm, Cubberley Auditorium)

Assignments and exams

Quizzes: Education research shows that quizzing is an effective way to improve learning, so we will provide quizzes that are based on the material covered in each chapter of the textbook.
Quizzes are to be completed on Canvas by 9AM the day of class for which reading is assigned. They should be done closed-book (but you may use any notes you take) at home. After taking
the quiz once, you may go back,re-read thebook and take the quiz a second time, open book.

Thought questions: Each week we will also provide a thought question to aid in the development of conceptual thinking. These though questions are to be completed on Canvas by 8AM the
day of section. Your section grade will be based in part on your answer to the thought question as well as participation in section. They may be done open-book. Youshould answer all points
in the grading rubric as completely and as concisely as possible.

Midterm and Final: Midterms and nals will be composed of quiz and thought question similar to ones provided each week. Exams are to be taken without any outside material (no books,
notes or internet).

Your nal grade will be based on the following:

15% Quizzes (4 lowest grades will be dropped)

15% Sections (Includes participation and weekly answers to thought questions. 2 lowest grades can be dropped)

30% Midterm

40% Final

Policy on missed classes and work

Attendance at all lectures and sections is expected. If you are sick, have a commitment like an athletic tournament or assignment from another class which makes you unable to complete a
quiz or thought question, then you may dropat most 4 quizzes and 2 thought questions without affecting your grade as noted above. You donot need to informthe instructor or your TA.
Nofurther accommodations for missed assignments canbe provided on an individual basiswithout an ofcial Accommodation Letter (see below).

Use of laptops and phones in class

We ask that you refrain from using laptops, tablets and phones in class as their use can be very disruptive to others. While note taking on a computer is permitted, we recommend taking notes
with pen and paper (you can take pictures of them and digitize later if you wish) because research has shown that the act of writing helps retention of concepts.

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Students with Documented Disabilities

Students who may need an academic accommodation based on the impact of a disability must initiate the request with the Ofce of Accessible Education (OAE). Professional staff will
evaluate the request with required documentation, recommend reasonable accommodations, and prepare an Accommodation Letter for faculty dated in the current quarter in which the
request is being made. Students should contact the OAE as soon as possible since timely notice is needed to coordinate accommodations. The OAE is located at 563 Salvatierra Walk
(phone: 723-1066, URL:http://oae.stanford.edu (https://oae.stanford.edu/) ). Please send your TA any accommodation at least 2 weeks in advance of an exam so that proper arrangements
can be made.

Honor code

We will abide by the Stanford University Honor code (https://communitystandards.stanford.edu) . Please familiarize yourself with it.

Assignments Summary:
Date Details

Thu Jan 7, 2016 Quiz 1.1: Chapters 1 and 3 due by 9am

Fri Jan 8, 2016 Section 1: Thought Question due by 8am

Tue Jan 12, 2016 Quiz 1.2: Chapter 4 due by 9am

Fri Jan 15, 2016 Section 2: Thought Question due by 8am

Tue Jan 19, 2016 Quiz 2.1: Chapter 5 due by 9am

Thu Jan 21, 2016 Quiz 2.2: Action Potential (PDF in Files) due by 9am

Fri Jan 22, 2016 Section 3: Thought Question due by 8am

Tue Jan 26, 2016 Quiz 3.1: Chapter 2 due by 9am

Thu Jan 28, 2016 Quiz 3.2: Chapter 6 due by 9am

Fri Jan 29, 2016 Section 4: Thought Question due by 8am

Tue Feb 2, 2016 Quiz 4.1: Chapter 7 due by 9am

Thu Feb 4, 2016 Quiz 4.2: Chapter 13 due by 9am

Fri Feb 5, 2016 Section 5: Thought Question due by 8am

Tue Feb 9, 2016 Midterm Grades due by 11:59pm

Thu Feb 11, 2016 Quiz 5.1: Chapter 15 due by 9am

Fri Feb 12, 2016 Section 6: Thought Question due by 8am

Tue Feb 16, 2016 Quiz 6.1: Chapter 14 due by 9am

Fri Feb 19, 2016 Section 7: Thought Question due by 8am

Tue Feb 23, 2016 Quiz 7.1: Chapter 10 due by 9am

Thu Feb 25, 2016 Quiz 7.2: Chapter 8 due by 9am

Fri Feb 26, 2016 Section 8: Thought Question due by 8am

Tue Mar 1, 2016 Quiz 9.1: Chapter 9 Boxes (pg. 280, 302, 308) due by 9am

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Thu Mar 3, 2016 Quiz 9.2: Synapse Reading (in Files) due by 9am

Fri Mar 4, 2016 Section 9: Thought Question due by 8am

Quiz 9.2: Synapse Reading (in Files)

due by 11:59pm
(1 student)

Sun Mar 6, 2016 Section 8: Thought Question

due by 11:59pm
(1 student)

Section 9: Thought Question

due by 11:59pm
(1 student)

Thu Mar 10, 2016 Quiz 10: Chapter 11 due by 9am

Fri Mar 11, 2016 Section 10: Thought Question due by 8am

Final Grades

Quiz 5.1: Chapter 15

(1 student)

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