UNIT 1 - Sleep & Sensation

Uses electrodes placed on the scalp to record electrical signals from neurons firing.

Shows metabolic functions and structure of the brain.

Uses X-rays to show brain structure.

Uses radioactive glucose to show activation of different parts of the brain.

The body's natural biological clock that changes blood pressure, regulates internal temperature, and maintains the sleep-wake cycle over a 24-hour period.

If deprived of REM sleep due to constant waking up, the body will get to REM quicker in subsequent sleep cycles to make up for the lost REM.

The phenomenon where individuals experience an increase in REM sleep after periods of REM deprivation.

Sleep allows the body to repair cellular damage, clear waste products, and replenish essential molecules.

Sleep conserves energy and promotes growth, with the pituitary gland releasing growth hormones during deep sleep.

Sleep plays a role in reorganizing and restructuring neural connections in the brain.

Difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep.

Individuals struggle with breathing during sleep, making it hard to fall asleep or enter REM Sleep.

Individuals act out their dreams during REM Sleep, when the body should normally be paralyzed.

A person gets up and walks around while still sleeping.

An individual experiences intense fear while sleeping, often accompanied by screaming or thrashing.

A chronic neurological condition characterized by the brain's inability to regulate sleep-wake cycles normally.

Occurs when an outside stimulus activates sensory neurons.

The process by which physical stimuli are converted into electrical signals that the brain can interpret.

When exposed to a continuous stimulus that doesn't change, the brain tunes the stimulus out (e.g., not noticing the smell of a candle after a while).

When repeatedly exposed to a stimulus, there's a reduced response (e.g., ignoring outside noise, not feeling a ring on your finger).

Our senses working together to influence perception.

A neurological condition where one sense is experienced through another (e.g., seeing colors when hearing music, tasting flavors when reading words).

The distance between two peaks of a wave. Determines the color perceived. Longer wavelength corresponds to warmer colors.

The height of the wave. Determines the brightness of the light.

The number of waves that pass a given point per second. Inversely related to Wavelength (higher frequency means shorter wavelength).

The eye's ability to change the lens shape to focus light onto the retina, allowing clear vision at different distances.

Damage to the brain or Occipital Lobe affecting visual processing.

A processing error caused by damage to the occipital lobe and temporal lobes, resulting in the inability to recognize faces.

Damage to the primary visual cortex in the occipital lobe where individuals appear blind in part of their visual field, unable to consciously see or respond to stimuli, yet can still react to certain visual stimuli without conscious awareness.

How the brain determines the origin (direction and distance) of sounds in our environment.

Difficulty processing auditory information within the brain, even with normal hearing.

Chemical signals released by an individual that affect the behavior or physiology of other individuals, associated with attraction, social interaction, and communication.

The five fundamental taste qualities detected by the tongue: Sweet (sugar, energy), Sour (acidic, spoiled food), Bitter (toxicity), Salty (sodium), and Umami (savory, amino acid L-glutamate, meat, cheese, protein).

Proposed 6th taste for fat or the presence of fatty acids.

Small structures on the tongue that house taste buds. Types include filiform papilla, circumvallate papilla, fungiform papilla, and foliate papilla.

Each taste bud contains a variety of taste receptor cells that detect taste.

The spinal cord contains a neurological 'gate' that can either block pain signals or allow them to pass through to the brain. Factors like Attention, psychological state, and other sensory inputs can influence the gate's activity.

An individual experiences pain or other sensations where a body part they lost (due to amputation) used to be. This is a Neurological phenomenon where the brain and spinal cord may still receive signals from nerves that once served the missing limb, which can become hyperactive or misinterpret other signals. The Brain has a 'map of the body,' and even after a limb is lost, the corresponding area in the brain's map may remain active and produce sensations as if the limb is still there.

The sense of balance and spatial orientation. When you move your head, the fluid inside the Semicircular Canals bends, sending a nerve signal to the brain. This allows the brain to understand the direction of rotation and speed of rotation, ultimately helping to maintain balance.

Provides information about the position and movement of individual body parts (e.g., where your limbs are in space and how they are moving without needing to visually monitor them). This sense relies on Proprioceptors, which are sensory receptors located in various muscles and tendons.