CHAPTER 4 - CONSCIOUSNESS
What is consciousness?
- debated
- our awareness of internal and external stimuli
- “state of flow” - operating automatically (like driving)
- stream of consciousness - ongoing thoughts and conscious reactions to
events, perceived as a continuous flow
- biological rythms: internal rythms of biological activity (body temperature)
Sleep
- circadian rythm: cycles every 24 hours (sleep-wake)
- “biological clock” - retina sends light level information to
suprachiasmatic nucleus (in hypothalamus)
- melatonin is produced when dark in the pineal gland
- we go through many sleep cycles per night
- disruptions in sleep cycle cause negative effects on humans
- may be linked to diabetes b/c interferes with glucose metabolization
- sleep deprivation can tell us about the function of sleep
- rats with no REM sleep died after 28 hours
- not known to have directly killed any humans
- sleep debt is a result of continuous lack of adequate sleep
- for homeostasis, sleep rebound makes falling asleep faster
Why sleep?
- Adaptive function of sleep
- according to evolutionary psych
- restore resources (energy)
- avoid predators (stay safe)
- controlling weight, stress, mood, coordination, attention
- Cognitive function of sleep
- memory and brain functioning
- sort memories from the day and “watch” them
- activation-synthesis approach: stimulation comes from lower part of the
brain
Sleep stages
- Rapid eye movement (REM)
What is consciousness?
- debated
- our awareness of internal and external stimuli
- “state of flow” - operating automatically (like driving)
- stream of consciousness - ongoing thoughts and conscious reactions to
events, perceived as a continuous flow
- biological rythms: internal rythms of biological activity (body temperature)
Sleep
- circadian rythm: cycles every 24 hours (sleep-wake)
- “biological clock” - retina sends light level information to
suprachiasmatic nucleus (in hypothalamus)
- melatonin is produced when dark in the pineal gland
- we go through many sleep cycles per night
- disruptions in sleep cycle cause negative effects on humans
- may be linked to diabetes b/c interferes with glucose metabolization
- sleep deprivation can tell us about the function of sleep
- rats with no REM sleep died after 28 hours
- not known to have directly killed any humans
- sleep debt is a result of continuous lack of adequate sleep
- for homeostasis, sleep rebound makes falling asleep faster
Why sleep?
- Adaptive function of sleep
- according to evolutionary psych
- restore resources (energy)
- avoid predators (stay safe)
- controlling weight, stress, mood, coordination, attention
- Cognitive function of sleep
- memory and brain functioning
- sort memories from the day and “watch” them
- activation-synthesis approach: stimulation comes from lower part of the
brain
Sleep stages
- Rapid eye movement (REM)
