The Nervous System: Sensory Systems

These flashcards cover key vocabulary and concepts related to the sensory systems of the nervous system, particularly focusing on vision and the anatomy and functions of the eye.

Accommodation

The process of adjusting the lens of the eye to focus on objects at different distances.

Emmetropia

Normal vision where light is correctly focused on the retina.

Myopia

Near-sightedness where distant objects appear blurry due to light focusing in front of the retina.

Hyperopia

Far-sightedness where close objects appear blurry because light focuses behind the retina.

Presbyopia

A condition associated with aging where the lens becomes hard and stiff, making it difficult to focus on near objects.

Astigmatism

A condition caused by irregularities in the lens or cornea, leading to blurred vision due to uneven light refraction.

Iris

The colored part of the eye that contains muscles to control the size of the pupil and the amount of light entering the eye.

Phototransduction

The process of converting light energy into electrical signals in the retina.

Rods

Photoreceptor cells in the retina that are sensitive to low light levels and are responsible for vision in dim light.

Cones

Photoreceptor cells in the retina responsible for color vision and function best in bright light conditions.

Fovea

The area of the retina with the highest concentration of cones, responsible for sharp central vision.

Optic nerve

The nerve that transmits visual information from the retina to the brain.

Circadian rhythms

Physical, mental, and behavioral changes that follow a daily cycle, influenced by light.

Retina

The light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye containing photoreceptors that convert light into nerve signals.

Neural pathways for vision

The routes taken by visual information as it travels from the retina to the brain for processing.

Parallel processing in the visual system

The ability of the brain to simultaneously process different components of visual information such as color, shape, and motion.

Depth perception

The visual ability to perceive the world in three dimensions and to judge distance.