AP Psych: Unit 1.6- Sensation

Based on AP Course Guide

Lens

Inverts the image so that it is projected onto the back of the eye (retina) upside down, lens should focus the image to pinpoint clarity onto the center of your retina (fovea)

Peripheral Vision

Seeing things at the corner of your eye

Blind spot

The area where the optic nerve enters the eye

Sclera

Shell

Cornea

Keeps eyes safe, clears out dirt/debris

Iris

Controls light entry by adjusting size of the pupil

Pupil

Controls the amount of light entering the eye by getting larger in dim conditions

Retina

Converts light into electrical signals sent to the brain to create images

Rods

Involved in Peripheral Vision

Fovea

In the center of the screen, helps you see

Cones

Helps you see color

Visible Light

A small portion of all the types of radiation in the universe

Length of the wave

Frequency, type of signal, color/hue

Height of Wave

Amplitude, intensity of signal, brightness

Color Blindness

Difficulty distinguishing between certain colors

Trichromatic Theory

Hermann von Helmholtz, there are three types of cones in the retina: blue, green, red

Opponent Processing Theory

Ewald Hering, no one can independently measure what another person perceives

Afterimage

Happens In the mind, it doesn’t exist out there even if you see it

Transduction

The process of external stimuli becoming perceptions, thoughts, and emotions

Outer Ear

Pinna, ear canal

Pinna

acts like a satellite dish to help focus the signal into the ear hole

Ear Canal

Great at carrying sound waves and echoes

Middle Ear

Ear drum, hammer, anvil, strirrup

Ear drum

Tympanic membrane, air vibrations are carried to it from ear canal, has 3 connecting bones: hammer, anvil, stirrup

Inner Ear

Cochlea

Cochlea

About the size of a pea, snail shell shaped, filled with fluid. stirrup bangs against oval window, sets wave of fluid up inside the cochlea

Place Theory

Where the wave of cochlear fluid crashes on the organ of corti is one way the brain interprets pitch, also known as spatial coding

Organ of Corti

Membrane with cilia sticking out of it, has neurons that bundle together to form the auditory nerve

Frequency Theory

Temporal coding: time is important, action potentials tell the brain which pitch to interpret

Auditory Disparity

Our brain processes the disparity in the slightly different signals that our two ears send towards it

Differences in Loudness

If a sound source is on our left, it’ll sound slightly louder in the left ear

Differences in Arrival Times

If a sound source is on our left, it will get to the left ear slightly before the right ear

Conduction Deafness

Something is not functioning in the outer or middle ear

Neurological Deafness

Cochlea is not sending correct signals to the brain

Olfaction

The sense of smell, hundreds of receptor neurons that only get excited when stimulated by certain molecules, can perceive thousands of smells

Vision

Photoreceptors are in the fovea, only 3 types of cones but we can perceive countless colors

Gustation

Very careful about what we taste, voluntary. We can only sense 5 tastes, but we can perceive millions

Papilla

Bumps on your tongue that contain taste buds

Salty Receptor

Easily stimulated by table salts

Sour Receptors

Respond to acids (vinegar, citrus)

Sweet Receptors

Stimulated by a few chemicals (sugar, artificial sweeteners)

Bitter Receptors

Stimulated by many combinations of foods

Umami receptors

Respond to chemicals that produce a savory sensation

Embodied Cognition

The idea that the body works with the brain to help process the data that happens in your nervous system every second

Feedback Loop

The body gives your brain info, your brain tells the body info. the body adjusts according to information from the brain

Kinesthetic Awareness

Awareness of how your body moves

Balance

Sense created by the vestibular system

Motion sickness

Caused when your vestibular sense and your eyes are telling your brain different things

Gate Control Theory of Pain

There is a limit to how much pain you can perceive

Empathy

A perception and skill that can be practiced and improved