sensation and perception test 3

apex (of the cochlea)

the end of the cochlea farthest from the middle ear

attack

the buildup of sound energy that occurs at the beginning of a tone

audibility curve

indicates the sound pressure level (SPL) at threshold fro frequencies across the audible spectrum

auditory canal

air vibrations travel form the environment to the tympanic membrane

base (of the cochlea)

end of the cochlea nearest the middle ear

basilar membrane

a membrane that stretches the length of the cochlea and controls the vibration of the cochlear partition

decay

the decrease in the sound signal that occurs at the end of a tone

decibel

a unit that indicates the pressure of a sound stimulus relative to a reference pressure: dB = 20log (p/p₀₎ where p is the pressure of the tone a p0 is the reference pressure

eardrum

another term for the tympanic membrane, the membrane located at the end of the auditory canal that vibrates in response to pressure changes. this vibration is transmitted to the bones of the middle ear

characteristic frequency

the frequency at which a neuron in the auditory system has its lowest threshold

cochlea

the snail shaped, liquid filled structure that contains the structures of the inner ear, the most important of which are the basilar membrane, the tectorial membrane, and the hair cells

cochlear implant

a device in which electrodes are inserted into the cochlea to create hearing by electrically stimulating the auditory nerve fibers.

cochlear partition

separates the scala tympani and the Scala vestibuli. the organ of corti is part of this

equal loudness curve

a curve that indicates the sound pressure levels that result in a perception of the same loudness at frequencies across the audible spectrum

first harmonic

usually the lowest frequency in the frequency spectrum of a complex tone

frequency

the number of times per second that pressure changes of a sound stimulus repeat. measured in hertz where 1 hertz is one cycle per second

frequency spectrum

a plot that indicates the amplitudes of the various harmonics that make up a complex tone. each harmonic is indicated by a line that is positioned along the frequency axis, with the height of the line indicating the amplitude of the harmonic

frequency tuning curve

curve relating frequency and the threshold intensity for activating an auditory neuron

fundamental frequency

the first harmonic

hair cells

neurons in the cochlea that contain cilia, that are displaced by vibration of the basilar membrane and fluids inside the inner ear

harmonics

pure-tone components of a complex tone that have frequencies that are multiples of the fundamental frequency

hertz

the unit or designating the frequency of a tone

incus

the second of the three ossicles of the middle ear. it transmits vibrations from the malleus to the stapes

inner ear

innermost division of the ear, containing the cochlea and the receptors for hearing

loudness

the quality of sound that ranges form soft to loud. for a tone of a particular frequency, usually increases with increasing decibels

malleus

the first of the ossicles of the middle ear. receives vibrations from he tympanic membrane and transmits these vibrations to the incus

middle ear

the smallest air filled space between the auditory canal and the cochlea that contains the ossicles

middle ear muscles

attached to the ossicles in the middle ear. they contract in response to very intense sounds and dampen the vibration of the ossicles

noise-induced hearing loss

a form of sensorineural hearing loss that occurs when loud noises cause degeneration of the hair cells

octave

tones that have frequencies that are binary multiples of each other (2,4 etc.) for example, 800-Hz tone is one ___ above a 400-Hz tone

organ of corti

the major structure of the cochlear partition, containing the basilar membrane, the tectorial membrane, and the receptors for hearing

ossicles

three small bones in the middle ear that transmit vibrations from the outer to the inner ear

outer ear

the pinna and the auditory canal

oval window

a small, membrane-covered hole in the cochlea that receives vibrations from the stapes

phase locking

firing of auditory neurons in synchrony with the phase of an auditory stimulus

pinna

the part of the ear that is visible on the outside of the head

pitch

the quality of sound, ranging from low to high, that is most closely associated with the frequency of a tone

place theory of hearing

the proposal that the frequency of a sound is indicated by the place along the organ of corti at which nerve firing is highest. modern place theory is based on Bakery’s traveling wave theory

presbycusis

a form of sensorineuronal hearing loss that occurs as a function of age and is usually associated with a decrease in the ability to hear high frequencies. since this loss also appears to be related to exposure to environmental sounds, it is also called sociocusis

pure tone

a tone with pressure changes that can be described by a single sine wave

resonance

a mechanism that enhances the intensity of certain frequencies because of the reflection of sound waves in a closed tube

resonant frequency

the frequency that is most strongly enhanced by resonance.

