Chapter 6: States of Consciousness Flashcards
Our immediate awareness of our internal and external states.
Consciousness
The thing we are right now, what we are aware of. 2 axis: we can be awake and not know whats going on.
Who coined the term “stream of consciousness”?
William James
Term used to signify how we experience our conscious life. Consciousness, like a running stream keeps moving yet seems to be the same. Requires attention and awareness.
Stream of consciousness
Coined by William James
Type of Attention
When a quality control worker is paying attention to and being mindful of details.
Sustained attention
Type of attention
Similar to multitasking; your brain literally cannot multitask. Doing schoolwork with music in the background but your brain is still processing the music and also processing the work. So it takes attention and resources away from the work.
Divided Attention
Type of Attention
Trying to pay attention to visual indicators. Keeping an eye out for a crosswalk on a busy street. Paying attention to spatial cues.
Spatial Attention
Dichotic listening and shadowing. When you are in a crowded room and its hard to know whats going on. But we have attention to things that include us. Someone says your name and you look.
Cocktail Party Effect
Internal rythms of biological activity.
Biological Rythms
Pattern of sleep-wake cycles that in humans, roughly correspond to periods of day and night.
-Does not always follow a day/night schedule.
-Can match with our temperature sometimes. Dips in body temperature correspond with dips in wakefullness.
Circadian Rythm (Biological Clock)
A small group of neurons in the hypothalamus.
The hypothalamus coordinates our natural rythms.
When a light goes away, the retina says you go to sleep.
Superchiasmatic Nucleus (SCN)
When day turns to night the SCN gets notified via incoming information from where?
The Retina
Then the SCN directs the pineal gland to secrete melatonin and trigger sleepiness.
Production of this hormone peaks between 1-3 AM
Melatonin
The brains ability to switch between sleep and wakefulness in response to external environment.
Sleep Regulation
Night Owls vs Morning Larks: average human goes to bed at 10-12 and gets up at 6-9. Our performance gets worse as the day goes on, but some people function better in the night.
Chronotype
- Genetics, age, ethnicity, socioeconomic status all play a role in this.
Excessive sleepiness or insomnia due to mismatch of their sleep cycle and that of others in their environment.
Ex. People who travel a lot, shift workers.
Circadian Rythm Sleep Disorder
An inability to fall asleep or stay asleep. It is the most common sleep disorder.
- Often triggered by stress
- More common in older people
Insomnia
- Cancer patients often struggle with insomnia
Insufficient Sleep
Without enough sleep we can feel depressed, have lower productivity, lower immune system response, and are more apt to make mistakes.
-Increase in blood pressure, stress hormones, obesity
-Irritability, distractibility, moral judgement and other cognitive impairment when less than 4 hrs of sleep
Sleep Debt
- Lots of evidence of disaster happening due to sleep debt, and poor sleep habits.
Term used to describe how we fall asleep quickly if we are sleep deprived
Sleep Rebound
All nighters result in poor performance
This part of the brain gets muted while we sleep to avoid sensory stimulation.
Thalamus
The thalamus is the sensory relay center
This part of the brain makes sure the muscles are paralyzed to keep asleep.
Pons
- We need sleep in order to reproduce
Theory
Holds that sleep restores our brains and bodies.
-Sleep deprevation reduces immune system functioning
Restorative Theory of Sleep
Theory
Theory that suggests organisms sleep for the purpose of self-preservation, to keep away from predators.
- Crocodiles shut down half of their brain and keep the other half awake
Adaptive Theory of Sleep
True or False: Sleep is not uniform and demonstrates vvariation in brain waves during different stages
- frequency and amplitude
True!
General phase of sleep
Darting eye movements under lids and active brain waves.
Rapid Eye Movement (REM) Sleep
General phase of sleep
Variation in brain waves identifying 4 phases ranging in wakefulness.
Non-REM Sleep
Stage of Sleep
Transition into sleep (5 mins). Heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, and muscle tension all decrease. Alpha waves change to theta waves. Easy to wake. Experience hypnagogic state, hypnagogic hallucinations, and myoclonic jerks.
- Alpha waves become frequent: low frequency, high amplitude
- Theta waves lower in frequency, higher in amplitude
Non-REM Stage 1
Stage of Sleep
Harder to wake (15-20 mins). Slowing of brain waves (still theta), sleep spindles and K-complex. Rythmic breathing, occasional body twitches, but generally relaxed. Near the end brain waves slow to delta waves (deep sleep)
Sleep spindles: bursts of high frequency
K-complex: high amplitude, important for learning and memory.
Delta: deep sleep
Non-REM Stage 2
Stage(s) of Sleep
Deepest sleep. (5-15 and 20-30 mins respectively). Charcterized by low frequency high amplitude waves (Delta 20-50%). Slow heart rate, brain and body in total relaxation. Mostly delta waves. Sleeping walking and bed wetting is more likely. Hard to wake.
Non-REM Stages 3+4
-Brain and body in a very deep state
-By the time we get to stage 4, 50% percent of waves are delta.
