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Sensation
the process which our sensory system receives information from the environment.
Transduction
when sensory information is converted to neural information.
Perception
the process of selecting, organizing, and interpreting sensory information.
Bottom Up Processing
Putting together an image piece by piece; from small parts to the whole picture.
Top Down Processing
looking at the whole picture first then looking at the individual parts. Influence by expectations and experience.
Inattentional Blindness
failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere.
Selective Attention
the focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus.
Change Blindness
failing to notice changes in the evironment.
Absolute Threshold
The minimum stimulation necessary to detect a particular stimulus 50% of the time.
Difference Threshold (Just Noticeable Difference)
the minimum difference between to stimulus required for detection.
Weber’s Law
the principle that, to be perceived as different, two stimuli must differ by a constant percentage (rather than a constant amount).
Signal-Detection Theory
a theory predicting how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus (signal) amid background stimulation (noise) : uses top down processing and expectations
Sensory Adaptation
diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation.
Sensory Interaction
how sense interact and influence each othe .
wavelength
the distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next.
Hue
the dimension of color that is determined by the length of wavelength.
Intensity
the amount of energy in a light or sound wave, which we perceive as brightness or loudness, as determined by the wave’s amplitude (height).
cornea
outer transparent covering
Pupil
opening in the center o the ye that lets light in
iris
the colored part that controls the pupil
lens
focuses the image to the retina
retina
nerves that line the inner surface of the eye where transduction occurs.
blind spot
where the optic nerve leaves the eye
optic nerve
carries info to the brain
fovea
area of the retina where vision is clearest
Rods
detect black, white and gray (120 million)
cones
detect fine detail and help process color (6 million). Located near the fovea; not in peripheral vision.
Bipolar Cells
connect the rods/cones to the ganglion cells
Ganglion cells
connect the bipolar cells to the optic nerve
Optic chiasm
where visual information crosses over the other hemisphere
Trichromatic (three-color) Theory
Theory of color vision that says cones are “tuned” to be sensitive to red, green, and glue light. All the colors we see are a combination of these three colors.
Color Deficient Vision
People who lack or have damage in one of the three types of cones
Opponent Processing Theory
The theory that opposing retinal processes enable color vision
Pathway of Vision
Cornea, Pupil, Lens, Retina, Rods/Cones, Bipolar, Ganglion, Optic Never, Thalamus, Occipital Lobe
Audition
the act of hearing
amplitude
determines loudness
Frequency
determines pitch
pinna (outer ear)
directs sound waves down the ear canal to the ear drum
tympanic membrane (ear drum)
vibrates from sound waves and bangs into 3 bones (H,A,S)
Bones of the Middle Ear
Hammer, Anvils, stirrup- swing and bang into each other to pass on the sound, then stirrup hits the cochlea
cochlea
coiled, contains fluid and hair (basilar membrane)
Where transduction occurs
Semicircular canals
filled with fluid; affect our balance
auditory nerve
takes sound information to the thalamus and then on to BOTH temporal lobes
Pathway of Hearing
Pinna, ear canal, tympanic membrane, H.A.S, cochlea, auditory nerve, thalamus, temporal lobe
Place theory
pitch is determined by location of vibration along the cochlea’s membrane
Frequency Theory
pitch is determined by how fast the neural impulse travels up the auditory nerve
Conduction Hearing Loss
damage to the structure of the middle or inner ear. Surgery
Sensorineural Hearing Loss
linked to a deficit in the body’s ability to transmit impulses form the cochlea to the brain.
Touch
Transduction occurs at receptors on the skin, which send the signal to the brain via afferent neurons.
Touch- skin receptors
pressure
warmth
cold
pain
Gate-Control Theory
The theory that the spinal cord contains a neurological”gate” that blocks pain signals or allows them to pass on to the brain.
Kinesthesis
the system for sensing the positions of individual body parts. Also called proprioception
Vestibular Sense
The sense of balance
Located in the inner ear
Semicircular canals
Phantom Limb Sensation
Signals are misinterpreted by the CNS due to the lack of other expected signals
Gustation
the sense of taste
Taste Receptors
Sweet, Sour, Salty, Bitter, Umami
Aguesia
Loss of the sense of taste
Olfaction
the sense of smell
Anosmia
Loss of the sense of smell
Perceptual Principles
are short cuts that our brains take to make sense of what we are looking at
Figure-ground
the organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) that stand out from their surroundings (the ground)
Grouping
the perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups
Proximity (nearness)
Similarity
Continuity
Closure
Perceptual Constancy
Our tendency to perceive objects as stable and unchanging despite changing sensory information
Size constancy
Shape constancy
Color constancy
Figure Detectors
nerve cells in the brains that respond to specific features of the stimulus such as shape angle or movement
Parallel Processing
the processing of several aspects o a problem simultaneously
Depth perception
the ability to see objects in three dimensions although the images that strike the retina are two-dimensional; allows us to judge distance.
Visual Cliff Experiment
A laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals
Monocular Cues
depth perception using only 1 eye (interposition; linear perspective)
Binocular Cues
depth perception that depends on both eyes
Retinal disparity
comparing the images form the 2 retinas to compute distance