sound pressure level (SPL)

a designation used to indicate that the reference pressure used for calculating a tones decibel rating is set at 20 micropascal, near the threshold in the most sensitive frequency range for hearing

sound wave

pattern of pressure changes in a medium. most of the sounds we hear are due to pressure changes in the air, although sound can be transmitted through water and solids as well

stapes

the last of the three ossicles in the middle ear. it receives vibrations from the incus and transmits these vibrations to the oval window of the inner ear

tectorial membrane

a membrane that stretches the length of the cochlea and is located directly over the hair cells. vibrations of the cochlear partition cause this membrane to bend the hair cells by rubbing against them

temporal coding

the connection between the frequency of a sound stimulus and the timing of the auditory nerve fiber firing

timbre

the quality that distinguishes between two tones that sound different even though they have the same loudness, pitch, and duration. differences in this are shown by the sounds made by different musical instruments

tonotopic map

an ordered map of frequencies created by the responding of neurons within structures in the auditory system. there is one of these maps along the length of the cochlea, with neurons at the apex responding best to low frequencies and neurons at the base responding best to high frequencies

traveling wave

in the auditory system, vibration of the basilar membrane in which the peak of the vibration travels from the base to its apex

tympanic membrane

a membrane at the end of the auditory canal that vibrates in response to vibrations to the ossicles in the middle ear

contour following (T)

To learn about the shape of an object, which exploratory procedure would I most likely use?

lateral motion (T)

To learn about an object’s surface texture, which exploratory procedure would I most likely use?

Signals from the mechanoreceptors are carried primarily on the medial lemniscal pathway and those from the nociceptors primarily on the spinothalamic pathway (T)

Which statement best describes the relation between signals from the mechanoreceptors, signals from the nociceptors, the medial lemniscal pathway, and the spinothalamic pathway?

Some receptors respond only to warmth, others only to cold. None respond to both. (T)

Which statement best describes what thermoreceptors we have?

The firing rate increases with cold until it reaches a maximum firing rate. The firing rate then decreases with further decreases in temperature. (T)

How does the firing rate of a thermoreceptor that is sensitive to cold respond as our skin temperature falls below our normal skin temperature?

excitatory connections to the SG- cells (T)

Rubbing a wound can reduce the pain because the mechanoreceptors have

excitatory connections to the SG+ cells (T)

Anxiety or fear that a certain situation can cause pain can in fact increase feelings of pain because central control may have

A papillae has multiple taste buds. Each taste bud in turn has multiple taste cells. Each taste cell has a receptor for each of the four primary tastes. (T)

Which statement best describes the structure of the taste receptor system?

What odorants they respond to (T)

What differentiates the different types of olfactory receptors?

From only one type of olfactory receptor neuron (T)

A given glomerulus in the olfactory bulb receives input

The more similar the activation pattern across different glomeruli, the more difficult it is to discriminate the two odorants (T)

What is the relation between the activation patterns of glomeruli in the olfactory bulb caused by two different odorants and our ability to discriminate those two odorants?

The orbitofrontal cortex (T)

In which brain structure do we first find cells that are sensitive to input from both olfaction and taste?

The idea that the basilar membrane breaks the sound down into its component frequencies and that auditory neurons signal those individual frequencies to the brain (Q)

When we say that the ear acts as if it were performing a Fourier analysis on incoming sounds, what are we referring to?

The frequency of sound to which the neuron is most sensitive (Q)

The characteristic frequency of an auditory neuron refers to

The rate at which the waveform repeats itself (Q)

 According to the periodicity theory of pitch perception, the pitch we perceive corresponds to

Passes all frequencies between two bounds, blocking frequencies below the lower bound and above the upper bound (Q)

A bandpass filter

An adult who has been deaf from birth (Q)

Which of the following people is not likely to benefit from a cochlear implant?

A particular range of frequencies (Q)

In a cochlear implant, each channel corresponds to

On both the left and right sides of the brain (Q)

Neural signals that originate in the right ear end up

It concentrates the sound pressure from a relatively large area on the tympanic membrane onto a much smaller area on the oval window (Q)

What is one of the functions of the ossicles?

It dampens very loud sounds, thus protecting the ear from potential damage (Q)

In the middle ear, there are small muscles attached to the ossicles. What function does contraction of these muscles have?

