Ap psychology unit 1.2

Sensation

Sensation

The process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment

Bottom-up processing

Analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brains integration of sensory info

Perception

The process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events

Top-down processing

Information processing guided by higher level thinking

Perceptual set

Example of top-down processing that relies on our previous knowledge

Context effects

Context influences how we previews stimuli

Stimuli

a thing or event that evokes a specific functional reaction in an organ or tissue.

Transduction

The process of converting energy or a stimulus into neural activity

Absolute threshold

The minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50% of the time

Just noticeable difference

The minimum difference that is needed to detect a difference between 2 stimuli

Webers law

In order to detect a difference between 2 stimuli then the stimuli must differ by a constant proportion (not amount)

Sensory adaption

Diminishing sensitivity as a result of constant exposure to a stimulus

Cocktail party effect

Being able to listen to one conversation amount many

In attentional blindless

Failing to see visible objects when our attention is focused somewhere else where

Change blindless

Failing to notice changes in the environment when our attention is focused on a different aspect of the environment

Transduction for eye and ears

The process of converting physical energy from the environment into neural code to be interpreted by the brain

Vision

Eye receive light energy and transduce it into neural messages

Light energy

Spectrum of electromagnetic energy

Wavelengths

Distance between one peak of wave and the next

Hue

The color we actually experience

Long wavelengths

Low frequency (red)

Short wavelengths

High frequency (blue)

Medium wavelengths

Green color

Intensity

Amplitude/ height of the wave

Cornea

The transparent tissue

Pupil

The opening in the iris that regulates the amount of light entering the eye

Iris

Circular band of muscles that controls the size of the pupil

Lens

Flexible transparent structure in the eye that changes its shape to focus light on retina

Retina

Innermost coating of the back of the eye; contains light-sensitive receptor cells

Fovea

Central focal point in the retine, around which eyes comes cluster

Cones

Located in the foveal area of central focus on the retinas

Rods

Receptors that are stimulated by dim light or dark conditions

Bipolar cells

Gather info from the rods and cones and pass info to the ganglion cells

Ganglion cells

Bundles of axons they form the optic nerve send info to brain

Blind spot

The point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye; no receptor cells are located there

Visual accommination

The process by which the eyes lends changes shape to focus on image of near or far objects in the retina

Prosopagnosia (aka face blindness)

The inability to recognize faces as familiar

Blindsight

A condition In which a person can respond to visual stimulus without consciously experiencing it

Trichromatic theory

The theory that the retina contains 3 different color receptors- red, green, and blue that can combine into any color

“Color-blind”

The color-deficient vision

Opponent-processing theory

Opposing retinal processes enable color vision

Sound

The result of repetitive fluctuations of sounds waves hitting into a medium, like air

Frequency

The number of complete wavelengths to pass a given point

Amplitude

The height of a wave

Decibels

The measure amplitude/ loudness

Timbre

The complexity of the sound

The outer ear

The visible out ear (pinna) and the auditory canal

Ear canal

Sound waves travel down until they reach the ear drum

Eardrum

Thin membrane that vibrates as sound waves hit it

Middle ear

Located between the eardrum and the cochlea (contains hammer anvil and stirrup)

Cochlea

Coiled, fluid-filled body tube lines by the basil at membrane where transduction takes place

Basilar membrane

Lining of the cochlea- begins to move when vibrations enter- then moved the cilia

Cilia

Hair cells on the basilar membrane- when moving cause neural impulses to travel up the auditory nerve to the brain

Place theory

What we hear depends on the place the vibration strikes on the basilar membrane

Frequency theory

What we hear depends on the rate the impulses travel up the auditory nerve

Volley theory

Neural cells work together, alternation when by hey fire. Operating in rapid succession they can achieve a combined frequency above 1000 waves per second

Sound localization

The ability to identify the position and changes in position of sound sources based on acoustic information

Smell

Chemical sense- achieved through olfactory receptor cells through the nasal lining

pheromones

A chemical signal that is released outside the body by members of species and that influences the behavior of other members of the same species in non-human animals

Taste

A chemical sense of containing taste bud receptor

6 tastes

Sweet, oleogustos, umari,salty,sour, bitter

Taste receptors regenerate _______

Every 1-2 weeks

Non tasters

Have a lower than average amount of taste buds, meaning they taste less than average

Medium tasters

Have an average amount of taste buds and an average ability to detect taste

Super tastes

Have more taste buds than others, which allows them to experience more intense taste

Flavor

Combination of taste, smell,and tactile sensations

Tactile

Warm, texture

Touch

A mix of different sense → touch, pain, vestibular, kinesthetic

Majority of Skin receptors are located

Hands and face (least amount of backs

Biopsychosocial phenomena: bio

Dependent on genes you inherited and your physical characteristics brain creates pain when it lacks normal sensory input (phantom limb sensations)

Biopsychosocial phenomena : psycho

Dependent on how much attention you pay it; we edit memories of pain

Biopsychosocial phenomena: social

Our perception of pain varies with our social situation and cultural traditions; we perceive more pain when we sense others are feeling pain as well

Gate/ control theory

The spinal cord contains a neurological gate that blocks pain signal or let them through the but sun

Synesthesia

The production of a sense impression relating to one sense or part of the body by stimulation of another sense or part of the body

Kinesthesis

Sensory system that monitors the position of individual body parts and movements and reports this info to the thalamus and the cerebellum

Vestibular sense

Sensory system that monitors the head position and balance through receptors in the semicircular canals and vestibular sacs in the inner ear

semicircular canals

Three fluid-filled bony channels in the inner ear that provide information about orientation to the brain to help maintain balance

Vestibular sacs

Respond both to gravity to encode information about the head’s orientations

Perception

The process of organizing and interpreting sensory informations

Figure -ground relationship

We organize information by separating the figure from its background

Grouping

The perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups

Gestalt

Psychology’s approach to emphasizes our tendency to intergrate pieces of info into meaningful whole

Proximity

Seeing similar objects near eachother as a group

Similarity

When similar and dissimilar objects are mingled we see the similar objects as groups

Continuity

Seeing continuous patterns not disrupted ones

Closure

Seeing a complete pattern or shape, even if it is missing parts

Simplicity

Seeing the simplest shapes possible

Depth perception

Ability to see in 3 D

Binocular cues

Depth perception using two eyes

Retinal disparity

Slightly different perception of images are produced because eyes are positioned on different parts of the face