Chapter 3 - Consciousness And The Two Track Mind Flashcards
Consciousness
Our awareness of ourselves and our environment
Cognitive neuroscience
The interdisciplinary study of the brain activity linked with cognition (perception, thinking, memory, and language)
Dual processing
The principle that info is often simultaneously processed on separate conscious and unconscious tracks, or the controlled or automatic tracks
Blindsight
A condition in which a person can respond to a visual stimulus without conscious,y experiencing it
Parallel processing
The processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brains natural mode of info processing for many functions. Including vision (ch6)
Sequential processing
Solving new problems, which requires focused attention.
The minds two tracks
Our mind has separate conscious and unconscious tracks that perform dual processing
Selective attention
The focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus.
Inattentional blindness
Failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed else where
Visual perception track
Track that enables us to recognize things and plan future actions
Change blindness
Failing to notice changes in the environment. There is also change deafness and choice blindness
Sleep
Periodic, natural loss of consciousness - as distinct from unconsciousness resulting from a coma, general anesthesia, or hibernation
Circadian rhythm
The biological clock; regular bodily rhythms (temperature, and wakefulness) that occur on a 24 hour cycle. Age and experience can alter this
Suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN)
A pair of rice size, 20,000 cell clusters in the hypothalamus that take in signals from proteins that regulate production of melatonin. This controls the circadian rhythm. In response to light, the SCN causes the pineal gland to adjust melatonin production, thus modifying our feelings of sleepiness
REM sleep
A recurring sleep stage during which vivid dreams occur. Also known as paradoxical sleep, because the muscles are relaxed (except for minor twitches) but internal systems are active.
Yawning
Responding to reduced brain metabolism. Increases heart rate and alertness
NREM1
Hallucinations - falling feeling
NREM2
Periodic sleep spindles - bursts of rapid rhythmic brain wave activity. Asleep but could be waken easily (20 mins approx.)
NREM 3
Slow wave sleep (30mins) your brain emits large, slow delta waves. Hard to awaken. Children may wet the bed at the end of slow wave NREM3 sleep
REM sleep
Return to NREM2 (where you spend half the night), entering the most intriguing sleep phase. For 10mins brain waves are rapid and saw toothed-similar to NREM1 sleep. But the difference is heart rate rises, breathing heavy and irregular and every 30 seconds approx your closed eyes dart around. The beginning of a dream. Genitals are aroused during scary dreams in REM. Brains motor cortex is active in REM. and you are essentially paralyzed because of the relaxation in muscles
Alpha waves
The relatively slow brain waves of a relaxed, awake state
Hallucinations
False sensory experiences, such as seeing something in the absence of an external visual stimulus.
Delta waves
The large, slow brain waves associated with deep sleep.
Hypnagogic
Sensations associated with drowsiness, the feeling of falling while you’re drifting into sleep
Sleep spindles
Bursts of rapid, rhythmic brain wave activity
Insomnia
Recurring problems in falling or staying asleep
Narcolepsy
A sleep disorder characterized by uncontrollable sleep attacks. The sufferer may lapse directly into REM, often at inappropriate times
Sleep apnea
A sleep disorder where breathing temporarily stops and sufferers wake up for a moment repeatedly.
Night terrors
A sleep disorder that cause high arousal and an appearance of being terrified. These occur in stage 4 of sleep, unlike nightmares, occur within two to three hours of falling asleep and are seldom remembered
Orexin (or hypocretin)
A neurotransmitter linked to alertness
Dream
Sequence of images, emotions, and thoughts passing through a sleep persons mind. They’re notable for their hallucinatory imagery, discontinuities, and incongruities, as well as the dreamers delusional acceptance of content and later difficulties remembering it
Manifest content
According to Freud, the remembered story line of a dream
Latent content
According to Freud, the underlying meaning of a dream
REM rebound
The tendency for rem sleep to increase following rem sleep deprivation
Hypnosis
A social interaction in which one person suggests to another that certain perceptions, feelings, thoughts, or behaviours will spontaneously occur.
