Overview
All mammals and birds sleep. It is a requirement of life. It is apparently nature’s way of making us take a break.
The brain generates wake-sleep cycles on daily basis. As adenosine increases increases over the day, we get sleepy. When darkness comes, we begin to synthesize melatonin (along with a lowered body temperature helps us stay asleep).
Sleep includes 3 stages of successively deeper sleep and 1 stage of REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. We progress from N1 to N2 to N3 to N2 to REM and back again to N2 to N3 to N2 to REM.
Pay particular attention to the processes and functions of sleep.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this module, you should be able to:
- Explain the impact of the brainstem and forebrain in arousal.
- Compare and contrast K-complexes and sleep spindles.
- Describe common sleep disorders and their treatment.
- Compare and contrast wakefulness and sleep.
Readings
- Kalat C8
- Sleep
Slides
Videos
Discussion
Which sleep disorder symptoms have you experienced?
Quiz (not the same as on Canvas)
Written Assignment
- What is the activation-synthesis hypothesis of dreaming?
- What is the pineal gland and how does it affect sleep?
- What did you find difficult or confusing in this chapter? If nothing was difficult or confusing, what did you find most interesting?
Study Aids
Key Terms
- activation-synthesis hypothesis
- alpha waves
- basal forebrain
- brain death
- clinico-anatomical hypothesis
- coma
- endogenous circadian rhythms
- endogenous circannual rhythm
- insomnia
- jet lag
- K-complex
- locus coeruleus
- melatonin
- minimally conscious state
- night terror
- non-REM (NREM) sleep
- orexin (hypocretin)
- paradoxical sleep
- periodic limb movement disorder
- PGO waves
- pineal gland
- polysomnograph
- pontomesencephalon
- rapid eye movement (REM) sleep
- REM behavior disorder
- reticular formation
- sleep apnea
- sleep spindle
- slow-wave sleep (SWS)
- suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN)
- vegetative state
- zeitgeber
Links
- Scientific American: A Complex Theory of Consciousness (Links to an external site.)
- Neuroscience for Kids: Sleep (Links to an external site.)
Summary
Sleep varies but most people need more sleep. It comes in cycles (90 min. for adults, 60 min. for babies).