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Reflexes and reaction times

Reaction times are how long it takes for the muscles to respond from the start of a stimulus. In sprint races, reaction times can determine who wins the race.

In 1991, Leroy Burrell beat team mate Carl Lewiss world record for the 100 m sprint. But who was quickest? Runner Carl Lewis Leroy Burrell
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Sprint time (s) 9.764 9.783

Why did Burrell win the race?

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On the starting blocks

To understand you need to know the reaction time of each runner. Sprint races are timed from the moment the starters gun is fired. The actual gun is normally silent the bang comes from speakers behind the starting blocks.

This prevents the runner located furthest from the starter from hearing the start signal last.

Pressure sensors are also put in the starting blocks.

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Pressure-time graph

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Gaining the advantage

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Fairer races
How can pressure-time graphs identify false-starts? Scientists have found that it is physically impossible to react in less than 0.1 seconds. If a runners reaction time is less than 0.1 seconds then they must have deliberately started before the signal was heard.

pressure

0.05
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0.1

0.15

0.2
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time (sec)

Is there a correlation?

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The importance of fast reactions

Fast reactions can help you to avoid accidents. For example, at 30 mph a car can travel 9 m before the driver is able to respond to the hazard and start braking.

What kind of factors slow down reaction times? tiredness drugs old age
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alcohol
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Detecting external stimuli

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How fast are electrical signals?

The brain can respond to touch, smell or taste stimuli in just 0.1 seconds, but sound and vision take longer. Nerve impulses travel at up to 320 mph and take just 0.02 seconds to reach the brain.

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Interpreting signals
How can you find your reaction time? 1. Extend your arm over the edge of a table and have a partner hold a ruler between your fingers at the 0 cm mark. 2. The partner drops the ruler catch it between your fingers and thumb as quickly as possible. 3. Repeat the test 10 times, recording the results and calculate the mean (average) distance. Then convert the distance into a reaction time.

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Common reflexes
What types of reflexes do you know?

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What are reflexes?

Reflexes are fast, automatic protective biological control systems that link a stimulus to a response. Reflex reactions happen without you having to think about them they are involuntary. This is because the central nervous system (CNS) sends electrical signals to the muscles before the brain can pick up the message.

Many reflexes such as sneezing and focusing your eyes occur naturally, but other reflexes can be learned, i.e. conditioned responses.
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What is the central nervous system?

The central nervous system (CNS) is made up of the brain and spinal cord. cerebral hemisphere cerebral cortex cerebellum brainstem outer view
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spinal cord

cross-section
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The brain and movement

The cerebral cortex is the outer layer of the brain and controls voluntary movements. Voluntary movements take longer than reflex movements because more electrical impulses have further to travel. cerebral cortex initiates actions cerebellum fine tunes muscle control brainstem co-ordinates reflexes

Trained sports people seem to move faster than the brain can respond. They do this by anticipating what will happen instead of waiting for a message from their senses.
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What can go wrong?

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What are neurones?

Neurones are specialized cells that conduct electrical impulses through the body.
A nerve is a bundle of many nerve fibres enclosed within a protective sheath. Nerve fibres are the long axons of neurones together with any associated tissues. nerve

nerve fibre

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What do neurones look like?

Neurones are elongated cells consisting of a cell body and long, thin axon. dendrites
myelin sheath cell body axon Thin projections called dendrites extend from the cell body and connect with other neurones, allowing electrical impulses to pass from one to the other.

The axons of most neurones are wrapped in an insulating lipid layer called the myelin sheath. Why is this important?
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What are sensory neurones?

Sensory neurones transmit messages from sense receptors, such as the eye or nose, to the brain or spinal cord.

cell body

nerve impulse from sense organ

nerve impulse to CNS

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What are motor neurones?

Motor neurones transmit messages from the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands.

cell body

muscle
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A reflex arc

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What is a synapse?
A synapse is a junction between two neurones across which electrical signals pass. The human body contains up to 500 trillion synapses. presynaptic cell

postsynaptic cell

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The release of neurotransmitters

When a nerve impulse arrives at the end of one neurone it triggers the release of neurotransmitter molecules from synaptic vesicles. synaptic vesicle

neurotransmitter molecules

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Continuing the impulse

The neurotransmitters diffuse across the synaptic cleft and bind with receptors on the next neurone, triggering another impulse.

synaptic cleft nerve impulse receptor

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The sequence of a reflex arc

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True or false?

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The iris reflex

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Inside the eye

cornea protects eye surface and focuses light rays suspensory ligaments hold lens in place lens focuses light on retina iris regulates amount of light entering eye ciliary muscles change shape of the lens
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retina senses light

optic nerve transmits impulses to the brain

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What is binocular vision?

Animals with binocular vision have eyes close together. This provides an overlapping field of view and enhanced depth perception. Predators tend to have binocular vision because they need to judge distances and anticipate the movement of prey. no field of vision

monocular field of vision

binocular field of vision

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What is monocular vision?

Animals with monocular vision have eyes spaced apart, providing a very wide field of view. Prey animals tend to no have monocular vision field of because they need to vision see predators approaching from any monocular direction. field of vision Animals like the horse have a combination of binocular monocular and field of binocular vision. vision
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Accommodation

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Correcting sight

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What is colour blindness?

Colour blindness (dichromatism) means that a person has difficulty distinguishing between red and green. Colour blindness is caused by a lack of receptors in the retina and affects about 7% of men and 1% of women. What can you see in the circle?

If you have normal vision you can see an eye in the image. If you are colour blind you can only see either red or orange spots.
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Parts of the eye

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Glossary (1/2) accommodation The reflex reaction that keeps the

lens the right shape to focus light on the retina.

CNS The central nervous system, consisting of the brain

and spinal cord.

iris The part of the eye that limits the amount of light
entering the eye.

lens The part of the eye that focuses light on the retina.

motor neurone A neurone that carries electrical

impulses from the CNS to muscles and glands.

neurone A specialized cell that carries electrical

impulses.
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Glossary (2/2) neurotransmitter A chemical that diffuses across

synapses to continue an impulse in a connecting neurone.

reaction time The time taken to respond to a stimulus. reflex A fast, automatic protective response. retina The part of the eye that contains light receptors. sensory neurone A neurone that carries electrical
impulses from sense organs to the CNS.

synapse The gap between two connecting neurones.

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Anagrams

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Multiple-choice quiz

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