Posthypnotic suggestion
A suggestion made through hypnosis session, to be carried out after the subject is no longer hypnotized; used by some clinicians to help control undesired symptoms and behaviours.
Dissociation
A split in consciousness, which allows some thoughts and behaviour to occur spontaneously with others.
Psychoactive drug
A chemical substance that alters perceptions and moods
Freud’s wish fulfillment
Dreams preserve sleep and provide a “psychic safety valve” expressing otherwise unacceptable feelings; contain manifest content and a deeper layer of latent content
Information processing
Dreams help us sort out the day’s events and consolidate our memories
Physiological function
Regular brain stimulation from rem sleep may help develop and preserve neural pathways
Neural activation
Rem sleep triggers neural activity that evokes random visual memories, which our sleeping brain weaves into stories.
Cognitive development
Dream content reflects dreamers level of cognitive development - their knowledge and understanding. Dreams simulate our lives, including worst case scenarios. Part of brain maturation.
Tolerance
The diminishing effect with regular use of the same dose of a drug, requiring the user to take larger and larger doses before experiencing the same effect.
Addiction
Compulsive cravings of drugs or certain behaviours despite known adverse consequences
Withdrawal
The discomfort or distress that follow discontinuing an addictive drug
Physical dependence
A physiological need for a drug, marked by unpleasant withdrawal symptoms when the drug is discontinued
Psychological dependence
A psychological need to use a drug, such as to relieve negative emotions
Depressants
Drugs that reduce neural activity and slow Body functions
Alcohol use disorder
“Alcoholism” alcohol use is marked by tolerance, withdrawn and a drive to continue problematic use
Barbiturates
Drugs that depress central nervous system, reducing anxiety but impairing memory and judgement.
Opiates
Opium and its derivatives, such as morphine and heroin; depress neural activity temporarily lessening pain and anxiety
Stimulants
Drugs (caffeine, cocaine, nicotine and ecstasy) that excite neural activity and speed up body functions
Amphetamines
Drugs that stimulate neural activity, causing sped up body functions and associated energy and mood changes
Nicotine
Stimulative and highly addictive drug in tobacco
Cocaine
Powerful and addictive stimulant derived from the coca plant; produces temporary increased alertness and euphoria.
Methamphetamine
Drug that stimulates the central nervous system with speeded up body functions and associated energy and mood changes; over time, appears to reduce baseline dopamine levels
Ecstasy (MDMA)
A synthetic stimulant and mild hallucinogen. Produces euphoria and social intimacy, but with short term health risks and longer term harm to serotonin producing neurons and to mood and cognition
Hallucinogens
Psychedelic drugs, such as LSD, that distort perceptions and evoke sensory images in the obscene of sensory input
Near death experience
Altered state of consciousness reported after a close brush with death; often similar to drug induced hallucinations
LSD
A powerful hallucinogenic drug; known as acid
THC
The major active ingredient in marijuana; triggers a variety of affects, including mild hallucinations
Cocktail party effect
Ability to tend to only one voice among many
Beta waves
The low amplitude, fast irregular waves that are exhibited during strong mental engagement, such as a conversation
Theta waves
The high amplitude, slow, regular waves that are exhibited during early light sleep (stages 1-2). A person daydreaming exhibits these waves
Negative emotional content
Something we dream in 80% of the time
Failure dreams
People commonly dream about failure, being attacked, pursued, rejected or struck with misfortune
Sexual dreams
Contrary to our thinking sexual dreams are sparse. In men, these are framed about 1 in 10 times; and in women 1 in 30
Gender dreams
Women dream of men and women equally. Men dream about men more than women
Activation synthesis theory
A theory about why dreaming occurs that suggests that the brain engaged in a lot of neural activity that is random. Dreams make sense of this activity
Posthypnotic amnesia
Supposed inability to recall what one experienced during hypnosis
