C

Carotid artery

A major artery located in the neck that carries blood to the brain. There is one on each side of the neck

Categorization

The organization of concepts into classes. It is this capacity that enables us to make sense of a world that would otherwise consist for us of a mass of unrelated perceptions

Caudate

A portion of the basal ganglia of the brain

Cell assembly

A set of neurons that, having frequently been involved in a given action, are activated as a unit

Cerebrospinal fluid

A clear liquid that surrounds the brain and the spinal cord and fills the cavities in the brain(see ventricles)

Cerebrum

The upper part of the brain, consisting of the left and right hemispheres

Chronograph

An instrument for recording short durations and rapid changes

Chunks (chunking)

Grouping discrete items so that they are learned and recalled as a unit

Cognition

The mental processes engaged in by the human brain, including perception, learning, memory, problem solving, thinking and imagining

Computer axial tomography (CAT)

A procedure in which computer technology is used to reconstruct and sharpen a complete image from multiple views provided by a rotating X-ray beam

Concept

One’s notion or idea of what an entity,concrete or abstract, is

Concordance

A  frequency count of all the words and, in some cases, phrases and sentence constructions in a given text along with their exact locations within the text

Conductance

The probability that a link in a neural network will conduct a signal

Contralateral

Pertaining to the “opposite side” and referring to the fact that activity of each side of the body is largely governed by the cerebral hemisphere on the other side of the brain (as in the situation of paralysis on the left side of the body accompanying damage to the right cerebral hemisphere)

Corpus callosum

A thick bundle of fibers connecting the two hemispheres of the human brain, by means of which information is transferred from one hemisphere to the other

Cortex

The outer layer of gray matter of the brain, within which most of the higher functions of cognition are carried out

Cortical functions

Activities of the outer layer of the brain’s gray matter

Counterfactual

A statement presenting a situation that is not so and (in English) indicating recognition of that fact by means of an if-then construction employing the subjunctive form of the verb (e.g., If i were you, [then] i would go to Paris)

Craniometry

An early approach to understanding the nature of intelligence, involving the measurement of cranial capacity on the ( mistaken ) assumption that the larger the brain, the more intelligent the individual

Craniotomy

A procedure in which the scalp and skull are opened surgically in order to reach the brain

Critical period

The period during which a cognitive behavior is normally acquired. If the environmental stimulus ( e.g., birdsong for birds, language for humans ) is missing during this period, the behavior may never be acquired

Cyclotron

An accelerator for protons or other positively charged ions