Sleep Studies

In the past century, we have reduced our average sleep time by 20 percent. Going back 20 years, identify societal changes and changes in individual lifestyles that encourage wakefulness and discourage sleep.

It is so hard to believe that so much has changed in the last twenty years and it really has changed dramaticly. One of the big factor of sleep loss in today's society is the emergence of the personal home computer. Alot of people now have atleast one computer in their house which keeps some people up late at night chatting, working,gaming, and just surfing the web. I would know, I've lost many of hours of precious sleep chatting and playing internet games! Another communication device, a cellular phone, has seen incredible rapid increase over the last 20 years. The cellular phone allows people to get in touch from anywhere at anytime. Fears can also keep people awake a night and after the 9/11 attacks, terrorism has been on a lot of people's minds. As time has past work hours have increased especially in business because of damanding competition.




Many more women than men suffer from chronic sleep loss. What social, psychological, and physiological factors might account for this gender difference?

Biological conditions affect women's sleep. These unique female conditions are the menstrual cycle, pregancy, and menopause. In fact, about 50% of women report that bloating from the menstrual cycle can cause sleep loss for up to three days.



Ninety-five percent of individuals that suffer from sleep disorders are never diagnosed or treated for their disorder. What factors might explain why sleep disorders often go untreated and undiagnosed?


This can happen for many reasons. The first reason is because alot of people are not educated on sleeping disorders and do not even know they suffer from one. When they go to their regular physician, the physician might not know alot about sleep orders because it was left out of their medical training. Another reason is that while in the doctor's office, many patients will not bring up a problem unless they are specifically questioned about it. If the patient is not asked about their sleeping habits, they might not feel the need to even bring it up.

Unit Wrap-Up

What was your something that you learned in the unit? What other points do you want to share about the unit?

I learned a lot about alcoholism in this unit because of the research paper that I wrote. The most important part about writing the research paper is the journey to the end. Sometimes the finished product might not always be the best, but it is what you learn from research along the way that is very rewarding. Through the sources I used for my research paper I was able to find out things about alcoholism that I didn’t know and I was able to form my own opinions about the disease (yes, I do believe it is a disease). I also found the drug legalization discussion very thought-provoking. I love to hear and learn from the opinions of my classmates and I love to share mine.

Human Development

Summer Camp

The first age group is the 18 month old stage. According to Erik Erikson this stage is toddlerhood and it is a time when children begin to excercise their will and start to do things for themselves. This stage is also classified under Piaget's Pre-Operational period. This is an exciting stage when children begin to use mental imagery and language. Great activities for this age are puzzle time with simple puzzles, shape sorting, and an elaborate story  time with finger puppets.


Erikson's Preschooler stage helps develop stimulating activities for the 5 year old group. This is a time when the child learns to initiate certain tasks and carry them out. This group also marks the end of Piaget's Pre-Operational period and the beginning of the Concrete Operational stage. Children at this age can begin to reason with concrete knowledge but have trouble looking at the abstract side of things. Great activities for this stage are realistic play stations for role playing such as stores and kitchens. Musical instruments for marching band play also provide a valuable learning experience.


The twelve year old age group is in Erikson's Elementry category and marks the time when children begin to enjoy applying themselves to tasks. This is classified as the beginning of the Formal Operational stage in Piaget's studies. People begin to be able to think logically and abstractly as well as theoretically. A great activity for this age is a building lab which includes everything from legos to boards, nails, popsicle sticks and glue. A fun physical challege is an obstacle course made for individual and team competition.


The 18 year old age group is in Erikson's Adolescence stage. During this stage, teens work at refining sense of self by testing out roles and then intergrating these experiences into one identity. Piaget's Formal Operations stage describes this age group as being self motivators. Exciting adventure training for this age group includes hiking, camping and climbing. Additional fun activities are watersports such as swimming, canoeing, rafting, and fishing.


Unit Wrap Up

What was something that you learned in this unit? What other points do you want to share about the unit?

I learned extensively about Piaget and Erikson especially during this blog activity. Their theories on human development help break down the stages so they are easier to study and understand. I also learned alot about parenting styles and I have been able to form my own opinions about those styles (I believe authoritative is the best). I really enjoyed the discussion topics for this unit because I enjoyed voicing my opinions on the interesting subjects and hearing what other people thought.

Unit Two

 Genetics

Did you have any difficulty making any of the choices? Why or why not?


There were two decisions that I had a hard time making. The first decision was Elizabeth’s choice between having a mastectomy or taking the risk of her breast cancer returning. It was a hard decision to make because eliminating your body parts when you don’t know if the cancer will return can be a difficult choice to make because it affects you both mentally and physically. The other choice that I found difficult was Judith’s decision to take an experimental preventative drug. If I was currently a healthy woman at 41, I would not feel totally comfortable putting an experimental drug in my body in fear that it may have unforeseen side effects.




If you had a history of breast cancer in your family (men are not immune), would you want to have genetic testing done to determine your risk? Why or why not?

I would definitely get tested because the sooner you find out that you may be at risk for cancer, you can catch the cancer at an early stage and have a better chance at overcoming it.



What would you advise your children to do if you had a family history of breast cancer?

I would advise them to be tested because it is important to stay informed of the state of your health.


Would the knowledge that you are carrying the gene(s) for a potential fatal disorder influence your decision to have children? Why or why not?

I think I would chose not to have children because cancer is a very painful experience and I would not want my children to have to suffer.





Biology

Is it true that people only use 10 percent of their total brain capacity? How did this fact (or falsehood) originate?

That is false, we use all of our brain. While it is not clear how this falsehood originated, there are a few theories. It could have originated from a misquote of Albert Einstein or misinterpretation of Pierre Flourens’ work. It is possible that the work of Karl Lashley (he removed large areas of the cerebral cortex in rats and they could still relearn tasks) confused people.




What ever became of Albert Einstein's brain? Did Einstein's brain differ physically from the average human brain?


Dr. Thomas Harvey removed Albert Einstein’s brain while performing an autopsy on him at Princeton Hospital. He cut the brain into 240 pieces and kept them in jars in his house. He later distributed a few pieces to various researchers. In 1996, Harvey brought the remaining pieces of the brain to the chief pathologist at Princeton Hospital. Differences in Einstein’s brain from the average human brain are that it weighed significantly less than a normal male brain but was 15% wider, his cerebral cortex was thinner, and the density of neurons in Einstein’s brain was greater.



Throughout history, people have compared the brain to different inventions, such as the telephone. What is the current metaphor for the brain? In what ways does this metaphor hold up? In what ways does it fail?

The current metaphor for the brain is a computer! They both need energy, use electrical signals to transmit information, both can store memories, ability to monitor surroundings fragile contents protected by hard cover. There are many differences including that a computer can be shut off and a brain is always on, powered by different types of energy, and the biggest difference is consciousness


Unit Wrap Up

The first thing I learned in this unit were the roots of psychology and how it was discovered. Next I learned research strategies to conduct proper case studies and surveys. Without a guideline of how to approach psychology, our experiments could stray from the path of truth. I also learned about the brain and how it enables the mind. The most worthwhile thing that I got out of this chapter was the website that we used for the Biology part of this assignment. I thought that had really interesting facts and pictures, I even have it in my favorites now!