Sensation and Perception Review

These flashcards cover key concepts related to sensation and perception, including sensory processes, definitions, and theories of perception.

What two senses allow us to taste foods?

Smell and taste.

What are the five types of taste buds?

Salty, umami, sweet, sour, bitter.

How are smell and memory related?

Your memories are tied to your sense of smell.

What is the significance of the cochlea in the ear?

The hair cells vibrate and allow us to hear; it is where transduction occurs.

What is the difference between rods and cones?

Rods are responsible for vision in low light, while cones are responsible for color vision.

What is the significance of the optic nerve?

It allows us to get information from the eyes to the brain.

How is the blind spot produced?

It is a gap where the optic nerve meets the retina, which has no rods or cones.

Define transduction.

Converting energy from the environment into a neural signal.

What four different skin senses make up the sense of touch?

Pressure, warmth, pain, and cold.

What does the Gate Control Theory explain?

It explains how non-painful sensations can inhibit pain signals from traveling to the brain.

What stimulus input is necessary for hearing?

Sound energy.

What two physical characteristics help determine our sensory experience of sound?

Wavelength/frequency and amplitude.

What is conduction hearing loss?

Hearing loss caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound vibrations.

What is sensorineural hearing loss?

Hearing loss caused by damage to the cochlea's receptor cells or the auditory nerves.

What is bottom-up processing?

Analysis that starts with the senses and works up to the brain's interpretation.

What is top-down processing?

Analysis that is guided by experience and expectations.

What are the different types of thresholds?

Absolute threshold, difference threshold, and subliminal threshold.

What two senses allow us to taste foods?

Smell and taste.

What are the five types of taste buds?

Salty, umami, sweet, sour, bitter.

How are smell and memory related?

Your memories are tied to your sense of smell.

What is the significance of the cochlea in the ear?

The hair cells vibrate and allow us to hear; it is where transduction occurs.

What is the difference between rods and cones?

Rods are responsible for vision in low light, while cones are responsible for color vision.

What is the significance of the optic nerve?

It allows us to get information from the eyes to the brain.

How is the blind spot produced?

It is a gap where the optic nerve meets the retina, which has no rods or cones.

Define transduction.

Converting energy from the environment into a neural signal.

What four different skin senses make up the sense of touch?

Pressure, warmth, pain, and cold.

What does the Gate Control Theory explain?

It explains how non-painful sensations can inhibit pain signals from traveling to the brain.

What stimulus input is necessary for hearing?

Sound energy.

What two physical characteristics help determine our sensory experience of sound?

Wavelength/frequency and amplitude.

What is conduction hearing loss?

Hearing loss caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound vibrations.

What is sensorineural hearing loss?

Hearing loss caused by damage to the cochlea's receptor cells or the auditory nerves.

What is bottom-up processing?

Analysis that starts with the senses and works up to the brain's interpretation.

What is top-down processing?

Analysis that is guided by experience and expectations.

What are the different types of thresholds?

Absolute threshold, difference threshold, and subliminal threshold.

What is sensory adaptation?

Decreased sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation.

What is a perceptual set?

A mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another, influenced by experiences, assumptions, and expectations.

What is kinesthesis?

The system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts.

What is the vestibular sense?

The sense of body movement and position, including the sense of balance, located in the inner ear.

What dimension of sound is determined by a sound wave's wavelength or frequency?

Pitch.

What dimension of sound is determined by a sound wave's amplitude?

Loudness.

What is the retina?

The light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, containing the receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual information.

What two senses allow us to taste foods?

Smell and taste.

What are the five types of taste buds?

Salty, umami, sweet, sour, bitter.

How are smell and memory related?

Your memories are tied to your sense of smell.

What is the significance of the cochlea in the ear?

The hair cells vibrate and allow us to hear; it is where transduction occurs.

What is the difference between rods and cones?

Rods are responsible for vision in low light, while cones are responsible for color vision.

What is the significance of the optic nerve?

It allows us to get information from the eyes to the brain.

How is the blind spot produced?

It is a gap where the optic nerve meets the retina, which has no rods or cones.

Define transduction.

Converting energy from the environment into a neural signal.

What four different skin senses make up the sense of touch?

Pressure, warmth, pain, and cold.

What does the Gate Control Theory explain?

It explains how non-painful sensations can inhibit pain signals from traveling to the brain.

What stimulus input is necessary for hearing?

Sound energy.

What two physical characteristics help determine our sensory experience of sound?

Wavelength/frequency and amplitude.

What is conduction hearing loss?

Hearing loss caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound vibrations.

What is sensorineural hearing loss?

Hearing loss caused by damage to the cochlea's receptor cells or the auditory nerves.

What is bottom-up processing?

Analysis that starts with the senses and works up to the brain's interpretation.

What is top-down processing?

Analysis that is guided by experience and expectations.

What are the different types of thresholds?

Absolute threshold, difference threshold, and subliminal threshold.

What is sensory adaptation?

Decreased sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation.

What is a perceptual set?

A mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another, influenced by experiences, assumptions, and expectations.

What is kinesthesis?

The system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts.

What is the vestibular sense?

The sense of body movement and position, including the sense of balance, located in the inner ear.

What dimension of sound is determined by a sound wave's wavelength or frequency?

Pitch.

What dimension of sound is determined by a sound wave's amplitude?

Loudness.

What is the retina?

The light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, containing the receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual information.

What part of the brain acts as the brain's sensory control center, routing sensory messages (except smell) to the cortex?

The thalamus.

Which lobe of the brain primarily processes visual information?

The occipital lobe.

Which lobe of the brain is mainly responsible for processing auditory information?

The temporal lobe.

What brain region processes the sense of touch, pressure, temperature, and pain?

The somatosensory cortex, located in the parietal lobe.

What is the primary brain structure involved in processing the sense of smell?

The olfactory bulb.