Traces out the point of maximum displacement to a particular sound along the length of the basilar membrane (Q)

The envelop on the traveling wave

It will be closer to the base for the 1600 Hz tone (Q)

Consider two tones, one at 400 Hz and the other at 1600 Hz. What can we say about the place on the basilar membrane that will show the maximum vibration to these two tones?

The bending of the cilia in one particular direction (Q)

What causes the de-polarization of a hair cell?

Harmonic structure

  Attack and decay (Q)

List the two primary factors that influence our perception of the timbre of a sound, such as a musical note

People are least sensitive at low and high frequencies and most sensitive at middle frequencies (Q)

Which statement best describes the sensitivity of human hearing?

pitch (Q)

Generally speaking, what is the psychological correlate of frequency of a pure tone?

loudness (Q)

Generally speaking, what is the psychological correlate of amplitude of a pure tone?

It went up by a factor of 10 (Q)

The decibels (dB SPL) of a sound increases from 40 dB to 60 dB. What can we say about it pressure?

To the frequency of the pure tone (Q)

If we hear a sound that consists of a pure tone and its next 3 harmonics, what does our perception of pitch correspond to?

It helps people localize sounds (Q)

In addition to its role in holding up people’s eyeglasses, what other function has been hypothesized for the pinna?

It amplifies sounds at its resonance frequency, thus making them more audible (Q)

What is one of the functions of the auditory canal?

It contains individual neurons that receive input from both the olfactory system and the taste system (Q)

In terms of flavor perception, what is the importance of the orbitofrontal cortex?

It decreases. (Q)

As we eat more and more rum-raisin ice-cream, what happens to the firing rate of neurons in the orbitofrontal cortex that respond to the flavor of rum-raisin ice-cream?

Unsupported holding (Q)

Which exploratory procedure would be used to determine an object’s weight?

Have an excitatory connection with transmission (T) cells (Q)

In the gate control theory of pain, the large diameter, high threshold, fast adapting fibers can produce a sensation of pain because they

Have an excitatory connection with inhibitory SG cells (Q)

In the gate control theory of pain, the fibers from our normal touch receptors

Both itch and pain stimuli. (Q)

A pruriceptive nociceptor responds to

The number of odorants that we can discriminate is much larger than the number of ORNs (Q)

Which statement best describes the relation between the number of different types of Olfactory Receptor Neurons (ORN) and the number of odorants we are believed capable of discriminating?

Tasters have more papillae than do non-tasters. (Q)

Which two factors discriminate tasters from non-tasters?

Though most seem to respond to just one of the basic tastes, a few do respond to multiple of the basic tastes. (Q)

How do neurons in the chorda tympani respond to the different basic tastes?

The number of odorants that we can discriminate is much larger than the number of ORNs (Q)

Which statement best describes the relation between the number of different types of Olfactory Receptor Neurons (ORN) and the number of odorants we are believed capable of discriminating?

All ORNs of a given type occur in the same zone in both the olfactory mucosa and in the olfactory bulb; further all ORNs of a given type occur in only one zone (Q)

What is the relation between ORN types and zones in the olfactory mucosa and in the olfactory bulb?

Glomeruli (Q)

The structures in the olfactory bulb where olfactory receptor neurons terminate are called

The place where the acupuncture needle is inserted is often distant from the surgical site. (Q)

One possible explanation for the effectiveness of acupuncture as an analgesic is that the acupuncture needles stimulate the L-fibers (the large diameter fibers from the mechnoreceptors), thereby stimulating SG- cells. Which fact is inconsistent with this hypothesis?

They block histamines from binding to neuronal receptors. (Q)

How do at least some anti-itch creams work?

a.      Papillae

 

b.      Taste buds

 

c.      Taste cells

 

d.      Taste receptors (Q)

In reverse alphabetic order, four important components of the taste system are taste receptors, taste cells, taste buds, and papillae? These can be arranged in a hierarchy, where the thing at the top of the hierarchy contains the thing at the next level, which contains the thing at the level below that, which contains the thing at the level below that. Starting at the top, order those four things into that hierarchy.

Salty, sweet, bitter, sour (Q)

List the traditional 4 primary tastes

Neuropathic pain (Q)

Carpal tunnel syndrome is an example of