The Response Time of Reflex Arcs Under Varying Conditions
Introduction
Reflexes are lightning fast, autonomic responses that travel along neural pathways. The speed of a given reflex is highly dependent on many factors. These include the length of the reflex arc, the number of synapses present, and speed of the action potentials along the pathway. One important reflex is the aural startle response. This response occurs when hair cells located in the cochlea become suddenly aroused due to an unexpected sound. The sudden stimulus triggers an action potential that is propagated through the brain stem and the accessory nerve. The accessory nerve then in turn activates neck muscles, which enable one to quickly turn their head and neck in response
…show more content…
To determine this, three separate aural responses, with differing pathways, were tested. The test subject was blindfolded and electrodes were applied to the back of his neck. Response time data for each motor response was measured using computer software. In test one, reflex response time was measured in reaction to the sudden unexpected auditory stimulus of a popped balloon. In test two, the test subject was given auditory input and was instructed to turn his head in the direction of the sound. In the final test, the subject was instructed to turn his head left or right based on the type of auditory command he received. Based on prior knowledge of reflex arc pathways, it was hypothesized that the startle response would be the fastest, followed by the response to a sound, and then response to a verbal command. This would be due to the fact that the subject only had to respond to the sound and not perform any additional processing to differentiate between the two commands. In test three, the subject would have to interpret what the command was before they responded. This extra step in the process should lead to increased response
Then, I tested Cooley’s trigeminal nerve, I told her to close her eyes, and I touched her gently with a cotton swab. I touch her on the side of her forehead and then the other side, each of her cheeks, and one side of her jaw and then the other side of her jaw. Afterward, I tested Jazmine’s facial nerve by asking her to show her teeth when she smiles, grimace, and while she frowns. After that, I told her to close her eyes tightly and I tried to open one of her eyes by pulling it up to the eyebrow region and pulling it down to the cheek region.
This report aimed to replicate Stroop's (1935) experiment. Using the repeated measures design and a sample of 20 students, differences in verbal reaction times on two tests were observed. The one-tailed hypothesis predicted that it would take longer to say words in the Cc, this is the conflicting condition where the colour of the word differs from the colour that the word describes. It was found that, using the t-test for related data, this hypothesis could be accepted as the obtained value was much greater then the critical value. It can therefore be concluded that visual interference does affect people's verbal reactions.
Basilar membrane acts as a divider of two fluids (scala media and the scala tympani) and the hair cells pick up movement in order to send a signal to the brain to interpret the sound.
Lu, Z.-L., Williamson, S.J., & Kaufman L. (1992, Dec 4). Behavioral lifetime of human auditory
Reflexology is a safe and natural drug free modality that has been practiced in many cultures for centuries. It is a unique form of bodywork that enables the body to activate its own healing potential. Reflexology is an alternative and complementary medicine based on the principle that reflexes in the feet, hands and ears correspond to a mapped system of the organs or glands in the body. The official definition of Reflexology states that, “reflexology is a protocol of manual techniques, such as thumb and finger-walking, hook and backup and rotating-on-a-point, applied to specific reflex areas predominantly on the feet and hands. These techniques stimulate the complex neural pathways linking body systems, supporting the body’s efforts to function
The mechanical motions of the ossicles directly vibrate a small membrane that connects to the fluid filled inner ear. From this point, vibration of the connective membrane (oval window) transforms mechanical motion into a pressure wave in fluid. This pressure wave enters and hence passes vibrations into the fluid filled structure called the cochlea. The cochlea contains two membranes and between these two membranes, are specialized neurons or receptors called Hair cells. Once vibrations enter the cochlea, they cause the lower membrane (basilar membrane) to move in respect to the upper membrane (i.e. --the tectorial membrane in which the hair cells are embedded). This movement bends the hair cells to cause receptor potentials in these cells which in turn cause the release of transmitter onto the neurons of the auditory nerve. In this case, the hair cell receptors are very pressure sensitive. The greater the force of the vibrations on the membrane, the more the hair cells bend and hence the greater the receptor potential generated by these hair cells.
We hypothesized that the more an image is rotated, the longer the reaction time will be because of the additional mental processes that must take place in order to correctly complete the object recognition. We further hypothesized that the angle will overall have a greater impact on the 2-dimensional pictures than the letters. Additionally, we hypothesized that the combination of both the object type and the angle together will affect reaction time more significantly overall.
Brain Stem Reflexes refer to a process where an emotion is induced by sound or music because the fundamental acoustical characteristics of the sound or music are received by the brain stem which signals a potentially urgent and important event. Sounds that are sudden, dissonant, loud, or have fast temporal patterns induce arousal or feelings of unpleasantness in the listener (Berlyne 1971; Burt et al. 1995; Foss et al. 1989; Halpern et al. 1986). These responses show the impact of auditory sensations (music as sound in the most basic sense). Our perceptual system is continually scanning the immediate surro...
AIM: - the aim of this experiment is to find out what the effects of exercise are on the heart rate. And to record these results in various formats. VARIABLES: - * Type of exercise * Duration of exercise * Intensity of exercise * Stage of respiration
This is called the vestibular ocular reflex. These tasks are accomplished through the mechnoreceptors of the three semicircular canals, the utricle and the saccule (3). Like the neighboring auditory system, each canal has hair cells that detect minute changes in fluid displacement, but unlike the auditory system, the utricle and the saccule send information to the brain regarding linear acceleration and head tilt. Shaking your head no employs one of these canals. Likewise, there is a canal that detects head movement in the yes position, and there is yet another semicircular canal that detects motion from moving your head from shoulder to shoulder (4).
Contrast the differences between force and torque. Use each term to describe a particular aspect of a muscle’s contraction relative to a joint. (6 pts)
This is important for feeding. The rooting reflex is a reflex that occurs when the babies mouth is stroked. The baby will turn around look for the nipple and begin to make sucking motions. The grasping reflex occurs when something is placed in the infants hand or thier palm is stroked the infants hand closes. At this age their grip is very strong. When the sole of their feet is placed on a surface they will attempt to walk even though they might not be able to support their own weight yet this is the stepping reflex. The startle reflex is an involuntary movement of the babies body, arms and legs when it is startled by a loud noise or sudden
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary online, reflexes are instantaneous movements that move in response to a stimulus. A reflex that is observed in babies shown on babycenter.com is the grasp reflex. It is also known as a primitive reflex since we know how to do it naturally without being taught to do so. The grasp reflex is when something is put near an infant’s hand and the infant’s first reaction is to hold onto it, like a finger or toy. Reflexes that we are more used to as we
Pickles, James O. An Intro to the Physiology of Hearing. NY: Academic Press. 1982. p- 264- 79
...on on the position of the head in space for static equilibrium making it essential for maintaining appropriate posture and balance, where as dynamic they detect linear acceleration and deceleration. There are two kinds of cells in the two maculae, hair cells and supporting cells. The hair cells are the sensory receptors. Laying over the hair cells are columnar supporting cells that probably secrete the thick, gelatinous, glycoprotein layer called the otolithic membrane and over the membrane is a layer of dense calcium carbonate crystals called otoliths. When the head is tilted, the otoliths shift, and the hairs beneath respond to the change in pressure and bending the hair bundles.