S&P Vocab for The bez

Sensation

detecting physical energy from the environment and converting it into neural signals

Perception

interpreting sensory information to recognize meaningful objects and events

Absolute Threshold

the smallest level of stimulus that can be detected 50% of the time

Accommodation

the eye's lens changing shape to focus on near or far objects

Acuity

sharpness or clarity of vision or hearing

Audition

the sense or act of hearing

Amacrine Cells

retinal cells that help process visual signals before they reach the brain

Ambiguity

when a stimulus can be interpreted in more than one way

Attention

focusing awareness on a particular stimulus while ignoring others

Auditory Cortex

brain area that processes sound information

Auditory Nerve

carries sound signals from the ear to the brain

Basilar Membrane

structure in the cochlea that vibrates to sound and helps detect pitch

Binocular Cue

depth cues that require both eyes, like retinal disparity

Bipolar Cells

retinal cells that transmit signals from photoreceptors to ganglion cells

Blind spot

area in the retina where the optic nerve exits and no vision occurs

Bottom-up Processing

perception driven by sensory input rather than expectations

Brightness

how light or intense a color appears

Cochlea

spiral-shaped inner ear structure that converts sound into neural signals

Cochlear Implant

device that helps deaf individuals hear by stimulating the auditory nerve

Color Constancy

perceiving colors as stable despite changes in lighting

Complementary Colors

colors opposite each other on the color wheel that enhance each other

Cones

photoreceptors in the retina that detect color and work best in bright light

Convergence

inward movement of the eyes to focus on a close object

Cutaneous Senses

skin senses including touch, pressure, temperature, and pain

Dark Adaptation

increased sensitivity of the eye in low light conditions

Depth Perception

ability to judge distance and three-dimensional space

Dichotic Listening

listening to two different messages in each ear simultaneously

Difference Threshold

smallest difference between two stimuli that can be detected

Distal Stimuli

objects and events out in the world that provide sensory input

ESP

extrasensory perception, like telepathy or precognition, not scientifically proven

Farsightedness

difficulty seeing close objects clearly

Feature Detectors

neurons that respond to specific features like edges or movement

Figure/Ground

distinguishing an object (figure) from its background (ground)

Fovea

central part of the retina with the highest visual acuity

Frequency Theory

theory that pitch is determined by the frequency of neural impulses

Ganglion Cells

retinal cells that send visual information to the brain via the optic nerve

Gate-Control Theory

theory that spinal cord contains a gate that controls pain signals

Gestalt psychology

emphasizes that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts

Goal Directed Selection

choosing what to focus on based on goals or needs

Grouping

organizing stimuli into coherent groups

Ground

the background in visual perception

Hearing Loss (Conduction)

hearing loss due to problems with sound transmission in the ear

Hearing Loss (Sensorineural)

hearing loss due to damage to the inner ear or auditory nerve

Horizontal Cells

retinal cells that help integrate and regulate input from photoreceptors

Hue

color of light as determined by its wavelength

Identification and recognition

recognizing and naming objects or people

Inner Ear

part of the ear that includes the cochlea and helps with hearing and balance

Intensity

strength or magnitude of a stimulus

Inattentional blindness

failing to notice visible objects when attention is elsewhere

Illusion

a false or misleading perception

Iris

colored part of the eye that controls the size of the pupil

Lens

transparent structure that focuses light onto the retina

Just Noticeable Difference (JND)

smallest change in a stimulus that can be detected

Kinesthetic Sense

sense of body position and movement

Lightness Constancy

perceiving an object as having constant lightness despite changes in illumination

Loudness

perception of sound intensity

Middle Ear

part of the ear that transmits sound from the outer ear to the inner ear

Monocular cue

depth cue available to each eye separately

Nearsightedness

difficulty seeing distant objects clearly

Neurotransmitters

chemicals that transmit signals between neurons

Olfactory Bulb

brain structure involved in smell

Opponent-Processes theory

theory that color vision is controlled by opposing pairs (red-green, blue-yellow)

Optic nerve

carries visual information from the retina to the brain

Pain

unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential damage

Parallel Processing

processing many aspects of a stimulus simultaneously

Parapsychology

study of paranormal phenomena like telepathy or clairvoyance

Perception

interpreting sensory input to form a meaningful experience

Perceptual Constancy

perceiving objects as unchanging despite changes in sensory input

Perceptual Organization

organizing sensory input into meaningful patterns

Perceptual Set

a mental predisposition to perceive things in a certain way

Pheromones

chemical signals released by organisms to affect others of the same species

Phi Phenomenon

illusion of movement created by flashing lights in sequence

Photoreceptors

cells in the retina that respond to light (rods and cones)

Pitch

perception of how high or low a sound is

Place Theory

theory that pitch is determined by location of vibration on the basilar membrane

Proximal Stimulus

the sensory input received directly by the body

Psychometric Function

graph showing relationship between stimulus intensity and detection probability

Psychophysics

study of relationships between physical stimuli and sensory experience

Receptive Field

area of sensory space that a neuron responds to

Relative Motion Parallax

depth cue based on movement—closer objects move faster across our view

Response Bias

tendency to respond in a certain way regardless of actual stimulus

Retina

light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye

Retinal Disparity

difference between images from each eye used to perceive depth

Rods

photoreceptors that detect light and dark, work well in low light

Saturation

intensity or purity of a color

Selective attention

focusing on one stimulus while ignoring others

Sensory Adaptation

reduced sensitivity to a constant stimulus

Sensory Receptors

specialized cells that detect sensory stimuli

Set

expectations that influence perception

Shape Constancy

perceiving an object as having the same shape despite changes in viewpoint

Signal Detection Theory (SDT)

theory that detection depends on stimulus, environment, and observer's state

Size Constancy

perceiving an object as the same size despite changes in distance

Sound Location

ability to identify where a sound is coming from

Stimulus-Driven Capture

attention drawn automatically by a strong stimulus

Subliminal

below the threshold of conscious awareness

Timbre

quality or texture of a sound

Top-Down processing

perception influenced by experience and expectations

Transduction

converting physical energy into neural signals

Trichromatic Theory (Young-Helmholtz)

theory that color vision is based on three types of cones

Visual capture

tendency for vision to dominate other senses