States of Consciousness

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States of Consciousness
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Introductory DiscussionTeams

• What exactly is consciousness? How do we explain
  unconsciousness? How do they differ?
• Summarize biological and circadian rhythms.
  Provide examples of each.
• Provide a synopsis of the sleep cycle and explain
  how it changes as it progresses.
• What is the purpose of sleep? Provide multiple
  explanations.
• Why do we dream? Come up with 2 theoretical
  propositions.

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Levels of Consciousness

• We know that various levels exists beyond the
  conscious level.
• Mere-exposure effect
• Priming
• Blind sight

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Levels of Consciousness

• Conscious Level
• Nonconscious Level
• Preconscious Level
• Subconscious Level
• Unconscious Level

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Consciousness and Information Processing

• Conscious processing
• Sequential, relatively slow and limited capacity
• Unconscious processing
• fast processing occurs simultaneously on parallel
  tracks (not sequential)
• Example?
• Meet someone unconscious, instant reaction to
  race, gender, appearance- then become aware of
  our response

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Biological Rhythms

• Bodily (and mental) fluctuations over time
• Provide an example for each
• Annual Cycles
• Animal hibernation / SAD (humans)
• Twenty-eight day cycles
• Womens menstrual cycle
• Twenty Four hour cycles
• Alertness, sleep, body temperature, growth
  hormone
• Ninety Minute cycles
• Sleep stages

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Sleep

• Sleep is a state of consciousness.
• We are less aware of our surroundings.
• Circadian Rhythm

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Animals and Sleep.

• Ferrets-15
• Cats-13
• Humans-8
• Elephants-3
• Why the discrepancy in the need for sleep?
• Smaller animals higher metabolism, more need
  for rest, recharging

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Circadian Rhythm

• Light affects Circadian Rhythm, by
• Activating retinal proteins, which
• Activates brains suprachiasmatic nucleus in
  hypothalamus, which
• Activates Pineal Gland, which increases,
  decreases melatonin (sleep inducing hormone)
• The point is
• Light strongly influences our circadian rhythm,
  which governs our sleep patterns
• What else, besides light can alter our circadian
  rhythm?

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Pineal Gland
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Sleep Cycle
Click dude for alpha Waves.

• Use an EEG machine to measure stages of sleep.
• When you are at the onset of sleep you experience
  alpha waves.
• Produces mild hallucinations, like a feeling of
  falling. (Jerk reaction!)

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Stage 1

• Kind of awake and kind of asleep. (Sleep onset)
• Only lasts a few minutes, and you usually only
  experience it once a night.
• Alpha Waves high frequency, low amplitude.
• hallucinations- (dream-like- falling or rising)

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Stage 2

• More Alpha Waves that (get slower frequency,
  higher amplitude)
• Sleep spindles short bursts of rapid brain
  waves.
• 50 of your sleep! Revisit multiple times

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Stages 3 and 4

• Delta Waves (slower wave deeper sleep)
• Deep sleep (groggy, disoriented if awakened).
• Releases childs growth hormones, restores
  immune system.
• Bed wetting, sleepwalking
• Exercise increases stage 3 and 4!
• Visit less as night progresses.

Click boys to see deep sleep.
From stage 4, your brain begins to speed up and
you go to stage 3, then 2.then
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REM Sleep

• Rapid Eye Movement
• paradoxical sleep-internally aroused, externally
  calm
• Heart rate, breathing, REM, brain waves increase
  / external paralysis
• Dream state. (95 of those awakened remember
  dream)
• Genital arousal (both genders)
• REM Rebound
• 20-25 of nights sleep! Or 2 hrs/night (6 yrs!)

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Sleep Cycle

• 90 minute cycle
• From 1, 2, 3, 4, 3,2, REM
• As night progresses, four gets shorter, REM gets
  longer

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Sleep Deprivation

• Bank Account / REM Rebound
• 1 hour sleep deprivation per night pulling all
  nighter (1 week duration)
• Need of sleep depends on circadian rhythm
• Effects mood, performance, memory, immune system
  etc.

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Sleep Disorders
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Insomnia

• Persistent problems falling asleep
• Effects 10 of the population
• Primary versus Secondary Insomnia
• Treatments Behavioral changes, medication

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Narcolepsy

• Suffer from sleeplessness and may fall asleep at
  unpredictable or inappropriate times.
• Directly into REM sleep
• Less than .001 of population.
• The most dangerous!

See Skeeter the narcoleptic dog http//www.insidee
dition.com/videos/3/skeeter,-the-narcoleptic-dog.a
spx !
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Sleep Apnea

• A person stops breathing during their sleep.
• Wake up momentarily, gasps for air, then falls
  back asleep.
• Very common, especially in heavy males.
• Can be fatal.
• Stresses the heart

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Night Terrors

• Wake up screaming / physical movement
• Early in sleep. (2-4 hours into sleep)
• Most common in children (boys) between ages 2-8.
• Usually stage 4 sleep

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Somnambulism

• Sleep Walking
• Most often occurs during the first few hours of
  sleeping and in stage 4 (deep sleep).
• If you have had night terrors, you are more
  likely to sleep walk when older.
• Most common in children- rare after 40

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Theories on Dreams
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Freuds Theory of Dreams

• Dreams are a roadway into our unconscious.
• Manifest Content (storyline)
• Latent Content (underlying meaning)
• Psychological (Psychoanalysis)

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Activation-Synthesis Theory

• Biological Theory.
• Cerebral Cortex tries to interpret random
  electrical activity we have while sleeping.
• That is why dreams sometimes make no sense.

