COG SCI C100 STUDY GUIDE QUESTIONS WITH ANSWERS
GRADED A+ 2025/2026
Artificial neural networks (ANN) - multiple layers, each layer designed to pick up specific
pixels and match it to the prototype model
Backpropagation - Learning method adjusting neural network weights.
Top Down Processing - Perception influenced by expectations and beliefs.
Bottom Up Processing - Perception starts from sensory input analysis.
Pygmalion effect - Students who were (randomly) labeled as very smart showed
significantly greater gains in IQ and academic performance after 8 months than controls
Perceptual Constancy - Perception of stable objects despite changing stimuli.
Shape constancy - We perceive the form of familiar objects as constant
Face recognition - There are cells in our brains that only fire when they see the face of a
particular person
Prosopagnosia - Inability to recognize faces.
Visual Agnosia - Inability to recognize objects despite intact vision.
Capgras Syndrome - Belief that loved ones are imposters, caused by damage to
amygdala
Functional blindness (conversion disorder) - Vision loss with no organic basis, usually
comes from seeing something traumatic
Blindsight - Vision without awareness
Attention - Focus on specific stimuli while ignoring others.
Anterior attentional network - Brain region involved in focusing attention.
Posterior attentional network - Brain region responsible for spatial attention.
Heart rate increase - Physiological response indicating heightened attention.
Galvanic skin response - Measure of sweating linked to emotional arousal.
Pupil dilation - Wider pupils indicate increased attention levels.
, Selective attention - Focusing awareness on a specific stimulus.
Dichotic listening task - Two messages played in different ears
Filter model of attention - Everything is picked up on some level (cocktail party)
Change blindness experiment - An old guy is swapped out for another old guy during
conversation, half of participants don't notice
Divided attention - Ability to multitask, often with reduced performance.
Stroop task - Reading different font colors that are written as different colors
Bottleneck theory - Theory that we have limited capacity for processing information.
Automatic processing - Involuntary, parallel processing of easy tasks.
Controlled processing - Serial, deliberate processing of difficult tasks.
Feature integration theory - Combining features for object recognition.
ADHD treatment - Includes medication, therapy, and behavioral training.
Biofeedback - Training to control physiological functions consciously.
Screen time effects - High screen time correlates with cognitive decline, may be
bidirectional
Sleep deprivation effects - Impaired cognition, creativity, and emotional regulation.
Sleep cycles - REM cycles last approximately 90 minutes each.
Napping benefits - Short naps enhance alertness and performance.
Sleep debt - Accumulated lack of sleep affecting health.
EEG patterns - Brain wave activity during different sleep stages.
Freud's Wish Fulfillment Theory - Dreams release unacceptable feelings and desires.
Modern Psychodynamic Theory - Dreams reflect conflicts and solutions in life.
Hobson and McCarley's Activation-Synthesis Hypothesis - Dreams arise from random
neural signal interpretations.
GRADED A+ 2025/2026
Artificial neural networks (ANN) - multiple layers, each layer designed to pick up specific
pixels and match it to the prototype model
Backpropagation - Learning method adjusting neural network weights.
Top Down Processing - Perception influenced by expectations and beliefs.
Bottom Up Processing - Perception starts from sensory input analysis.
Pygmalion effect - Students who were (randomly) labeled as very smart showed
significantly greater gains in IQ and academic performance after 8 months than controls
Perceptual Constancy - Perception of stable objects despite changing stimuli.
Shape constancy - We perceive the form of familiar objects as constant
Face recognition - There are cells in our brains that only fire when they see the face of a
particular person
Prosopagnosia - Inability to recognize faces.
Visual Agnosia - Inability to recognize objects despite intact vision.
Capgras Syndrome - Belief that loved ones are imposters, caused by damage to
amygdala
Functional blindness (conversion disorder) - Vision loss with no organic basis, usually
comes from seeing something traumatic
Blindsight - Vision without awareness
Attention - Focus on specific stimuli while ignoring others.
Anterior attentional network - Brain region involved in focusing attention.
Posterior attentional network - Brain region responsible for spatial attention.
Heart rate increase - Physiological response indicating heightened attention.
Galvanic skin response - Measure of sweating linked to emotional arousal.
Pupil dilation - Wider pupils indicate increased attention levels.
, Selective attention - Focusing awareness on a specific stimulus.
Dichotic listening task - Two messages played in different ears
Filter model of attention - Everything is picked up on some level (cocktail party)
Change blindness experiment - An old guy is swapped out for another old guy during
conversation, half of participants don't notice
Divided attention - Ability to multitask, often with reduced performance.
Stroop task - Reading different font colors that are written as different colors
Bottleneck theory - Theory that we have limited capacity for processing information.
Automatic processing - Involuntary, parallel processing of easy tasks.
Controlled processing - Serial, deliberate processing of difficult tasks.
Feature integration theory - Combining features for object recognition.
ADHD treatment - Includes medication, therapy, and behavioral training.
Biofeedback - Training to control physiological functions consciously.
Screen time effects - High screen time correlates with cognitive decline, may be
bidirectional
Sleep deprivation effects - Impaired cognition, creativity, and emotional regulation.
Sleep cycles - REM cycles last approximately 90 minutes each.
Napping benefits - Short naps enhance alertness and performance.
Sleep debt - Accumulated lack of sleep affecting health.
EEG patterns - Brain wave activity during different sleep stages.
Freud's Wish Fulfillment Theory - Dreams release unacceptable feelings and desires.
Modern Psychodynamic Theory - Dreams reflect conflicts and solutions in life.
Hobson and McCarley's Activation-Synthesis Hypothesis - Dreams arise from random
neural signal interpretations.
