Brain, Body and Awareness Unit Two: Chapter 6 Unit Two: Biopsychology Domain Chapter 4: Consciousness

Complete the following: I tasted I smelled I saw I touched I heard I remembered I felt I thought

DEFINING CONSCIOUSNESS Consciousness a construct: acceptance that it exists, although it cannot be seen or touched An awareness of what is happening inside or outside oneself A map of the self in relation to all that is around you It is different at each moment Waking Consciousness Thoughts, feelings and sensations are clear and organized Altered State of Consciousness Shift in quality of mental activity Explicit Processing full attention; effortful Implicit Automatic; w/o awareness

Alert Voice Pain Unresponsive

LEVELS OF CONSCIOUSNESS Subconscious Consciousness just below our present awareness Unconscious Thoughts or desires for which we have no direct knowledge Sigmund Freud 1856-1939

UNSEEN FORCES Biological Clocks internal chemical units that control regular cycles in parts of the brain; programmed and regulated by nature Free-running cycles: cycles set up by biological clocks that are under their own control ignoring the environment Entrainment: process of altering the free-running cycle to fit a different rhythm Circadian Rhythm Sequences of behavior changes that occur every 24 hours Sleeptexting

Zits March 6, 2012

WHAT ARE THE FUNCTIONS OF SLEEP? Adaptive Theory Sleep is a product of evolution: safety avoiding predators and conserving energy. Restorative Theory To maintain physical health; replenish chemicals, repair damaged cells.

THE NATURE OF SLEEP AND DREAMS

THEORIES WHY WE DREAM To Process Information While brain replenishes itself with needed chemicals, the dreams process the day s (or days ) stimuli To Work Out Unsolved Problems We wake up with the day s problem solved (or forgotten) To Make Sense of Random Information The brain purges random information we don t need; dreams are created to make sense of the random stimulation

DREAM CONTENT 1. ordinary events 2. worries, fears, problems, insecurities 3. falling, flying, being chased, naked in public, talking to dead people 4. 50-50 color or black and white 5. bizarre Dream Interpretation Freud believed that dream were a window into our unconscious; content symbolically represented hidden impulses or desires Sigmund Freud 1856-1939

WHILE WE SLEEP

THE POWER OF NAPS Sleep Deprivation Power Naps Long Naps 15 20 min: can reset the system 30-60 min: good for decision-making skills 60-90 min: good for brain making new connections solving problems

SLEEP DISTURBANCES Microsleeps: Sides steps into sleep; few seconds to few minutes Insomnia: Inability to get enough sleep Getting out of the normal circadian rhythm Taking drugs and alcohol Stress: inability to turn off your brain Narcolepsy: Instant REM Sleep Apnea: Person stops breathing during sleep: unable to get rested

STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS Hypnosis State of relaxation; awareness focused on certain objects, acts, or feelings Characteristics (it s not what you think it is) 1. Not everyone can be hypnotized 2. No one can be made to do anything against their will 3. Reliving regressed memories is controversial Hypnotherapy: using characteristics of hypnosis to change behaviors

Table 10.1 Facts about Hypnosis

STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS Meditation Strict self-control filtering the outside world from consciousness Subliminal Perception Stimulation presented below the level of consciousness. Brain is always taking in information from the environment can affect choices you make. Can watching a movie in a theatre make you buy a coke and popcorn? If it were really that powerful, wouldn t we all be zombies? Bush 2000 Ad

SUBLIMINAL ADVERTISING IMAGES