AP PSYCHOLOGY UNIT 4 FLASHCARDS

Sensation

The process by which our sensory receptors (like touch, taste, smell, see hear) receive stimuli from our environment

Perception

The process of organizing sensory information

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* Enables us to find meaning in objects and events (essentially how we FEEL about it)

Sensation vs Perception Bonfire example

Sensation: heat, smell of smoke, light, taste of smores

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Perception: Comfort/cozy, fear of getting burnt, beauty of the flame

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(Both processes are happening at the same time)

Bottom-up processing

In the present

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* Analysis begins with sensory receptors and works up to the brain

Top-down processing

Way more thoughtful

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* Constructs perception from sensory input by drawing on experiences and expectations (it informs sensory then perception using background information)

Selective Attention

Focus your attention on particular stimuli like a spotlight focusing on a small part of a larger experience

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* The human brain - using all 5 senses - can take in all 11 million bits of information every second (however, it only processes 40 bits at a time, all other 10,999,960 are in the subcontinua brain)

Cautions with selective attention

Things like texting and driving increase your chance of accident by 25 times, conversation in the car increases your chances of accident by 40 percent

Selective inattention

Failing to see visible objects when our attention is elsewhere

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(Reference to experiments: Less than 50 percent of participants see the bear or gorilla when they are focusing on other things)

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Selective inattention can be manipulated by humans for magic and pickpocketing, etc

Change blindness

In the moment

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* Failing to notice change in the environment
* What is different NOW from what was THEN
* Adaptive innovation to not miss bigger picture, minimizes perception so we can focus on the greater task
* An example is roofing someone

Transduction STEPS

1\.) Receiving sensory information

2\.) Transform a neural impulse

3\.) Deliver Neuro-Signal to brain

Transduction

Converting one form of energy to another

ex.) Visual light to neural impulse

Absolute threshhold

The minimum stimulation required to detect a particular stimuli 50 percent of the time

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Ex.) The minimum taste, sound, light needed to taste, hear, see

Signal detection theory

Our ability to detect weak stimuli depends on “real world contexts”

* When we detect a faint stimulus (signal) amid background stimulation (noise)

Ex.) Parents of new-born = missed calls = hear sounds of baby

Difference threshold

The minimum change you can detect

* Stimuli you can detect 50 percent of the time.

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Ex.) Have 10 ounces and add 1 ounce, you will notice

vs. Have 100 ounces and add 10 ounces, you won’t be able to tell

Webers law

In order to notice a change between stimuli, those stimuli must differ by minimum percentages, NOT minimum amounts

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* Changes in light are noticeable at 8 percent
* Changes in tone (hearing) are noticeable at 5 percent

Subliminal

Below your absolute threshold

* Research shows no impact of subliminal messaging

Priming

To activate parts of your mind by affecting the subconscious brain

Sensory Adaptation

Diminished sensitivity as a consequence of stimulation.

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* When you are constantly exposed to a stimulus that does not change, you become less aware of it
* Allows us to notice changes more effectively and avoid danger

Wavelength

The distance between the peak of a sound or lightwave and said waves valley

Hues

The dimension of color determined by the wave length of life

* Red, orange, yellow (warm tone colors) have wavelengths that are longer, lower energy (less dense in spacing)
* Green, blue, purple (cool tone colors) have wavelengths that are shorter, higher energy (more dense spacing)

THE EYE

(reference worksheet for labels)

Cornea

A clear dome over the iris. The outside layer that protects the eye from damage

Pupil

The small black circular and adjustable opening in the iris that lets light in.

Iris

The colored muscle that controls the size of the pupil

Lens

Focuses incoming light rays into an image on the retina

(This is what controls near and farsightedness, and lasic eye surgery fixes this part of the eye)

Retina

The light sensitive inner surface of the (back of the) eye that processes visual information

Fovea

The central focus point in the retina that holds cone cells

Optic nerve

Carries neural information from eye to brain (connects to the visual cortex via the thalamus)

Blind spot

Where the optic nerve meets the eye (no visual receptors)

Cones and rods

Retinal receptors that take in visual information

Cones

Are centered in the fovea

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* 6 million of them
* They drive color sensations
* Function well in high light scenarios
* Detect fine detail

Rods

* 12 million of them
* They differentiate black and white


* Deal with peripheral vision and lowlight vision

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Visual information processing

1\. ) Visual information leaves the eye via the optic nerve

2\.) Goes to the thalamus (sorts information, then feature detection)

3\.) Sent to visual cortex

Feature Detection

Nerves in the occipital lobe (visual cortex) specialized in specific features like lines, angles, faces

Parallel Processing

Processing different aspects at the same time (color, form, motion, depth)

Steps to seeing ish

Scene, then retinal processing: Rods and cones to optic nerve, then feature detection: Thalamus sends into correct parts of visual cortex, then parallel processing: Visual cortex interprets image, then recognition: Based on memory and knowledge you understand what you’re saying

Color vision - Young Helmholtz 3 Color Theory (trichromatic)

3 types of cones

Red, Green, and Blue form any color we can see

Color blindness

When green or red cones aren’t working

Opponent processing

The idea that color processing is accomplished by opposing color pairs

* Red and green
* Blue and yellow
* Black and white

The colors in one pair cannot fire at the same time to make a new color because they’re in the same channel

