PHYSICS 102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 13: Sleep Spindle, Medium Frequency, Chronobiology
Document Summary
Ps: sleeping and biological rhythm: what are the (five) stages of sleep and their characteristics. Alpha activity: consists of regular, medium frequency waves (8- 12hz: when a person is resting quietly, not particularly aroused, not engaged in strenuous mental activity, much more prevalent when eyes closed. Beta activity irregular, mostly low amplitude waves (13- 30hz: desynchrony (many different neural circuits in the brain are actively processing information) Theta activity indication of more synchronized firing of neurons in neocortex. Stage 2 (about 15mins) irregular eeg increased voltage/amplitude, reduced frequency. Periods of theta activity, sleep spindles, k complexes. Sleep spindles: short bursts of waves (12-14hz, thought to play a role in consolidation of memories, between increased numbers of sleep spindles correlates to increased intelligence test scores found during stages 1-3. K complex: sudden, sharp waveforms isolated periods of neural inhibition, only found during stage 2, can be triggered by noises. Stage 3/4 (slow wave sleep 45 mins)