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Information-Processing Theory

• Dreams are a way to deal with the stresses of
  everyday life.
• We tend to dream more when we are more stressed.
• Integrate new experiences, information into memory

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Hypnosis
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Hypnosis

• How do we define hypnosis?
• Social interaction in which one person
  (hypnotist) suggests to another (subject) that
  certain perceptions, feelings, thoughts etc. will
  spontaneously occur.

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Hypnosis

• Altered state of consciousness?
• Posthypnotic suggestion
• Posthypnotic amnesia

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Hypnotic Theories

• Role Theory

• State Theory

• Hypnosis is NOT an altered state of
  consciousness.
• Different people have various state of hypnotic
  suggestibility.
• A social phenomenon where people want to believe.
  (social influence theory)
• Work better on people with richer fantasy lives.

• Hypnosis is an altered state of consciousness.
• Dramatic health benefits
• It works for pain best.

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Dissociation Theory

• Theory by Ernest Hilgard.
• We voluntarily divide our consciousness up.
• Stimulus of pain vs. perception of, or emotional
  suffering of pain (PET Scans..)
• Ice Water Experiment.

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Research has shown that

• Ability to experience hypnosis does not indicate
  gullibility or weakness
• Hypnosis does not increase accuracy of memory
• Spontaneous posthypnotic amnesia is relatively
  rare
• Does not foster a literal reexperiencing of
  childhood events
• Hypnotic subjects retain their ability control
  behavior, maintain awareness of surroundings
• Hypnosis if far more effective for acute pain
  than chronic pain

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DrugsAre we a drug dependent society?
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Dependency and Addiction

• True or false
• 1. Medical drugs, (example- pain killers) are
  powerfully addictive.
• 2. Addictions can only be overcome through
  treatment.
• How do we define physical dependence?
• How would you characterize psychological
  dependence?

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Drugs

• Our brain is protected by a layer of capillaries
  called the blood-brain barrier.
• The drugs that are small enough to pass through
  are called psychoactive drugs.
• How do we define psychoactive drugs?

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Drugs are either.

• Agonists (mimic, excite)
• Antagonists (inhibit,block)
• Reuptake inhibitors
• If a drug is used often, a tolerance is created
  for the drug (neuroadaptation brain adapts
  chemistry to offset drugs effect)
• Thus you need more of the drug to feel the same
  effect.
• If you stop using a drug you can develop
  withdrawal symptoms.

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A Quick ReviewPsychoactive drugs operate at the
brains synapses

• (Briefly (generally) explain the process of
  neurotransmission.
• Neurotransmitters
• Dopamine
• Serotonin
• Norepinephrine
• Endorphins

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Depressants

• Explain how depressants affect nervous system
  activity and behavior.
• What types of drugs are classified as depressants?

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Depressants

• Depresses,Slows down CNS.
• Alcohol
• Reduces REM sleep
• Social disinhibitor
• Memory loss/ kills brain cells
• Anxiolytics (barbiturates and tranquilizers)
• disinhibitor

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Alcohol

• More than 86 billion dollars are spent annually
  on alcoholic beverages.
• Alcohol is involved in 60 of ALL crimes.
• Alcohol is involved in over 70 of sexually
  related crimes.
• Is it worth the cost?

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Opiates

• Has depressive and hallucinogenic qualities.
• Agonist for endorphins.
• Derived from poppy plant.
• Morphine, heroin, methadone and codeine.
• Brain stops producing endorphins
• Physically addictive

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Stimulants

• Identify the major stimulants and explain how
  they affect neural activity and behavior.

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Stimulants

• Excites neural activity (CNS).
• More powerful ones (like cocaine) give people
  feelings of invincibility.

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Stimulants

• Chief Characteristics
• Caffeine
• Nicotine
• Amphetamines
• Methamphetamines
• Cocaine
• Ecstasy

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Hallucinogens

• Describe the psychological and physiological
  affects of hallucinogens and summarize the
  effects of LSD and marijuana.

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Hallucinogens

• Psychedelics
• change in perception without change in sensory
  input
• LSD, peyote, psilocybin mushrooms, marijuana.
• Marijuana no tolerance established

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What factors promote drug use?

• Biological Research studies indicate that
  genetics are influential in drug dependency
  (brain pleasure pathway- dopamine reward circuit)
• psychological life as meaningless, directionless
  (significant stress, failure, depression)
• Social / cultural cultural norms, social
  pressures

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