PSYA01H3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 5.1: Circadian Rhythm, Sleep Deprivation, Jet Lag
Document Summary
Exercise 5. 1: biological rhythms of consciousness: wakefulness and sleep. Consciousness: is a person"s subjective awareness, including thoughts, perceptions, experiences of the world, and self-awareness. Organisms have evolved biological rhythms that are neatly adapted to the cycles in their environment. Circannual rhythm (a term that literally means a yearly cycle ). infradian rhythm: which is any rhythm that occurs over a period of time longer than a day. In humans, the best-known infradian rhythm is the menstrual cycle. These more frequent biological rhythms are referred to as ultradian rhythms. One key brain structure in this process is the suprachiasmatic nucleus (scn) of the hypothalamus. Cells in the retina of the eye relay messages about light levels in the environment to the scn. 2 explanations for our 24 hour rhythm: one is entrainment, when biological rhythms become synchronized to external cues such as light, temperature, or even a clock.