Red and green travel down the same channel, so we cannot see reddish-green

(blue and yellow cannot go off together to make green, green stands alone)

Blue and red travel down different channels, so we can see purple,

Yellow and red travel different channels, so we can see orange

Gesalt

“An organized whole”

* We have a tendency to integrate pieces of perceptual information into a whole unified “picture”
* We filter into and create perceptions

Gesalt grouping

The perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into groups

Proximity

to group based on spacial relation

Continuity

Seeing smooth contiguous patterns

Closure

Neker cube

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* Fill in the gaps to form a complete picture

Gesalt: Figure ground

Organizing the visual field into objects that stand out from a background

Monocular cue

Using context to judge distance

Depth perception

See in 3D

* Images on retina are 2D

Bionocular cue

Depth cues that come from 2 eyes

Audition

The sense or act of hearing

Amplitude

Determines loudness

* The height of sound waves
* Taller = louder

Frequency

Distance from peak valley (horizontally)

* The range of sound pitch, measured in Hertz (Hz)


* The more frequent the sound waves, the higher the pitch, and the higher the Hertz number.

Pitch

Highness or lowness of a sound

Place theory

The place in the cochlea affects/determines pitch

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(Pitch is determined by the places where the membrane vibrates, based on frequencies.)

Frequency theory

Rate of neural impulse determines pitch

Decibel (dB)

Unit of measure for how loud a sound is

0 decibels

Quietest sound a person can detect (threshold)

Decibels examples

Normal conversation is 60 decibels

* Each decibel represents a 10 times increase in loudness
* A whisper = 20 decibels (10,000 times louder)
* 90 decibels and above causes hearing loss (so traffic)
* Things like a rock concert are 130 decibels

The EAR (reference worksheet for labels)

A: Outer ear (visible and auditory cortex)

B: Middle ear (between ear drums and cochlea)

C: Inner ear (cochlea, 3 bones)

D: Auditory canal

E and K: Eardrum (this is next to bones)

F (and others): 3 bones of the middle ear including Hammer (J), Anvil (L), Stirrup (M)

I and O: Oval window

H and N: Cochlea on diagram pt.2

G and R: Auditory nerve

P: Fluid in ear

Q: Balisar membrane

S: Hair cells

Cochlea

Spinal boney structure that is filled with fluid

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(kinda looks like a sea shell)

Steps of hearing

1\.) Sound is made

2\.) Sound waves enter ear and auditory canal

3\.) The sound hits the ear drum and makes it vibrate

4\.) The ear drum makes the hammer bone vibrate and those vibrations hit the anvil bone

5\.) When the anvil bone is hit, it vibrates and moves the stirrup bone over to the oval window

6\.) The stirrup hitting the oval window makes waves in the cochlea’s fluid

7\.) Hair cells in the cochlea move with waves in the fluid

8\.) Neural response travels down auditory nerve to the temporal lobe (auditory cortex)

Loudness

Is recognized by the number of hair cells moving

Sensoneural hearing loss

Caused by damage to the cochlea hearing receptors (hair cells)

Conduction hearing loss

Damage to mechanical components (3 bones in the ear)

Cochlear implant

Electrical stimulation of cochlea (to regain hearing ability)

Touch

Skin can detect the following stimuli;

* Pressure, temperature (hot and cold), and pain

Pain

Women tend to be more sensitive to pain than men (they pick up on it better)

* Every person’s pain sensitivity and tolerance is different, and determined by 3 factors:
* Biological: Endorphin production, activity in the spinal cord
* Psychological: Attention to pain, expectations and experiences
* Socio-cultural: Cultural expectation, the presence of others

Since pain is both physical and psychological we can treat it with

* Drugs, surgery, massages, placebo, hypnosis, relaxation therapy (meditation)

Taste

Purpose is to detect poison, and get nutrition

5 flavors;

* Sweet (sugar)
* Salty (salt)
* Bitter (coffee)
* Sour (lemon)
* Umami (savory, like mushrooms)

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Taste is a chemical sense,

* Each bump on your tongue has more than 200 taste buds
* Each taste bud has between 50 and 100 receptors
* Each receptor is uniquely tailored to one of the 5 flavors
* Taste buds replace themselves every week or 2

Smell

\*Attractiveness, it’s learned

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Also a chemical sense;

* 20 mm olfactory receptors in the nasal cavity
* Goes to the “olfactory bulb” not through the thalamus because it is a much older sense, to detect food
* Memory center next to olfactory bulb, so smell triggers memory unlike any other sense. This also means it could trigger harmful memories, trauma related stuff

Olfactory bulb

A rounded mass of tissue that contains several types of nerve cells that are involved in the sense of smell.

* There are two olfactory bulbs on the bottom side of the brain, one above each nasal cavity.

Kinesthesia

The system for sensing position and movement of individual body parts (sensors all over the body)

Vestibular sense

Sense of body position and balance

* Vestibular sacs are in the cochlea

This is in relation to the ears, which is why your balance may be messed up depending on how your head is turned (upside down)

This is also why vertigo messes stuff up