Consciousness

Created by Jessica Brown

consciousness
the subject awareness of mental events

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TermDefinition
consciousness
the subject awareness of mental events
What are the main functions of consciousness
1. Regulating thoughts and behaviours 2. Monitoring self and the environment
circadian rhythm
the biological clock; regular bodily rhythms that occur on a 24-hour cycle
Sleeps main Functions
Memory Consolidation - transforming STM into LTM Energy conservation - Conserving energy Restoring bodily functions - immune system, brain, etc.
What SLEEP STATES are there
Non-REM REM
Non-REM Sleep
- No rapid eye movement - 75-80% of sleep - helps recover daily fatigue Occurs in stages 1, 2, 3, 4
REM Sleep
- associated with dreaming - light sleep - 20-25% sleep body is very still
Altered consciousness
usual ways of thinking, feeling, and percieving are modified or disrupted
What are some altered states of consciousness
Sleep meditation hypnosis religious experiences drug ingestion
What are the categories of different drugs
Depressants Stimulants Hallucinogens Opiates
What can lack of sleep cause
hallucinations early death by interference of immune system
What do Depressants do
Slow down mental and physical activity by inhibiting neural transmission in CNS
What do Stimulants do
Can cause long term changes in neurotransmitter systems alter mood enhance arousal and state of awareness paranoid delusions
What do hallucinogens do
Alter our perception of the external environment and inner awareness LSD binds to serotonin
What do opiates do
Suppress physical sensation & response to stimulation
examples of stimulants
coffee nicotine cocaine anphetamines methamphetamines
examples of hallucinogens
LSD PCP Ecstacy
examples of opiates
Morphine Heroin
examples of depressants
GHB alcohol
why do we dream?
To fufill our wishes - freud theorised that dreams show our unconscious desires and inner thoughts to remember to forget - during dreaming, keep our brains working to rehearse to heal - to take the edge off of pyschologically difficulty things and events solve problems - the committee of sleep!
How does little to no sleep affect you?
hormonal imbalance death illness hallucinations high blood pressure.
Gylphatic system
flushes toxic build up works when asleep
Sleep research
EEG - brain electrical activity EMG - muscle activity EOG - eye movements
Explain the stages of sleep
Awake: Alpha waves Stage 1: Theta waves 3-7 CPS (cycles per second) Stage 2: characterised by sleep spindles - low amplitude bursts of activity 12-14CPS Stage 3: Delta waves - large and slow Stage 4: Delta waves - predominate REM sleep: EEG similar to when awake
Sleep cycles
take 90-100 minutes Non-rem 80-90 mins rem- 10 mins
Pyschodynamic view of dreaming
dreams represents a window into unconscious where meaning can be inferred from the dream
Cognitive view of dreaming
dreams are constructed from the daily issues of the dreamer
Biological view of dreaming
dreams represent the attempt of the cortex to interpret the random neural firing of the brain during sleep or the consolidation of newly learnt material.
Sleep disorders
Insomnia: chronic inability to sleep subjective insomnia: you think you have insomnia...you dont. Narcolepsy: irresistable compulsion to sleep during daytime Sleep apnea: upper repiratory disorder - stop breathing while asleep Sleepwalking: wandering - associated in the first 3rd of the night
Nightmares
more frequent in kids and occurs in rem sleep
Night terrors
non-rem sleep 2-3 hours into sleeping during stage 4