Endogenous Pacemakers And Exogenous Zeitgebers Flashcards
What are endogenous pacemakers?
Internal body clocks that regulate many of our biological rhythms ⏰
What’s are exogenous zeitgebers?
External cues that may affect our biological rhythms 🌙
What does SCN stand for?
Suprachiasmatic nucleus
What did DeCoursey et al 2000 study?
Chipmunks 🐿
He destroyed the SCN in 30 chipmunks, then returned them to their natural environments🌳
He observed them for 80 days 👀
They lost their natural sleep cycles and so most got killed by predictors
What did Ralph et al 1990 study?
Mutant hamsters🐹
They took brain cells from foetus hamsters and put them in normal hamsters, and they developed a 20 hour sleep cycle 💤
What gland is responsible for the production of melatonin?
Pineal gland
What is melatonin?
A chemical that induces sleep 😴
Explain how ‘influence of exogenous zeitgebers may be over stated’ is a criticism for this topic.
Miles et al 1977
Miles recount the story of a man, blind from birth, who had a 24.9 hour sleep cycle 😑
He wasn’t affected by social cues
Suggests their unimportance
What are two exogenous zietgebers that effect out sleep/wake cycle?
Light 💡 and social cues 🍼
