PSYC 107 1nd EditionExam # 2 Study Guide Lectures 8 – 14Chapter 3: Consciousness of the Two Track MindWhat is dual processing?Information is simultaneously processed on separate conscious and unconscious tracks. Serial conscious processing requires focused attention while unconscious processing does not require focused attention. Conscious memories are explicit while unconscious memories are implicit. How much information can we collect at one time?Dual processing allows for selective attention which is the ability to focus on one stimulus while other stimuli are occurring at the same time. Part of selective attention is the cocktail affect which is when someone calls your name and you can immediately focus on their voice. In class, a video was shown where we were supposed to count the number of times the players wearing white shirts passed a basketball back and forth between one another; many people were so intent on the video that they failed to notice the gorilla that danced into the frame. This video was an example of intentional blindness which is the inability to see an object because one is intent on another task.What is the circadian rhythm?Our bodies run on a 24 hour cycle; however, if allowed to follow natural rhythms, most people would follow a 25 hour schedule. The circadian rhythm comes from the name circa which means about and diam which means day. Body temperature rises when it is time for us to wake up, peaks during the day, dips down in time for a nap, and then decreases again when it is time to sleep. The cycle is started in the morning when the light from the day and is ended when the light goes away at night. Melatonin, a sleep inducing hormone, increases during the night and decreases during the day. The supachiasmatic nucleus is located in the hypothalamus and is responsible for the melatonin production. Without any light to initiate melatonin, our bodies would start running on 48 hour cycles and all other biological cycles would stop such as menstrual cycles. As children reach adolescence, the time they want to fall asleep and wake up is delayed an hour. What is the sleep rhythm?The sleep rhythm takes 90 minutes and has 5 different stages:Stage 1 occurs when you just fall asleep. Sensory hallucinations occur during the stage which can be jerking, feeling of falling, etc. Hypnic mayoclonia is jerking right before falling asleep and hypnagogic imagery is vivid imagery before falling asleep.Stage 2 is the first sleep cycle. One characteristic is sleep spindles which are rapid burst of brain activity. Sleep talking occurs in this stageStage 3 has long, slow delta waves and is a transitional stage to stage 4. ~30 minutes. Stage 3 sleep becomes less common and shorter as the night goes on eventually disappearing altogether. This is a deep sleep stage.Stage 4 also has long, slow delta waves and at the end of stage 4 is when most sleepwalking or bedwetting episodes occur. ~30 minutes as the night goes on, stage 4 becomes less common and shorter eventually disappearing all together. This is a deep sleep stage.REM sleep is the last stage of sleep. Sexual arousal is high during this time whether or not the dream is a sexual dream. During REM sleep, you are completely paralyzed because the brainstem blocks any messages from going to your body keeping your muscles relaxed. If this didn’t happen, whatever your body is doing in your dream would be done in real life as well. REM sleep is biologically necessary, if deprived of REM sleep, the body will spend more time in REM sleep the next time it is able to sleep.Reasons for SleepingSleep protected our ancestors; they slept at the time of day when it was most dangerous – nighttime. Sleep recuperates your mind and body. When we sleep, our brain stores the day’s events and creates memories. Our brain develops while sleeping.Sleep Disorders:Insomnia: persistent inability to fall asleep; while 30% of population claims to have this problem, most is self-reported which is not a good way to asses one’s sleep. Narcolepsy: overpowering urge to fall asleep that may occur while talking or standing upSleep apnea: failure to breathe when you are asleep. Most common in overweight men. Night terrors: is the sudden arousal from sleep with intense fear; accompanied by physiological reactions. Usually occurs during sleep stage 4 and children usually do not remember these.Sleepwalking: usually unrecalled the next day. More common in children. Sleepwalking can be a crime defense (Case of Kenneth Parks, murdered –in-laws while sleep walking.Sleep talking: runs in families and occurs in sleep stages 2 – 4. Why do we dream?Dreams are a way of satisfying our own wishes. The manifest content of wishes is the content that actually happened while the latent content is the wishes that drive the dreams. Dreaming also file memories, and develop neural pathways. What is hypnosis and what powers do a hypnotist have over the subject?Hypnosis is when one person tells another person that certain sensations or feelings will randomly occur. Hypnotized people may do things they normally would not do; but they cannot recall forgotten memories; hypnosis sometimes creates false memories. Psychoactive Drugs: chemicals that change perceptions and moods. These chemicals go to the synapses and stimulate, inhibit, or mimic neurotransmitters (dopamine – rewarding activities, serotonin – mood, hunger, sleep and arousal, norepinephrine – arousal, GABA – inhibitory neurotransmitter. There are three main classes: depressants, stimulants, and hallucinogens.AlcoholAlcohol is a depressant which triggers the release of epinephrine. Alcohol lowers our inhibitors, slows neural processing, disrupts memory formation, and reduces self-awareness. Alcohol slowssympathetic nervous system activity. Alcohol disrupts the ability to form memories because alcohol inhibits REM sleep. Alcohol is a depressant even in small and large amounts.CaffeineCaffeine is a stimulant which can cause headaches and fatigue if taken out of daily diet. After drinking large amounts of caffeine, the body becomes accustomed to the caffeine and the symptoms of caffeine would stop being as apparent. NicotineNicotine stimulates that release of dopamine which makes people happy. (Stimulant) Nicotine addiction usually starts at the teenage year; the probability of becoming addicted to nicotine if not already addicted to nicotine in college is very small. Most teenagers start smoking