University of Toronto
PSY393S
Spring 2006
Instructor:
Cognitive Neurology
T9-12
Room N201
Vedran Lovic, M.A.
Tel. 905-828-5297
vedran@psych.utoronto.ca
Office: 1015
Office Hours: T12-1
Assistant:
Emis Mohebat, M.A.
emis@psych.utoronto.ca
Office: 1015
Office Hours: by appointment
Vedran:
I am a naturalized Canadian, born in Bosnia-Herzegovina. I finished my Bachelor of
Science and Master of Arts degrees at the University of Toronto. Currently I am a Ph.D.
student working in Dr. Alison Fleming’s behavioural neuroscience laboratory. My
research is concerned with the role of early life environment in the development of
behavioural flexibility and impulsivity and how alterations of these behaviours and
cognitive abilities are mediated by the dopamine and serotonin systems.
Synopsis:
In this course we will examine the relationships between brain and behaviour. The
course will focus mainly on cortical and cognitive abilities. Initial lectures will be a general
introduction to neuroanatomy and methods used by neuropsychologists. This will be
followed by lectures focusing on specific brain functions, such as motor functions, object
recognition, memory and so on. Throughout the course we will learn about the
relationships between brain and behaviour from brain injury cases (e.g., head injuries,
strokes, tumors etc.) as well as from research done on intact individuals.
Objectives:
At the end of the course you will have an understanding of how the brain is organized and
how it accomplishes some behaviours and cognitive functions. As mentioned above, the
course will cover some popular topics such as amnesia and “frontal” syndromes and,
therefore, the course might be of interest to a wide spectrum of students. However,
students interested in pursuing neuropsychology or neurology studies will find the course
particularly useful. In addition to acquiring knowledge in cognitive neuroscience I hope
that you will learn something about how scientific research is conducted and presented.
Course Format: Classes will consist of lectures and videos demonstrating impairments in cognitive
abilities outlined in lectures. Lectures will be based on textbook and extra material; hence
students are strongly encouraged to attend lectures. Lectures will be done using powerpoint slide presentation which will be available on the course web site after each lecture.
Textbook:
Banich, M.T. (2004). Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuropsychology, 2nd edition. New
York: Houghton Mifflin Company. (Approximate price: $ 107.00)
Readings:
You are encouraged to read the assigned readings before each lecture as this will
facilitate and extend your knowledge acquired in class. The Banich textbook is detailed
and will require you to remember and integrate information. You should pay close, but
not exclusive, attention to the material that overlaps with lecture material.
University of Toronto
PSY393S
Spring 2006
Cognitive Neurology
T9-12
Room N201
Web Page:
www.erin.utoronto.ca/~w3psy295/psy393.htm
Grading:
Term Test
30%
Short Assignment
20%
Poster or Oral Presentation 20%
Final Exam
30%
Test/Exam:
Term test/exam will be based on the material from the textbook, lectures and videos. The
tests will consist of multiple-choice questions (~30%; based on Banich), matching
questions (based on Banich and lectures) shorter and longer questions as well as a
diagram requiring you to label brain parts (based on lectures, videos and textbook). The
shorter and longer questions will require students to recite information but also integrate
knowledge analytically. Please see question examples on the web.
Prerequisites: PSY201, PSY270/PSY290. Students from various backgrounds (cognitive psychology or
physiological psychology) will have an equal opportunity to do well in the course. It is
your responsibility to ensure that you have met all prerequisites listed in the UTM
Calendar for this course. If you lack any prerequisites for this course, the Department may
cancel your registration at anytime. Further information about academic regulations,
course withdrawal dates and credits can be found in the University of Toronto Calendar. If
you run into trouble and need information about studying, preparing for exams, note
taking or time management, free workshops and advice are available from the Academic
Skills Centre.
Make-ups:
For this particular course, there will be NO make-up tests. If you miss one of the term
tests without a legitimate excuse, you will receive a mark of zero for that term test. If you
do have a legitimate excuse (e.g., doctor’s note; please see Calendar, Section 6), your
final exam will be worth 60%. If you submit medical documentation make sure it contains
the statement "This student was unable to write the test (or submit term work by the last
day of classes, if applicable) on (date) for medical reasons". You are advised to see your
physician within one day of the missed test. Many physicians will not provide
documentation retroactively.
Short Assignment: The purpose of this short paper is to further advance your knowledge of one of the
topics covered in class (e.g., attention, memory, language etc.). You will achieve this by
assessing a case study in conjunction with a general reading, related to the case study.
You will summarize the case study’s findings, synthesize what these finding tell us about
how the brain works, and explain how the findings fit into the broader context of the
general reading (and the Banich textbook). In addition, we would like to hear your
opinions on these findings (questions, comments, criticisms etc.). Your paper will be
graded on content (~70%) and style (~30 %). A selection of general readings and case
studies is below. You may also choose to find another case study and base your paper
on it. The case study should be related to one of the topics covered in class. If you
chose to use a case study not from the list below, please have your case study approved
by me by March 7th (do not email your TA regarding this). General reading can not be
substituted by alternatives. The paper should be written in APA style and 1500 to 2000
words in length (not including the cover page, abstract or the reference section). The
paper is due March 28th, at the beginning of the class. Papers submitted after 9:15 will be
considered late. Late penalty is 5% per day. The last day to hand in papers is April 11th.
E-mail copies of your paper will not be accepted.
University of Toronto
PSY393S
Spring 2006
Cognitive Neurology
T9-12
Room N201
Motor Control
General: Blakemore, S-J., Wolpert, D. & Frith, C.D. (2002). Abnormalities in the awareness of action. Trends in
Cognitive Sciences, 6: 237-242.
Case Study: Della Sala, S., Marchetti, C. & Spinnler, H. (1991). Right-sided anarchic (alien) hand: A longitudinal
study. Neuropsychologia, 29:1113-1127.
Vision and Agnosias
General: Ungerleider, L. G. & Haxby, J. V. (1994). 'What' and 'where' in the human brain. Current Opinion in
Neurobiology, 1994, 4:157-65.
Case Study: Le, S., Cardebat, D., Boulanouar, K., Henaff, M.-A., Michel, F., Milner, D., Dijkerman, C., Puel, M. &
DaMonet, J.-F. (2002). Seeing, since childhood, without ventral stream: A behavioural study. Brain, 125: 58-74.
Attention and Neglect
General: Kastner, S. & Ungerleider, L.G. 2000. Mechanisms of visual attention in the human cortex. Annual Review
of Neuroscience 23: 315-341.
Case Study: Doricchi, F. & Incoccia, C. (1998). Seeing only the right half of the forest but cutting down all the tress?
Nature, 393(6688):75-8.
Language and Aphasias
General: Alexander, M.P. (1997). Aphasia: Clinical and anatomic aspects. In T.E. Feinberg & M.J. Farah (Eds.),
Behavioral neurology and neuropsychology. New York: McGraw-Hill, pp. 133-149.
Case Study: Warren, J.D., Warren , J.E., Fox, N.C. & Warrington, E.K. (2003). Nothing to say, something to sing:
Primary progressive dynamic aphasia. Neurocase: 9: 140-153.
Memory and Amnesias
General: Levine, B. (2004). Autobiographical memory: neuropsychology, functional neuroanatomy, and life-span
development. Brain and Cognition: 55: 54-68.
Case Study: Levine, B., Black, S. E., Cabeza, R., Sinden, M., McIntosh, A. R., Toth, J. P. Tulving, E., & Stuss, D. T.,
(1998). Episodic memory and the self in a case of isolated retrograde amnesia. Brain, 121, 1951–1973.
Executive Function
General: Stuss, D.T. & Levine, B. (2002). Adult Clinical Neuropsychology: Lessons from Studies of the Frontal
Lobes. Annual Review of Psychology, 53:401-433.
Case Study: Ptak, R. & Schnider, A. (2004). Disorganised memory after right dorsolateral prefrontal damage.
Neurocase, 10: 52-59.
Emotion
General: Adolphs, R. (2003). Cognitive neuroscience of social behavior. Nature Neuroscience Reviews, 4, 165-178.
Case Study: Blair, R. J. R. & Cipolotti, L. (2000). Impaired social response reversal: A case of ‘acquired sociopathy’.
Brain, 123: 1122-1141.
University of Toronto
PSY393S
Spring 2006
Cognitive Neurology
T9-12
Room N201
Schedule of Lectures and Readings
Date
Topic
Banich
Jan. 10
Introduction to the course material
Jan 17
Neuroanatomy & Methods in Neuropsychology
1&3
Jan 24
Motor Control
5
Jan 31
Object Recognition
6
Feb 7
Attention
8
Feb 14
Term Test (30%)
Feb 21
No Class – Reading week
Feb 28
Language and Aphasias
9
Mar 7
Memory and Amnesias
10
Mar 14
Executive Function (article for poster presentation/talk due)
11
Mar 21
Emotion
12
Mar 28
Generalized Cognitive Disorders (paper due – 20%)
14
Apr 4
Oral Presentations (20%)
Apr 11
Poster presentations (20%)
TBA
Final Exam
University of Toronto
PSY393S
Spring 2006
Cognitive Neurology
T9-12
Room N201
Oral Presentation (Short talk) OR Poster Presentation
Cognitive neuroscience is based on conducting experiments and examining exceptional cases. In
addition, cognitive neuroscience, like other sciences, involves the presentation of the findings to others.
Presentation of findings is done is several ways. One way involves publication in peer reviewed journals.
Others involve oral presentations (i.e., talks) or poster presentations. In this course, I would like to give
you an opportunity to do a short talk or a poster presentation. You only have to do one of these – either a
short talk or a poster presentation. You will have an opportunity to choose between a short talk or poster
presentation, on January 18th at 9am through e-mail (please e-mail me and not your TA, Emis). The
choice will be based on first-come-first-serve basis. That is, if you chose to do a poster presentation but
available spots have been filled, you’ll have to do a short talk. I will base my decisions based on the time
that I receive your e-mails. Those that do not get in touch with me will be randomly assigned to either for
a short talk or poster presentation.
Oral Presentation (Short talk)
On April 4th the class will consist of 10 short talks. Each talk will be based on a published journal article of
your choice. The journal article has to pertain to topics covered in class (e.g., memory, attention,
executive functions etc.) and it can not be a review. That is, the journal article of choice has to be an
experimental write-up or a case study write-up. Please e-mail me your selection by March 14th.
The talk should be based on the structure of the article (i.e., like the article, you should have an
introduction, a methods section, a results section and a discussion) and be 10 minutes in length. It will be
followed with 2-5 minutes of follow up questions. Your talk should be done in Powerpoint.
Here are some suggestions/guidelines:
Title Page
 Journal article title, authors’ names and your name
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Introduction
Briefly and concisely give relevant background
Explicitly state the question that you are addressing
Start general and end specific (predictions)
2-4 minutes
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Methods
In about 2-3 slides explain what was done in this experiment.
Do not include details found in the write-up
You may include a flow chart if this is going to help your audience understand things better
2-3 minutes
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Results
Present major findings
Do not show raw data
Present the findings in clearly labeled figures
University of Toronto
PSY393S



Spring 2006
Cognitive Neurology
T9-12
Room N201
Summarize the findings by putting short phrases on top of the figures (e.g., “Tryptophan Depletion
Reduces Humour Appreciation”)
Explain the figure axis before you talk about the data (e.g., “the X axis shows different groups, the
Y axis shows the number of trials to criterion”)
2-4 minutes
Conclusions/Discussion
 Summarize your results clearly and concisely
 How do the findings fit with your hypothesis?
 What are the possible mechanisms of the observed effects?
 What are the possible implications?
 2-4 minutes
Presentation Style
 Speak clearly
 Project your voice
 Use easy to understand language
 Do not play with the mouse, laser, keys or hair
 Look at the audience as your are talking to them
Some “Dos” and “Don’ts”
 Do make your presentation template elegant
 Don’t make the template too busy or fancy
 Do use contrasting letters and background
 Darker background and lighter letters works well
 Do have consistency in terms of background, letter color etc.
 Do make your writing concise
 Don’t have long sentences that you read off the screen
Poster Presentation
On April 11th we will have a mini-conference with 40 poster presentations. Each poster will be based on a
published journal article of your choice. The journal article has to pertain to topics covered in class (e.g.,
memory, attention, executive functions etc.) and it can not be a review. That is, the journal article of
choice has to be an experimental write-up or a case study write-up. Please e-mail me your selection by
March 14th.
The poster presentation should be based on the structure of the article (i.e., like the article, you should
have an introduction, a methods section, a results section and a discussion). You will present your poster
in about 5 minutes. This might be followed by questions. The conference will last from 9am-12pm. You
will have to stand by your poster for the duration of 30 minutes. During this time your classmates and I
will be stopping by your poster so that you can give us the 5 min summary of your study. During the rest
of the time you will be expected to go around and see other students’ posters. Guidelines given above for
talks are applicable to poster presentations.
There are books and web pages that will be helpful in constructing the presentation and the poster.
Northeym M. & Timney, B. (2004). Making Sense – A Student’s Guide to Research and Writing. New
York: Oxford University Press.