Ways of Studying the Brain

• Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)

  Detects blood flow in the brain, identifies active brain regions and patterns of activation
• fMRI


  • Good spatial resolution, noninvasive and safe, poor temporal resolution, expensive
• Electroencephalography (EEG)


  Measures sum total of activation of brain cortex, displays as brain waves
• EEG


  • Cheaper than fMRI, good temporal resolution, poor spatial resolution, cannot detect deep brain activity
• Event-related potentials (ERPs)


  Use EEG technique, present stimulus many times to create smooth curve of activation
• ERPs


  • Good temporal resolution, poor spatial resolution, cannot study processes that cannot be presented repeatedly
• Postmortem examinations


  Precisely cut brains to study microscopic structures, correlate unusual behaviour with brain damage