Bio-Research Labs #2
Click a Choice Above
The Effects of Fear and Adrenaline
On the Body
Cassie C. and Steven S.
Southern
November 29, 2006
Abstract
The purpose of the lab is to find out how the body reacts to fear. Participants will be placed in a room by their self with a movie clip. The volunteer will be monitored through heart rate, blood pressure, and body temperature. The objectives of this lab are to understand the effects of adrenaline and to notice any change in heart rate, blood pressure and or body temperature.
Introduction
Will a short film clip from a horror movie affect participants differently depending on sex? The heart is, in the simplest terms, a pump made up of muscle tissue. Like any other pump, it requires a source of energy. This energy comes from an intrinsic electrical system. An electrical stimulus is generated by the sinus node, which is a small mass of specialized tissue located in the right atrium of the heart. The sinus node generates an electrical stimulus periodically, 60-190 times per minute depending on the age and activity level of the individual (www.muschealth.com, 2006). The adrenal glands work along with the kidneys and are within all vertebrates. Hormones are secreted from both the medulla and the cortex. These hormones are also known as steroids which in other terms are glucocorticoids and mineralocorticoids. These adrenal steroids control the availability of glucose, the body’s source of energy (www.answers.com, 2006). Adrenaline, like any other drug, has its side effects. First, it increases the metabolic rate and the blood sugar levels, providing a rocket-fuel like boost to one’s muscles. It also works as a neurotransmitter, speeding up one’s responses and increases awareness. Blood pressure and heart rate skyrocket, the blood vessels in one’s gut constrict, and the pathways to the legs and arms widen. In short, the body is ready for action, which is where it gets the name flight or fight (Driver, 2006). Some people call these symptoms to the body the terror management theory, to show that the nature of threatening situations influence the responses promoted (Omar & David, 2005). The hypothesis is that if male and female participants are exposed to a horror movie clip, then the subjects’ heart rate, blood pressure and body temperature will increase more in the females.
Method
Participants
Five participants consisting of two males and three females, ages 15, 17 and 18 were chosen because of gender and age. All participants were volunteers.
Movie (Darkness Falls DVD)
Laptop
Heart monitor
Blood pressure monitor
Thermometer (degrees C)
Computer
Results
The findings of this lab show that not all of the participants had an increase in blood pressure or heart rate and none of them had a change in body temperature (see Figures 1-3). The smallest jump in heart rate was 67 to 68 beats per minute and the largest was 71 to 91 beats per minute, but one of the participants had a decrease showing that their heart rate went from 76 to 69 beats per minute. When some of the participants were watching the film clip they screamed.
Discussion
Will a short film clip from a horror movie affect participants differently depending on gender? The hypothesis is that if male and female participants are exposed to a horror film clip, then the subjects’ heart rate, blood pressure and body temperature will increase more in the females. The hypothesis was not supported because not all of the participants’ blood pressures and heart rates went up, despite the fact that the females’ heart rates went up more than the males. Unforeseen problems that arose were that the experiment took longer to set up and do than expected. Improvements of the lab could include the following. Know how the lab is going to be set up and use a shorter film clip. Would sound affect how your body reacts to a frightful situation?
References
Dustin, Driver. (October 1, 2006). The effects of fear and phobias. Retrieved October 20, 2006 from http://www.askmen.com
Furedi, Frank (2005, July 30). Fear? We’re reveling in it. The (United Kingdom) times. p.18 Features
The heart’s electrical system. Retrieved October 13, 2006 from http://www.muschealth.com
Shehryar, Omar and Hunt David M. (2005). A terror management perspective on the persuasiveness of fear appeals. Journal of Consumer Psychology. 15, 275-287
Figure Caption
Figure 1. The participants’ blood pressure, heart rate and body
temperature before watching the movie clip.
Figure 2. The participants’ blood pressure, heart rate and body
temperature after watching the
movie clip.
Figure 3. The participants’ change in heart rate.
Figure 3
Figure 1
|
Resting |
|||
|
Participant |
Blood
Pressure |
Heart
Rate |
Body
Temperature (C) |
|
Participant
1 |
115/80 |
93 |
37 |
|
Participant
2 |
130/85 |
67 |
37 |
|
Participant
3 |
120/85 |
83 |
37 |
|
Participant
4 |
120/80 |
76 |
37 |
|
Participant
5 |
115/65 |
71 |
37 |
Figure 2
|
After Exposure |
|||
|
Participant |
Blood
Pressure |
Heart
Rate |
Body
Temperature (C) |
|
Participant
1 |
120/80 |
103 |
37 |
|
Participant
2 |
120/80 |
68 |
37 |
|
Participant
3 |
124/88 |
96 |
37 |
|
Participant
4 |
115/62 |
69 |
37 |
|
Participant
5 |
84/62 |
91 |
37 |
How Individual Lifestyles Effect Critical Thinking Skills
Brittany N and Addam V
Southern
Logic 1
Abstract
The purpose of this lab is to find out if and/or how, individuals’ lifestyles affect their critical thinking skills. In this lab participants will be selected from three different lifestyle—or hobby—groups and will be given a timed and scored logic test comprised of an array of riddles and math/logic puzzles from the three different logic categories that will, in turn, gauge their level of critical thinking. This lab will show whether or not critical thinking skills are affected by ones’ lifestyle and which activities produce better critical thinking skills. In addition, one will be able to see the differentiation in scores between the highest and lowest scoring participants.
