PSYC 1001 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Slow-Wave Sleep, Circadian Rhythm, Hypnic Jerk
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PSYC 1001 Full Course Notes
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Consciousness: subjective awareness of everything going on inside and outside of you. Waking state: thoughts, feelings, sensations are clear. Altered state: shift in quality of pattern of mental activity. In a state of consciousness, occurring in cycles of several stages (we spend about a third of our lives sleeping) Sleep cycles are usually defined by the electroencephalogram (eeg), a device that measures brain waves. Biological rhythms: patterns that are governed by biological processes (called clocks ) and cycle over days, weeks, months, or years. Circadian rhythms: internally driven biological rhythms that cycle about every 24 hours, affecting physiological and behavioral processes. Special cells in the retina relay messages about light in the environment to the scn. The scn then communicates these signals to the pineal gland. The pineal gland releases a hormone called melatonin, which peaks in levels at nighttime and is reduced during wakefulness. This means that we have 2 time-keeping sources: Endogenous biological clocks with ~25 hour cycle.
