Ch 6
Consciousness
Consciousness
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I. Defining Consciousness - the organism’s awareness of, or possibility of knowing what
is happening inside or outside itself.
A. Construct - a concept requiring a belief in something that cannot be seen or
touched but that seems to exist.
1. all day long, we combine millions of brief memory images of ourselves
with our current images of the world
B. Levels of consciousness
1. subconscious - consciousness just below our present awareness
2. unconscious - thoughts or desires about which we have no direct
knowledge
Consciousness
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C. Biological clocks - internal chemical units that control regular cycles in parts of
the body (programmed and regulated by nature)
1. free - running cycles - cycles set up by biological clocks that are under
their own control, ignoring the environment
a. body has a natural rhythm that free-runs on a cycle of 25hrs.
2. entrainment - process of altering the free-running cycle to fit a different
rhythm (training)
a. in a light / dark cycle we must entrain to the Earth (24 hrs)
D. Circadian rhythm - sequences of behavioral changes that occur every 24 hrs.
1. human circadian rhythm has high and low points. (low temperature, low
blood pressure, weakness - occurs around 3 - 5 am)
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II. The Nature of Sleep and Dreams
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A. First hour of sleep is the deepest - dramatic fall in blood pressure, heart rate
and breathing. Unexpected events occur the rest of the night
B. twilight state - relaxed state just before we fall asleep, electrical activity in the
 brain begins to slow
C. Sleep helps restore the body (1) making of new cells (2) chemical in the brain
that were used up are restored (3) Body hair grows most rapidly
D. REM - (rapid eye movement) most important purpose of sleep - dreaming
1. occurs 4 - 5 times a night
2. brain begins to fire furiously
3. blood pressure zooms upward
4. eyes move rapidly from side to side and up and down
5. breathing and heartbeat are very rapid
6. body is in a paralyzed state
7. REM occurs about every 90 min.
8. dreams last about 10 - 40 min. with each lasting longer than the previous
9. dreams you remember are those that occur closest to morning
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Sleep Cycle
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E. Brain Changes
1. waking state + five brain-wave patterns
a. awake (beta waves)
b. stage 1 (alpha waves)
c. REM periods
d. stage 2
e. stage 3
f. stage 4 (delta waves)
2. typical pattern of a night’s sleep
Awake (beta) - get in bed and relax stage 1(alpha) - begin twilight
state (moving into stage 2) - stage 3 (moving into deeper sleep) stage 4 (delta) deepest sleep (1 hour into sleep) - head in a reverse
direction - on the way back before stage one you will enter REM
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Sleep Cycle
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3. NREM Sleep - second type of sleep (non-rapid eye movement)
a. brain is still active
b. no organizational stories found in REM
c. may be the time the body rests
d. growth hormone is secreted in adolescents (reason for long sleep)
4. Purpose of Dreaming - 3 major hypothesis
a. to process information - dreams process the past day or more
b. to work out unsolved problems - when you wake you have
solved the problem or forgotten it.
c. to make sense of random stimulation to the brain unnecessary material is being flushed out - dreams
occur using the bits and pieces of the random stimulation
III. Psychology of Dreams
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A. Dream Content
1.
2.
3.
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5.
things from normal day - family, friends, school
worries, fears, feeling inferior
arguments
strange dreams do not mean something is wrong
concept that dreams are symbolic or represent deep, hidden needs and
desires
6. 50% of dreams are in color - 50% are in black and white
B. Nightmares - frightening dream during REM
1. REM rebound - increase in number of dreams after being deprived of
REM sleep (drinking too much alcohol - not getting
enough sleep
2. nightmares are not caused by eating something strange
C. Night terrors
1. a horrible dream occurring during NREM, when the body is not prepared
for it
2. major bodily changes - breathing rate zooms upward, person feels
choked, heart rate takes off
3. feeling of panic, fear of dying, sleeper usually awakes suddenly
sweating, nauseated and afraid
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IV. Practical Issues in Sleep
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A. Social Entrainment - going to too many parties, visiting too much, “hanging out”
1. rhythms are altered
B. Length of Sleep - body tends to seek about 7 - 8 hours
1. teenagers need 8 - 9 hours
2. today people are sleeping less and doing more
3. productivity suffers, prone to mental confusion and accidents
4. too much sleep is not good - brain is drowsy
5. long sleepers tend to die earlier
C. Walking and Talking in your sleep
1. usually occurs during stage 4
2. it is not harmful to awaken someone who is sleepwalking
D. Sleep Disturbance
1. insomnia - the inability to get enough sleep
a. getting out of the circadian cycle
b. taking drugs or alcohol - especially before going to sleep
c. REM is blocked
d. excessive alcohol use can cause severe REM rebound while a
person is still awake (bugs and snakes crawling all over, etc.)
2. narcolepsy - person falls instantly into sleep no matter what is going
on in the environment (very dangerous)
3. sleep apnea - person’s breathing often stops while the person is asleep
V. States of Consciousness (does not
occur naturally)
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A. Hypnosis - state of relaxation in which attention is focused on certain objects,
acts, or feelings
1. suggestion is basic to hypnosis (it can relieve minor pain)
2. myths - (1) hypnosis is a special trance state (2) hypnotist can control
the person being hypnotized (3) hypnosis improves memory
3. trance - another word for the state of deep relaxation that can occur
during hypnosis.
4. Age Regression - The process where someone relives their childhood under
hypnosis.
- Does not really happen
B. Meditation - a form of self-control in which the outside world is cut off from
consciousness
1. very effective in lowering blood pressure or slowing heart rate
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Tips
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Sleep is important for learning! Sleep deprivation results in intellectual deprivation!
Sleep as much as you feel you need
Avoid alarm clocks
Forget about trying to fall asleep at pre-planned time! Let your body decide!
Forget about trying to fall asleep quickly! If your body decides it is the right time, it will come naturally!
Do not try to make yourself sleepy! It is enough you stay awake and keep on working/learning long enough!
It is much better to eliminate the source of stress rather than to try to forget stressful situations right before the bedtime!
Learn the details of your sleep timing (how many hours you sleep, how many hours before you need to take a nap or go to
sleep again, etc.). Use this knowledge to optimize your schedule
Be careful with caffeine. Drink coffee only upon awakening (or after a nap if you take one)
Do not go beyond a single drink of alcohol per day. Drink it at siesta time
Quit smoking!
Use siesta time for a nap if you find it helpful
If you cannot fall asleep in 30 minutes, get up! You are not yet ready for sleep!
If you sleep it out and still not feel refreshed, be sure you do not sleep against your circadian rhythm. Remember that you may
need 1-2 weeks to synchronize all bodily functions before this starts working!
If you cannot get refreshing sleep even in free-running conditions after at least a month of trying, consult a sleep specialist
Remember, however, that a bad night is a factor of life. Few can avoid it. Do not get alarmed even if it happens weekly