Priya Srivastava
AP Psychology
Nature of Consciousness
Variations in Levels of Awareness Freud’s Arguments Unconscious Needs, Wishes, and Conflicts influence Behavior and Feelings.
Conscious and Unconscious are Different Levels of Awareness. When people are asleep or under anesthesia, they remain aware of external events to some degree.
Evolutionary Roots of Consciousness Consciousness evolved because it helped ancient humans survive and reproduce.
Consciousness allows thinking through courses of action and their consequences. Then to choose the best course without having to try all the bad ones. Forethought and Planning are Valuable Conscious adaptations.
Consciousness & Brain Activity Electroencephalograph (EEG) is a device that monitors the
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Brain Activity dominated by Beta Waves.
Beta Waves are the awake processing thought and Problem solving Brain waves.
Dreaming Occurs in REM sleep.
REM occurs about 4 Times a Night..
Age Trends in Sleep
Babies spend 50% of sleeping time in REM. Adults spend 20% of sleeping time in REM.
Elderly spend more time in Stage 1 Sleep.
Culture and Sleep
Most Cultures sleep about the same amount of time.
Siesta Cultures - in Tropical cultures take a mid-day nap around 2:00 PM to avoid the hottest time of day.
Neural Bases of Sleep
The Ascending Reticular Activating System (ARAS) consists of the afferent fibers running through the in Reticular formation that influences psychological arousal.
Many different Processes affect Sleep.
Evolutionary Bases of Sleep
Sleep helps animals restore energy and other bodily resources depleted by walking activity.
Doing Without: Sleep Deprivation
Impairs reaction time, attention, coordination, decision making, etc.
REM Deprivation – In sleep you rebound from being deprived of REM sleep by REM sleeping much more often to balance out.
REM sleep & Learning/Memory
Complete Deprivation: Most experience great difficulty getting beyond a third or fourth sleepless
Chapter 4 discusses the several states of consciousness: the nature of consciousness, sleep and dreams, psychoactive drugs, hypnosis, and meditation. Consciousness is a crucial part of human experience, it represents that private inner mind where we think, feel, plan, wish, pray, omagine, and quietly relive experiences. William James described the mind as a stream of consciousness, a continuous flow of changing sensations, images thoughts, and feelings. Consciousness has two major parts: awareness and arousal. Awareness includes the awareness of the self and thoughts about one's experiences. Arousal is the physiological state of being engaged with the environment. Theory of mind refers to individuals understanding that they and others think,
One much discussed issue in contemporary philosophy is the relation between consciousness and intentionality. Philosophers debate whether consciousness and intentionality are somehow "connected" (see Searle, chap. 7); whether the one or the other is the "theoretically fundamental" one (see Dennett); and whether we have reason to be more optimistic about an "objective" or "scientific," or "third-person" "account" of intentionality ...
In order to do so, I shall be looking at different sources and reviewing various definitions and interpretations of consciousness and distinguishing the methods approached to the study of the topic in the way it is measured.
"Artificial Intelligence and Consciousness." Encyclopedia of Consciousness. Oxford: Elsevier Science & Technology, 2009. Credo Reference. Web. 26 April 2011.
Is Consciousness something automatic, rooted in our selves, something inseparable in a being with abilities of
I will commence by defining what makes a mental state conscious. This will be done aiming to distinguish what type of state we are addressing when we speak of a mental phenomenon and how is it, that can have a plausible explanation. By taking this first approach, we are able to build a base for our main argument to be clear enough and so that we can remain committed to.
There is a great question on whether or not our conscious thoughts are something greater than a physical state: this question has two responses which state that yes, consciousness state and brain state are two separate states (dualism) and no, brain state and conscious state is one in the same (physicalism). I will be arguing that brain state and conscious state are the same by presenting scientific evidence and theories that support a physicalist view. This evidence will clearly state why the physical stance is supported while the dualist stance is not.
Consciousness is a very common and much used word used to describe the condition of being awake and aware. In other words, being conscious means responding to the environment, in contrast to being asleep or in coma. But in philosophical terms, consciousness is defined as the state in which humans are able to clearly distinguish between themselves and all other
studying the subject, the origins in the brain responsible for sleep are still not fully understood and thus, facilitate continual probes
Renner, T., Feldman, R., Majors, M., Morrissey, J., & Mae, L. (2011). States of Consciousness. Psychsmart (pp. 99-107). New York: McGraw-Hill.
To define such a universally experienced phenomena as consciousness may seem on the most superficial level rather unnecessary. Yet a more scientific, and at times philosophical, investigation into the phenomena demands some sort of confirmed interpretation which supercedes any such common understanding. For our purposes the content of consciousness may be deemed those things of which one is aware and thus can report. Thinking, as well, and the higher-level mechanisms associated there in may also be components of this consciousness. While additionally an individuals' conception that the way in which she experiences the world comes from more than just the neuronal activity of her brain can be understood as a contribution of said consciousness (2).
“Consciousness is defined as everything of which we are aware at any given time - our thoughts, feelings, sensations, and perceptions of the external environment. Physiological researchers have returned to the study of consciousness, in examining physiological rhythms, sleep, and altered states of consciousness (changes in awareness produced by sleep, meditation, hypnosis, and drugs)” (Wood, 2011, 169). There are five levels of consciousness; Conscious (sensing, perceiving, and choosing), Preconscious (memories that we can access), Unconscious ( memories that we can not access), Non-conscious ( bodily functions without sensation), and Subconscious ( “inner child,” self image formed in early childhood).
The mind is not all consciousness; unconscious motives lie behind some of our puzzling behavior (King).
Take animals for an example. We consider bats to be conscious because they behave with intention and possess the neurological substrates that scientists have determined constitute
Consciousness is a vital tool within the brain which contributes to the psychology and human behavior. When an individual is conscious, the displayed action is alert, aware and perceiving the external environment. Objectively, observing behavior for the past six weeks, and incorporating the knowledge I am mindful of the fact that consciousness sometimes is altered with changes such as sleep, meditation, hypnosis, or drugs. Most important the conscious effort to perceive environmental surroundings are observed in the smoking check out line with my local Wawa. At 6:30 am the store is crowded, individuals are operating the store system by consciously working the automatic teller machine, lottery, the food ordering station, or the coffee machines.