Module 3 Flashcards

Absolute threshold

Minimum stimulation needed to register a particular stimulus 50% of the time.

Signal detection theory

A model for predicting how and when a person will detect a weak stimulus, partly based on context.

Difference threshold

The point of telling difference between two stimuli.

Weber's law

We perceive differences on a logarithmic scale rather than a linear scale.

Chromostereopsis

Pure colors at the same distance from the eye appear at different distances.

Amplitude

The amount of energy in a given light wave.

Retina

Composed of rods and cones.

Parallel processing

Ability to process and analyze many aspects of a situation at once.

Retinal disparity

The left and right eye view slightly different images.

Depth perception

Allows us to estimate distances between objects and ourselves.

Occlusion

An object that blocks the view of another object must be in front of it.

Relative size

Smaller objects are perceived to be farther away.

Texture gradient

As texture gets farther away, it forms smaller visual angles on the retina and is less noticeable.

Relative height

Objects that appear higher in our visual field are farther away than those appearing lower.

Familiar size

Knowledge of the normal size of certain objects provides cues to depth.

Linear perspective

Parallel lines seem to converge as they move into the distance.

Aerial perspective

Objects that are farther away appear hazier and bluer.

Relative brightness

Brighter images are perceived as closer, while more shaded images are farther away.

Proximity

The closer figures are to each other, the more we tend to group them together perceptually.

Good continuation

A preference for organization in a way where contours continue smoothly along their original course.

Closure

The process of filling in information to complete perception.

Hue

Color.

Saturation

Intensity of color.

Value

How dark or light a color is, ranging from black to white.

Monochromatic

Different shades of the same color.

Analogous

Colors next to each other on the color wheel.

Complementary

Colors opposite to each other on the color wheel.

Split complementary

Two colors that are next to a color's complementary color on the color wheel.

Triadic

Colors forming a triangle on the color wheel.

Tetradic

Colors forming a rectangle on the color wheel.