week1

Commonly Asked Questions in Class

• Engagement in Learning
  • Discussion prompt: Students are encouraged to engage with neighbors about a common question already discussed in class.
  • Purpose: To ensure peer learning and understanding.
  • Focus: Identifying incorrect answers and discussing why.

Bicarbonate and pH Control

• Understanding Equation 3
  • Context: Questions arose about CO2 and its effects on pH levels in the blood.
  • Importance of CO2 Solubility:
  • CO2 is made soluble in blood.
  • Equation role: Connects CO2 levels to H+ concentration.
  • Consequences of High H+ Concentration:
  • Low pH leads to acidity.
  • Physiological implications: Dysfunction in biological processes can occur due to low pH.
  • Need for buffer systems to prevent damage due to acidity.

Exam Format and Figures

• Clarification on Exam Content
  • No direct examination of figures from lecture.
  • Exam structure primarily consists of writing and multiple-choice questions.
  • Figures serve a supplemental role:
  • Visual aids to enhance understanding but not memorization for exams.

Biorhythms

• Description of Biorhythms
  • Three resolution levels for biorhythms:
  1. Period: Frequency of rhythm repetition (e.g., circadian rhythms = 24 hours).
  2. Phase: Time of highest activity within a period:
     • Diurnal Phase: Peak activity during the day.
     • Nocturnal Phase: Peak activity during the night.
  3. Amplitude: Intensity of activity within a phase.
     • Example of nocturnal amplitude:
       • High early in the night vs. late in the night.
       • Distinguishing rhythms requires understanding both phase and amplitude.

Feedback Mechanisms in Physiology

• Types of Feedback
  • Feedback Concept:
  • No qualifiers; terms like "negative feedback" are meant to clarify against misconceptions.
  • Negative feedback: Commonly understood process where response reduces or dampens the original stimulus.
  • Positive feedback: Amplifies the change or disturbance away from a set point.

Parameters in Physiology

• Definition of Parameters
  • A parameter is any measurable body condition that can be altered by stimuli.
  • Examples include:
  • Body temperature
  • Blood glucose level

Adaptation vs. Acclimatization

• Definitions and Differences:
  • Adaptation:
  • Evolutionary process requiring genetic change; not reversible in an individual’s lifetime.
  • Example: A population of brown-furred foxes in a white environment leads to selective advantage for white-furred individuals.
  • Acclimatization:
  • Can occur within an individual’s lifetime; often reversible post-development.
  • Example: Adjusting to early wake-up times leading to changed sleep schedules.

Developmental Acclimatization vs. Genetic Change

• Clarification on Examples:
  • Accidental physiological changes (e.g., loss of a thumb) are not adaptations or acclimatizations but rather accidents.
  • Developmental acclimatization example:
  • Webbed fingers due to environmental factors in utero; caused by environmental influence but not adaptive.
  • Example of high-altitude lung capacity as a developmental acclimatization:
  • Result of lifelong exposure to lower oxygen levels resulting in increased lung capacity.

Homeostatic Mechanisms

• Homeostatic Control Systems:
  • Differences Between Afferent and Efferent Pathways:
  • Afferent pathways carry sensory information from receptors to the brain.
  • Efferent pathways convey the brain's response signal to effector organs.

- Memory Aid: SAM-E (Sensory Afferent Movement Efferent).

- Example in practice: Feeling pain from heat (afferent) vs. pulling back your hand (efferent).

Terminology Accuracy in Physiology

• Importance of Correct Terminology
  • Set point vs. set range: Understanding and using correct terms changes the correctness of answers in physiological contexts.
  • Importance of recognizing terminology to prevent misconceptions.
  • Maintaining disruptions is positive feedback related to responses in physiology.