This summary captures the first year course at the VU for the study Artificial Intelligence, named Introduction to Psychology and its methods. It captures both the lectures and the books discussed in the course. This summary uses bullet points to separate information, with sentences no longer than ...
Examen time and date
● October 21, 2019, 15:15-17:30 (check nog een keer voor tentamen)
● Multiple-choice
Week 1, college 1
Introduction
Psychology
● The study of mind, brain and behavior
● Using the scientific method
Chapter 1, science of psychology (p. 3-6)
Genetics:
● How characteristics such as height, hair color and eye color are passed along to
offspring.
○ How a cell becomes for example a muscle cell is determined by which genes
are turned on or off.
Genome:
● The master blueprint that provides detailed instructions for everything of the human
body.
The genetic basis
● Every nucleus (celkern) contains 23 chromosome pairs
○ One pair of the chromosome comes from the mother, one from the father.
○ Each parent contributes half of a person’s DNA.
■ Half of his or her genes.
● Chromosomes are made up of coiled strands of DNA.
● The DNA molecule has a double helix shape.
● The double helix is made up of complementary chains
Gene
● Gene: meaningful sections of the DNA molecule
○ Each gene specifies an exact instruction to make a distinct polypeptide.
○ One or more polypeptides make up a protein.
● Govern the cell’s functioning by providing instructions for making proteins.
○ The environment determines which proteins are produced and when they are
produced.
● A gene codes for a protein.
,Gene expression
● Determines the body’s physical makeup.
● Determines specific developments throughout life.
● Whether a gene is turned on or off.
○ Environmental factors can affect gene expression.
○ Also internal factors can cause the turning on and turning off of genes.
● Whether a gene is transcribed into a sequence of amino acids.
● Every cell has the same nucleus, but look and function different because of gene
expression.
● Whether a gene is transcribed depends by the biochemical environment inside the
cell.
○ The biochemical environment inside the cell is influenced by:
■ The environment outside the cell.
■ Timing in development
■ The overall environment
■ Experience
■ Behavior.
Genotype
● An organism’s specific set of genes.
○ It’s determined and never changes.
Phenotype
● The organism’s observable physical characteristics.
○ Is always changing
● This develops because of the interaction between genotype and environment.
Polygenic effects
● When a population displays a range of variability for a certain characteristic.
○ In other words, the trait is influenced by many genes (as well as by
environment).
Sexual reproduction
● The 23 chromosome pairs of normal cells contain also sex chromosomes, Y and X.
○ Females: two X chromosomes (XX)
○ Males: one X and one Y chromosome (XY)
● egg and sperm cells have 23 chromosomes
● Each gene is paired with another gene.
● Allele is one specific variant of a gene.
Homozygote: alleles on locus are the same
heterozygote: alleles on locus are different
● Can be that one alles is dominant over the other.
● Other alleles are recessive
○ This gene only is expressed when it’s matched with a similar gene from the
other parent.
,A specific trait or behavior is determined by the interaction between the environment and:
● One gene pair.
● Multiple gene pairs: polygenetic inheritance.
Heritability
● Heredity is the transmission of characteristics from parents to offspring by means of
genes.
● Heritability
○ Refers to the proportion of the variation in some specific trait in a population
that is due to genetics (A statistical estimate of the extent to which variation in
a trait within a population is due to genetics).
○ The trait cannot be due to environment or random chance.
○ To know the heritability of a trait, we need to know how much people vary in
that trait.
■ Once you know the variation, we can see whether people who are
related show less variation than people chosen at random.
○ When for example a trait has a heritability of .60, this means that 60 percent
of the variation in height among people is genetic.
■ Does not mean that a person gets 60 percent of her height from
genetics and 40 percent from environment.
○ Heritability estimates aid in identifying the causes of differences between
individuals in a population.
○ Remember: heritability refers to the distribution of a trait within a group, not to
particular persons.
Darwin’s evolution theory
● Evolution by natural selection.
● Three conditions for natural selection:
1. There is variation among individuals of a populations.
2. Individuals with a certain trait survive and produce at higher rates that others.
3. The trait associated with this advantage is passed from parents to offspring.
● This specific trait will be better represented in the next generation.
● Organisms differ in genotype and variations in genotype are passed from generation
to generation.
● What matters is the survival of genes, not the survival of individuals.
Evidence for modern evolutionary theory comes from many sources
● The fossil record.
● The resemblance between genomes of various organisms.
● Pseudogenes (inactive gene)
○ Doesn’t function evermore
● Distribution of species around the world
Somehow improves organisms
● Can only lead to rigid behavioral patterns.
, ● Some genes survived because they had a positive chance of survival for the animal.
Nature versus nurture
● The nature (genes) nurture (environment).
Who we are is determined by how our genes are expressed in distinct environments.
● Behavior is depended on environment and genes.
Behavioral genetics
● The study of how genes and environment interact to influence psychological activity.
● Methods:
○ Twin studies
○ Adoption studies
● Heritability (H) (erfelijkheid)
○ H=genetic variance/phenotypic variance
Epigenetics
● The study of how environment affects genetic expression.
○ They found that various environmental exposures do not alter DNA (can’t be
altered mafkees), but they do alter DNA expression.
● These changes in how DNA is expressed can be passed along to future generations.
○ Rats of stressed mothers are for example more likely to become stressed.
● A simple way to think about epigenetic processes is that a parent’s experiences
create tags on DNA that tell it when to express, and these tags are passed along with
the DNA.
○ Then they may be passed along to future generations.
Genetic modifications
● Researchers can insert a gene from one animal species into the embryo of another.
○ The researchers can then compare the genetically modified animal with an
unmodified one to test theories about the affected gene his function.
● Changing even a single gene can dramatically change behavior.
○ The effect of one gene be turned on or off leads to the expression or non
expression of a series of other genes.
■ This can influence even complex behaviors.
○ So in other words, genes seldom work in isolation to influence mind and
behavior.
■ Complex interaction among thousands of genes gives rise to the
complexity of human experience.
Optogenetics
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