Psychology 323

Introduction to Experimental Neuroscience Methods

Fall 2017

Required Texts: Guide to Research Techniques in Neuroscience. 2nd Edition. Matt Carter & Jennifer Shieh

This text is in the library and can be either signed out or can be downloaded online for free!

This is an advanced undergraduate course in neuroscience methods.  At the end of this course you should be familiar with many of the modern neuroscience techniques & paradigms used, their limitations, optimal applications and how they work at t rudimentary level.  It cannot be emphasized enough that it is critical to read textbook chapters before relevant material is presented in class. It has been my experience that when students miss lectures, they also do poorly on exams. All of my exam questions are derived from the lecture materials and text.   

Tentative Course Outline

Office Hours: I have dedicated office hours posted on my door plus I have a open door policy.  This mean that if my door is open, I have office hours so...come in and ask questions.  You can also make an appointment to see me if you like.  I consider office hours to be an integral part of teaching this course and invite you to do the same.

Grading:  There will be a research proposal (33%), two exams (33% each) a participation/experiment execution/presentations mark (33%).  The proposal is much like a Psychology 204 proposal but you do not have to carry out the experiment. The proposal includes an Introduction (justifying the reasons for doing the experiment based on literature) as well as the detailed methods and references section (instructions for manuscript preparation can be found under the instructions to the author in the Journal of Neuroscience). One exam will be held in late November and the second during the exam period (I will only count one exam towards your final grade). Exams will consist of short answers only and will be taken from the class and the text.  You do not have to write the second exam if you are happy with your marks on the first. If you write two, I will take the best exam mark if you write both exams. Your participation mark will come from doing a class presentations and presenting a research papers on a weekly basis.  Finally, I grade on a curve...just thought you should know.  

Presentation #1 - Pick one of the areas of neuroscience fields listed below and research it's history....including, determining the fathers of the field, seminal papers, subject matter, conferences, textbooks, and maybe what hot in the field today. The presentation will be restricted to 5 minutes max...(you will be cut off if you go over time) and should be exciting. The presentation can be done from your seat (standing)! This can be done individually or in a group (up to 4). One powerpoint slide is required ...to sent to me in advance. Due date....next class.

Presentation #2 - This presentation will involved presenting (in detail) a presentation on one of the following neuroscience techniques. The presentation will be 30 minutes max and can be done in group up to 4.

- genomics/microarrays

-proteomics

-knockout/knockins

-patch-clamp/intracellular/extracellular recording

-optgenetics

-gene delivery stratergies

-microdialysis

-learning/conditioning

- gene delivery techniques

-MEG/EEG

-fMRI

-Diffusion tensor Imaging

-Transcranial Magnet Stimulation

-Hacking your brain

-Cryoelectron microscopy

-Computational Neuroscience

The major branches of modern neuroscience

The following branches of neuroscience can be broadly categorized in the following disciplines (neuroscientists usually cover several branches at the same time):

• Affective neuroscience - in most cases, research is carried out on laboratory animals and looks at how neurons behave in relation to emotions.
• Behavioral neuroscience - the study of the biological bases of behavior. Looking at how the brain affects behavior.
• Cellular neuroscience - the study of neurons, including their form and physiological properties at cellular level.
• Clinical neuroscience - looks at the disorders of the nervous system, while psychiatry, for example, looks at the disorders of the mind.
• Cognitive neuroscience - the study of higher cognitive functions that exist in humans, and their underlying neural basis. Cognitive neuroscience draws from linguistics, psychology, and cognitive science. Cognitive neuroscientists can take two broad directions: behavioral/experimental or computational/modeling, the aim being to understand the nature of cognition from a neural point of view.
• Computational neuroscience - attempting to understand how brains compute, using computers to simulate and model brain functions, and applying techniques from mathematics, physics, and other computational fields to study brain function.
• Cultural neuroscience - looks at how beliefs, practices, and cultural values are shaped by and shape the brain, minds, and genes over different periods.
• Developmental neuroscience - looks at how the nervous system develops on a cellular basis; what underlying mechanisms exist in neural development.
• Molecular neuroscience - the study of the role of individual molecules in the nervous system.
• Neuroanatomy
• Neuroengineering - using engineering techniques to better understand, replace, repair, or improve neural systems.
• Neurology
• Neuroevolution
• Neuroimaging - a branch of medical imaging that concentrates on the brain. Neuroimaging is used to diagnose disease and assess the health of the brain. It can also be useful in the study of the brain, how it works, and how different activities affect the brain.
• Neuroinformatics - integrates data across all areas of neuroscience, to help understand the brain and treat diseases. Neuroinformatics involves acquiring data, sharing, publishing, and storing information, analysis, modeling, and simulation.
• Neurolinguistics - studying what neural mechanisms in the brain control the acquisition, comprehension, and utterance of language.

• Neurophilosophy

• Neurophysiology - looks at the relationship of the brain and its functions, and the sum of the body's parts and how they interrelate. The study of how the nervous system functions, typically using physiological techniques, such as stimulation with electrodes, light-sensitive channels, or ion- or voltage-sensitive dyes.
• Neuroendocrinology
• Neuropharmacology/Psychopharmacology
• Paleoneurology - the study of ancient brains using fossils.
• Psychoneuroimmunology
• Social neuroscience - this is an interdisciplinary field dedicated to understanding how biological systems implement social processes and behavior. Social neuroscience gathers biological concepts and methods to inform and refine theories of social behavior. It uses social and behavioral concepts and data to refine neural organization and function theories.
• Systems neuroscience - follows the pathways of data flow within the CNS (central nervous system) and tries to define the kinds of processing going on there. It uses that information to explain behavioral functions.

Don't have an area to research?  Pick one of the following schools and investigate the neuroscience program...what good about the program, how to get in, highlight a few researchers etc. You can also tackle the question at the bottom.

UBC

UVic

SFU

U of Toronto

McGill University

McMasters University

Dalhousie University

Memorial University

What do neuroscientist do other than work as a professors?