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Consciousness Awareness of the external world and internal states

Consciousness slides

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Covers basic topics covered during the Consciousness section of my General Psychology course.

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Page 1: Consciousness slides

ConsciousnessAwareness of the external world and internal states

Page 2: Consciousness slides

NeckerCube

A

More Illusions

B

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Going Up or Down?

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Is this possible?

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Consciousness & Reality

• Is it possible to expand our consciousness?

• What gets in the way of greater awareness?

• What would it mean if we could experience “Unity Consciousness?”

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UnityConsciousness

• Open, receptive consciousness• Here and now focus• Eternity = Now• Acknowledges the

interconnectedness of all things

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“Words Will Never Hurt Me”

• Boundaries in consciousness define our reality

• These boundaries are learned• Words and their definitions create

boundaries

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Ken Wilber

Psych 30A:Consciousness Studies

Examine the Spectrum of Consciousness

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How Consciousness Works

Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle- Many realities exist simultaneously until the act of observation “selects” the reality then experienced- Our focus selects the reality we perceive, and other “realities” fade

Double-slit Experiment - waves versus particles

http://www.whatthebleep.com/download/

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How the Past Affects the Present

• How we define our past, or our definitions of our experiences– Leads to continued reactions to

experience – Can lead to missing new ways of

responding – Strengthens the neural nets– Keeps us locked into habitual ways of

behaving

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How Consciousness Works

• Emotions as addictions– Neural Nets

• Neurons that fire together, wire together• Hormones, neurotransmitters released in a

specific chemical cocktail

- Becoming the observer of our emotionsBreaks the neural connections

Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) Tapping on acupuncture points to break disconnect the

emotions from the stimuli12

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Constructed RealityBoeree

• “The perceiver does not construct reality itself; rather the perceiver constructs an understanding of reality.”

• Social reality is constructed by our culture– Common cultural traditions

• We use words to construct our interpretation of reality– The constructs can take on a life of their own

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Memes

• Meme (as opposed to gene) that is “inherited” in a society (Boeree).

• Cultural beliefs that are passed onto the next generation– “Celibacy is to be valued”– “Obey your elders”– “This is how you do it”

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Constructing Our RealityWords as symbols

– Language creates “boundaries” to our consciousness

– Definitions of our words create the reality we construct

– We use words to describe which create boundaries through dichotomous thinking

• Up/down; in/out; me/not me (you)• Creates preferences• Creates separation that is an illusion

“The map is not the territory”

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What The Bleep Do We Know?!?!?!?

What is Reality?Do we create our own

reality?

Hope

O Holy Night (song)

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Transpersonal

• Instruments of measurement not yet discovered can impede our knowledge

• Designing appropriate research design protocols to measure the effectiveness of subtle energy changes need to be reconsidered (acupuncture effectiveness)

• Kirlian photography measures energy signature or corona discharge– High voltage field interacting with an object

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Near Death ExperiencesNear Death Experiences• An altered state of

consciousness reported by 30% of those who have been pronounced clinically dead and have been resuscitated

• Experience an OBE, tunnel, bells, white light, peace, greeted by dead loved ones

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Charles Tart

UC DavisProfessor Emeritus

Leading ESP Researcher

Institute of Transpersonal

PsychologyPalo Alto, California

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Zener ESP cardsUsed aboard Apollo 13 by Edgar Mitchell

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Star Gate, the project that for nearly a quarter of a century trained soldiers and civilian spies in extra-sensory perception (ESP). Their objective: To search out the secrets of America's cold war enemies using a skill called "remote viewing." Paul H. Smith, a U.S. Army Major, was one of these viewers. Assigned to the remote viewing unit in 1983 at a pivotal time in its history, Smith served for the rest of the decade, witnessing and taking part in many of the seminal national-security crises of the twentieth century.

Paul Smith, retired Army IntelligenceOfficer and Desert Storm veteran. Spent 7 years in the Dept. of Defense’s Remote Viewing program, serving asoperational remote viewer, theory instructor And trainer, security officer and unit historian.

Remote Viewing

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Body

Mind

Spirit

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LSD-25

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Stan Grof1931 –

California Institute ofIntegral Psychology or

Workshops

2006

2008

Co-founder of Transpersonal Psychology

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Michael Talbot

Psych 30C: Advanced Consciousness Studies

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Holographic “negative”

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Alex Grey Artist

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Alex Grey - Artist

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The Universe Within Our Cells

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Sleep and Dreams ResearchSleep and Dreams Research

EOG electrooculogram

Electromyogram

Electroencephalogram

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Sleep Stages (brain waves)Sleep Stages (brain waves)

K-Complex

3%

50%

10%

15%

22%Sawtooth pattern

Percent ofTime while asleep

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Stages of SleepStages of Sleep

• Beta Waves – alert• Alpha Waves – relaxed, awake• Stage 1: amplitude drops, frequency slows• Stage 2: sleep spindles & K-Complex• Stage 3: beginning of delta wave activity• Stage 4: delta waves predominate; deep sleep• REM: Rapid eye movement (paradoxical sleep)

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EEG Recordings During Sleep

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REM or Rapid Eye Movement Sleep

• 90 minute cycles until REM begins• Increased heart rate, rising blood pressure• Faster irregular breathing• Twitches in face/fingerss• Penile engorgement• Vaginal lubrication• 20% REM adults• 50% REM newborns

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Typical Nightly Sleep Typical Nightly Sleep StagesStages

Hours of sleep

Minutesof Stage 4 and REM

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 80

10

15

20

25

5

Decreasing Stage 4

Increasing REM

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Sleep and DreamsSleep and Dreams

• REM (Rapid Eye Movement) Sleep – recurring sleep stage – vivid dreams commonly occur– also known as paradoxical sleep

• muscles are generally relaxed, but other body systems are active

• REM Rebound– tendency for REM sleep increases following

REM sleep deprivation

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Sleep DisordersSleep Disorders

• Insomnia– recurring problems in falling or staying

asleep• Narcolepsy

– uncontrollable sleep attacks– sufferer may lapse directly into REM sleep,

often at inopportune times– Triggered by emotional events, excitement

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Sleep DisordersSleep Disorders

• Sleep Apnea– characterized by temporary cessations of

breathing during sleep and consequent momentary reawakenings

• Night Terrors– high arousal-appearance of being terrified– usually in Stage 4, within 2-3 hours of falling

asleep