PSYC Exam 3 Part 1

What is responsible for our daily rhythms of wakefulness and sleepiness?

a brain area that generates these rhythms

What controls the biological rhythms of wakefulness and sleepiness?

an area in the brain

What criticism do psychologists today make regarding Freud's theory of dreams?

it makes no testable predictions

Which of the following characterizes someone in a coma?

low brain activity with no response to any stimulation

Sleepwalking occurs mostly in stages 3 and 4 of sleep. Why would it be unlikely in REM?

major muscles are paralyzed during REM

A worker at International Amalgamated, Inc. is currently working from 8 am to 4 pm. The company wants to shift her to a different work time. For the sake of her physical and mental health, which change would be the best?

mover her to the 4 pm to midnight shift, then to the midnight to 8 am shift

What disorder, if anything, is related to talking in your sleep?

nothing

Ordinarily, people do not walk or otherwise act out their dreams during REM sleep because REM sleep is associated with

relaxation of the major muscles

According to Sigmund Freud, what do dreams reveal about a person?

unconscious thoughts and motivations

During an ordinary night's sleep, the usual sequence of sleep is

1-2-3-4-3-2-REM...

In 1965, a high school student, Randy Gardner, stayed awake 11 days for a science fair project. What effect did this experience have on him?

Gardner suffered no serous psychological consequences

During which stage of sleep is the brain most active?

REM

Nightmares occur mostly during ___ sleep; night terrors occur during ___ sleep

REM non-REM

What happens to body temperature and logical reasoning over the course of an experiment in which volunteers go without sleep for 3 days?

They become lower over days, but they improve a bit each morning compared to the previous night

You are monitoring the sleep of a healthy young woman, you note that a high percentage of her sleep has been occupied by REM for the last hour. Which of the following is most likely?

You are recording her during the first hour or two of the night

On average, how do the circadian rhythms of younger and older adults compare?

older adults are more likely to have their most alert time early in the day

REM sleep is synonymous with

paradoxical sleep

Do any blind people have visual dreams?

yes, people who became blind by eye damage at least temporarily have visual dreams

Some people describe themselves as "morning people", while others describe themselves as "evening people". Which of the following statements is true regarding that distinction?

"Evening people" have low body temperatures in the morning that gradually rise during the day

In an unchanging environment (such as a cave or a submarine), people become sleepy about once every

12-13 hours

An investigator who wishes to identify whether a person is in stage 1, 2, 3, or 4 of sleep would probably rely on which device?

EEG

A circadian rhythm lasts about how long?

a day

Night terrors are fairly common in ___ and they occur mostly during ___ sleep

children non-REM

Which of the following is likely to cause people to ignore one half of the body?

damage to the right hemisphere of the brain

During REM sleep

dreaming is likely to occur

What evidence indicated that a woman in a vegetative state may be conscious?

her brain activity responded to commands such as "imagine playing tennis"

Dreaming is similar to

mind wandering

During which stage(s) of sleep does dreaming occur?

mostly during REM sleep, but some also during non-REM sleep

Logan often has sudden attacks of sleepiness during the day. He is probably suffering from what?

narcolepsy

People with which disorder have trouble breathing while they are asleep?

sleep apnea

The brain activity associated with REM sleep is most similar to that associated with

stage 1 sleep

During which stage of sleep is brain activity the least?

stage 4

The greatest difficulty with Freud's theory of dreams is that

the accuracy of the therapist's interpretations cannot be tested

Why is sleepwalking unlikely during REM sleep?

the postural muscles are so relaxed that they would not support a person

What evidence suggests that we sometimes consciously perceive a stimulus afterward, instead of simultaneously with it?

the way you perceive a first stimulus sometimes alters the way you perceive a second stimulus

Researchers flash a word briefly on a screen, followed by a masking pattern. What is the purpose of the masking pattern?

to prevent consciousness of the stimulus

In which condition does the brain show a low, steady rate of activity and no response to any stimulus?

coma

What is one important function of sleep?

conserving energy

A person is suffering from insomnia if he or she

consistently feels tired and inefficient during the day due to lack of sleep

Jet lag occurs whenever you change time zones quickly. Which type of trip will result in the most difficult adjustment?

flying from Los Angeles to New York

A period of sleep ___ memory for something just learned and ___ attention and memory for material learned after awakening

improves improves

REM sleep is also called paradoxical sleep because

the brain is very active, but the muscles are relaxed

People note the moment when they decide to flex their wrist, and they report it later. Researchers record the time of the movement, the time of the reported decision, and the time when activity began to increase in the premotor cortex of the person's brain. Which comes FIRST?

the increase in brain activity

In nearly all cases of REM sleep,

the postural muscles are completely relaxed

Researchers wanted to present a stimulus that would become conscious on some trials and not on others, while keeping the stimulus itself the same. Which of these methods did they use to make the stimulus unconscious?

they presented interfering stimuli before and after the stimulus