Fundamentals of Neuroscience, Part 3: The Brain
Learn how brains perceive the world.
Discover what makes your brain tick in this third course in our introductory series in neuroscience.
3-5 hours a week
What You'll Learn
The human brain is a fantastically complex system, capable of transforming a torrent of incoming information into thought and action. In this course, we will look at how the various subsystems of the brain work together to enable us to survive and thrive in a changing world.
Each lesson will challenge you with interactive segments, animations, and documentaries that explore the richness and complexity of the brain. Our forums will provide you with a place to meet other students around the world, and you can learn from each other through a series of discussion questions.
Do you want to learn about how brains perceive the world? Join us as we explore sensation, perception and the physiology of functional regions of the brain.
The course will be delivered via edX and connect learners around the world. By the end of the course, participants will learn:
- How sensory perception works in the brain
- How the physiology of vision, hearing, taste, smell, touch, motor control and other senses work
- The basic anatomy of functional areas of the brain
- The visual system of the brain
- How the motor subsystems of the brain execute and coordinate our movement.
- The critical brain systems that keep alive
Your Instructor
Assistant Professor of Molecular and Cellular Biology, and Computer Science, Harvard University
David Cox is an Assistant Professor of Molecular and Cellular Biology and of Computer Science, and is a member of the Center for Brain Science at Harvard University. He completed his Ph.D. in the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at MIT with a specialization in computational neuroscience.
His laboratory seeks to understand the computational underpinnings of visual processing through concerted efforts in both reverse- and forward-engineering. To this end, his group employs a wide range of experimental techniques (ranging from microelectrode recordings in living brains to visual psychophysics in humans) to probe natural systems, while at the same time actively developing practical computer vision systems based on what is learned about the brain.
Course Outline
The human brain is a fantastically complex system, capable of transforming a torrent of incoming senses into thought and action. In this module, we will look at the brain from a human-centric viewpoint, exploring how the various subsystems of the brain work, enabling us to survive and thrive in a changing world.
One of the most developed senses in humans is our vision. In lesson 1, “Vision,” we take a deep dive into the visual system. How do we see, and more importantly, how do we understand what we see?
One of the many ways we communicate with one another and create community is through sound. In lesson 2, “Audition,” we will go on a journey that follows the path of sound waves as they are detected in the ear and processed in the brain.
There are more than just five senses in the animal kingdom. Consider eels with their ability to sense electric fields or vampire bats that can track down prey via infrared detection. In lesson 3, “Touch, Taste, Smell, and the Remaining Senses,” we explore both the remaining traditional senses - touch, taste, and smell - as well as some of the more unusual ones.
Perceiving the world is useless if we cannot act. The motor subsystems of the brain execute and coordinate our movement. In lesson 4, “Movement and Action,” we discuss how the nervous system makes your muscles contract in a coordinated manner, so that you can move and interact with your surroundings.
While a highly-developed cortex is one of the key hallmarks of humanity, there's quite a bit more to the brain than cortex. In lesson 5, “Subcortical Brain Areas,” we explore the critical brain systems that keep us alive, help us orient to stimuli in our environment, and allow us to form new memories.
In the last lesson of this course, “Brain Anatomy,” we wrap up our investigation of the brain with a closer look at the structures found in the sensory and motor systems in a real human brain.
Ways to take this course
When you enroll in this course, you will have the option of pursuing a Verified Certificate or Auditing the Course.
A Verified Certificate costs $249 and provides unlimited access to full course materials, activities, tests, and forums. At the end of the course, learners who earn a passing grade can receive a certificate.
Alternatively, learners can Audit the course for free and have access to select course material, activities, tests, and forums. Please note that this track does not offer a certificate for learners who earn a passing grade.