sensation and perception graham chapter 1 terms

sensation

collection of certain processes that go on within certain cells that transform stimuli into chemical/electrical reactions

perception

series of brain processing stages that integrate sensory information with past experiences, allows interpretation of sensory signals

remote sensing

involves signals available to many people (ex: vision, hearing)

exotic senses

senses absent in humans (ex: echolocation)

local sensing

forms of stimulation that are not shared with others (ex: taste)

nociception

feeling of pain

gustation

sense of taste

proprioception

sense of relative position of limbs/muscles needed for balance, posture, and coordinating movement

vestibular system

senses accelerations of the head/body; needed for balance, posture, locomotion, and parts of visions

interoception

detection of other properties in body (thirst, hunger, BP, SpO2, movement/pain in our internal organs)

transduction

process of neurons turning stimuli into chemical and electrical signals

central nervous system

brain and spinal cord

peripheral nervous system

all other neural components (sensory and motor neuron systems)

afferent

bringing something towards another (ex: sensory neurons)

efferent

bring something away from something (ex: motor neurons)

forebrain

region of brain containing the cerebral hemispheres, thalamus, olfactory bulbs, etc.

brainstem

brain region containing midbrain, pons medulla, cerebellum

white matter

contains mostly axons, is able to transmit signals across parts of cortex

cerebral hemispheres

most prominent parts of the forebrain, surface is called the cerebral cortex, contains gray matter

gray matter

made mostly of neural cell bodies

frontal lobe

mostly carries out higher cognitive tasks, planning, and initiation of voluntary movement

parietal lobe

carries out various tasks related to sensation and perception such as the integration of information from different modalities, as well as somotosensation

occipital lobe

mostly areas responsible for vision

temporal lobe

responsible for audition (language-related functions), olfaction, vision (ex: how you see faces), and memory

corpus callosum

white matter structure that bridges the hemispheres so they can exchange information