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Information for module PALS1001

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Module code:PALS1001(Add to my personalised list)
Title:Biological Bases of Perception and Behaviour
Credit value:.5
Division:Division of Psychology and Language Sciences
Module organiser:Jennifer Crinion
Organiser's location:Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience
Organiser's email:j.crinion@ucl.ac.uk and s.bucher@ucl.ac.uk
Available for students in Year(s):1,
Module prerequisites:None 
Module outline:This module will provide an overview of the fundamental biological concepts required to understand perception and behaviour.  
Module aims:1. Provide essential information on the biological building blocks for perception and behaviour. 2. Develop understanding of the levels of organisation of the human body, from genes to proteins to cells to tissues and organs. 3. Show how the nervous system and its interactions with sensory and muscle tissue can give rise to perception and behaviour. 4. Provide essential information on embryonic development, particularly with a view to understanding the origins of the brain and structures of the head and neck. 5. Develop awareness of the need for a solid grasp of biology as a basis for understanding complex behaviours such as speech.  
Module objectives:At the end of the module students will be able to: 1. Name the component parts of a cell and outline their principal functions. 2. Demonstrate understanding of the roles of DNA and RNA in production of proteins, and describe the basic mechanisms by which a cell regulates protein production. 3. Describe the key characteristics of the basic types of tissue that make up the human body. 4. Demonstrate understanding of the basic structure and function of nerve and muscle cells, including generation and propagation of action potentials, synaptic transmission and the sliding filament theory of muscle contraction. 5. Demonstrate basic understanding of the embryonic development, especially of the brain and structures of the head and neck. 6. Describe the mechanisms of synaptic plasticity and the cellular foundations of learning. 7. Explain the overall structure and constituent parts of the nervous system and demonstrate understanding of how the nervous system underlies perception and behaviour. 8. Outline the basic anatomy of the blood supply to the brain, and understand how it relates to the effects of stroke. 
Key skills provided by module:At the end of the course students will have learned to: 1. Manage their own learning of complex biological topics, by using resources on the web and in the library. 2. Use software designed for interactive learning of biological concepts. 3. Create graphs and other visual representations of data obtained in simple practical demonstrations. 4. Identify anatomical structures on 3D models and real tissue specimens. 5. Use web-based teaching tools such as Moodle to help direct and organise their learning.  
Module timetable:https://cmis.adcom.ucl.ac.uk:4443/timetabling/moduleTimet.do?firstReq=Y&moduleId=PALS1001 
Module assessment:Five moodle quizzes (30 minutes each) 10.00%.
One moodle supervised test (one hour) 30.00%.
Unseen one and a half hour written examination 60.00%.
 
Notes:*** under review for 2013-2013 *** 
Taking this module as an option?: 
Link to virtual learning environment(registered students only)TBC 
Last updated:2013-04-08 16:33:18 by