9/23,26 and 27

Sorry for not posting the past few days, its been a busy weekend.

AP Psych

Friday in AP Psych, students developed and then tested experiments for the absolute threshold of senses. One group measured how far down the hallway a person would be before smelling popcorn, another tested how small a font could be and still be read, and the other groups came up with equally great experiments. The results were consistent with what we knew about absolute thresholds and senses. We also were treated to the most amazing looking brain cake for a Friday treat. Pictures to come later.

Monday in AP Psych we talked about the experiments then we discussed the processes of sight and hearing. Afterwards, we performed some basic experiments to determine the strengths and limitations of these sight.

On Tuesday we performed some taste tests to demonstrate how the senses of taste, smell, and sight all work together to create our experiences of flavor. After we debriefed the taste tests, we finished discussing the sense of touch, proprioception, and the vestibular sense.

Honors Psych

Friday in class we worked on creating a super hero comic book to help us study the different parts of the brain. The class had the majority of the mod to work on this, with some time Monday to finish and turn in. The last chunck of class was spent discussing how the brain can bounce back from severe injuries.

Monday, the class finished putting the super hero book together. We further discussed the way that the brain can repair itself after an injury. We also discussed and watched a brief video on split brain surgery and how the surgery changed the patients' behaviors.

Tuesday, the class performed one last experiment to test left/right hemispheres of the brain. Students had to balance a ruler on their finger while spelling words/doing math problems. The hypothesis was that the more the concentration was split on one side of the brain the more difficult it would be to balance the ruler. I will post the results soon. To end the class we began work on the final assignment for the brain chapter which is to identify how the different structures of the brain are responsible for complex actions.