Special Senses

What are the five major types of sensory receptors?

Mechanoreceptors (touch), Thermoreceptors (temperature), Pain receptors (nocireceptors), Chemoreceptors (chemicals), Photoreceptors (light)

What distinguishes special senses from general senses?

Special senses (sight, hearing, smell, taste) have receptors clustered in specialized organs, while general senses (like touch) have receptors distributed throughout the body.

What is the function of tactile receptors?

They detect touch, pressure, vibration, itch, and tickle sensations.

What temperature range do cold thermoreceptors respond to?

10-40 °C (50-105 °F)

What type of pain is felt within 0.1 seconds?

Fast pain, which is acute and sharp.

What is the role of the lacrimal apparatus?

It lubricates the eye and releases tears to cleanse and moisten the eye.

What is the sclera?

The white part of the eye made of fibrous connective tissue that protects and shapes the eye.

What are the functions of rods in the retina?

They are responsible for night vision, motion detection, and peripheral vision.

What do cones in the retina detect?

Bright light and color vision.

What is the function of the ciliary body?

It changes the shape of the lens to focus light.

What is the role of the tympanic membrane?

It vibrates in response to sound waves, transmitting vibrations to the ossicles.

What are the three bones in the middle ear called?

Malleus (hammer), Incus (anvil), Stapes (stirrup).

What is the function of the cochlea?

It converts sound vibrations into electrical signals sent to the brain.

What are taste buds responsible for?

Detecting taste through chemoreceptors.

What are the five basic tastes?

Bitter, salt, sour, sweet, and umami.

What is the primary function of olfaction?

To detect potentially harmful or valuable chemicals in the air and supplement taste.

Where are chemoreceptors for smell located?

In the olfactory bulb, an extension of the olfactory nerve.

What is the function of the aqueous humor?

It helps maintain the shape of the cornea.

What does the vitreous humor do?

Fills the bulk of the eye and maintains its shape.

What is the role of the semicircular canals?

They respond to changes in body position and help maintain balance.

What is the function of the organ of Corti?

It contains stereocilia that transmit mechanical energy of sound waves into electrical signals.

conjunctiva

thin membrane covering the eye's surface, secretes mucus to protect and lubricate eye

choroid

pigmented, vascular membrane that includes iris and pupil, dark layer of blood vessels inside the retina, also absorbs excess light

cornea

clear connective tissue that permits light to enter the eye

lens

focuses light in the eye

retina

contains photoreceptors that turn light energy into nerve impulses