Logic 2
Introduction
Do ones’ hobbies or lifestyles affect ones’ critical thinking skills? Logic comes from the Greek word “logos,” originally meaning the word or what is spoken, however, the meaning was later changed to mean thought or reason. It is most often defined as the study of criteria for the evaluation on arguments, although it is difficult to find an exact definition that is agreed upon among philosophers (en.wikipedia.org, 2006).
There are three different types of logic; informal, formal, and symbolic. All three types of logic are being tested for on the Logic Test (Agostini, 1980)(math.smsu.edu, 2006)( riddles-online.com, 2006). All types of logic have most often been studied as a branch of philosophy. Since the mid-nineteenth century logic has also been commonly studied in the mathematical and law fields. Recently logic has been applied to computer science and artificial intelligence (en.wikipedia.org, 2006).
Studies have shown that one in every three households in America owns video games. As a result, there has been some controversy regarding whether or not video games are bad for kids to play. It has been speculated and tested that video games are actually good for players in some ways, such as they may be responsible for a higher level of critical thinking The same has also been said about role playing games. (taking childrenseriously.com, 2006). The hypothesis is that if three groups are tested for critical thinking skills, then the group that plays video games will show higher scores.
Logic 3
Method
Nine students were involved with this lab. Of these nine, five were female, while the remaining four were male. All participants were either high school juniors or seniors who played video games, read, or played a musical instrument.
Logic Test (see Appendix)
Clock
Paper
Pencil
Computer for graphing and typing
1. The logic test is created using examples of three different types of logic found on the internet. The test contains three sections, with four questions in each section. Point value is also assigned to each question based on the experimenters opinion of its’ difficulty level (see Appendix).
2. Nine participants are then selected based on their lifestyles, or “hobbies.”
3. The logic test is then administered to the participants, who are given 20 minutes to complete as much as possible.
4. The test is then collected and graded by the experimenters.
5. The data is then graphed and compared to see which group scored the highest.
Logic 4
Results
Following the conclusion of this lab, it was observed that lifestyles—or hobbies—do, in fact, affect ones’ critical thinking skills. Three participants scored under five points, while four participants scored between six and ten points. The two highest scores were eleven and sixteen (see Figure 1). It was found that those who play video games scored higher than those who read or play an instrument; although those who read followed very close behind (see Figure 2). It should also be noted that the highest scoring individual was from the video game group, while the second highest score was from the reading group.
Discussion
Do ones’ hobbies or lifestyles affect ones’ critical thinking skills? The hypothesis is that if three groups are tested for critical thinking skills, then the group that plays video games will show higher scores. The hypothesis was supported. One unforeseen problem was that it was harder to find time for the participants to take the test, therefore using less participants than what was originally planned; also, some participants refused to take the test, causing the experimenters to have to find someone else. Another unforeseen problem was that it was thought that the participants would have had higher scores. Alternatives could have been using less questions on the test and reducing the amount of time given to complete the test. Would the results have been different had more participants from each group been used?
Logic 5
References
Agostini, Franco (1980). Math and Logic Games. New York, NY: Facts on File Publications.
Holds a vast assortment of math and logic puzzles. Retrieved October 25, 2006, from http://math.smsu.edu/ ~ les/carroll.html
Links video game use with increased critical thinking skills. Retrieved November 2, 2006, from http://www.takingchildrenseri ously.com/video_games_a _unique _educational_environment
This contains a plethora of riddles and mind games. Retrieved October 25, 2006, from http://www.riddles-online.com/maths-riddles.htm
This gives information on the origin of logic and its meaning. Retrieved November 2,
2006, from http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/logic
Logic 6
Figure Caption
Figure 1. Shows the individual scores of all participants; also shows gender and hobby group.
Figure 2. Shows each group’s total score.
Figure 1
Participant |
Category
|
Score (out of
30 pts) |
|
Girl 1 |
Video Games |
6 |
|
Girl 2 |
Video Games |
6 |
|
Boy 1 |
Video Games |
16 |
|
Girl 3 |
Books |
8 |
|
Boy 2 |
Books |
11 |
|
Boy 3 |
Books |
7 |
|
Girl 4 |
Music |
3 |
|
Girl 5 |
Music |
4 |
|
Boy 4 |
Music |
3 |
Figure 2
|
Group |
Total Score |
|
Video Games |
28 |
|
Books |
26 |
|
Music |
10 |
Appendix
Logic Test
Logic Test
(30 pts)
20 min.
Symbolic Logic
Informal Logic
1. Draw a line from start to finish.
2. Divide the shaded part into 4 equal sections: