Propagnosia (face blindness)

inability to recognize faces (can recognize features and objects)

sensation

process where sensory receptors in the nervous system take in stimuli from our environment

sensory receptors

sensory nerve endings that respond to stimuli

perception

process where the brain organizes and interprets sensory information which allows us to recognize objects as meaningful

bottom-up processing

information processing that starts with sensory receptors and works up into the brain to be processed

top-down processing

information processing guided by higher mental process that draws on expectations and experiences to interpret incoming sensory information

transduction

the process of converting outside stimuli, such as light, into neural activity the brain can understand

psychophysics

the study of relationships between physical energy we detect and its effects on psychological experiences

absolute threshold

minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimuli 50% of the time

signal detection theory

the detection of a stimulus depends on both the intensity of the stimulus and the physical/psychological state of the individual.

subliminal

below one's absolute threshold of conscious awareness

priming

unconscious activation of certain associations, swaying ones perception EX: talking about violence will make someone think about safety

difference threshold (just noticeable difference)

minimum difference between two stimuli before one can perceive a difference 50% of the time

Weber's Law (JND)

the stronger the initial stimulus, the greater the additional intensity needed for the second stimulus to be perceived as different EX: a radio at zero to 1 is much easier to detect than one at 35 to 36

sensory adaptation

constant exposure to a stimulus will result in you not noticing it after a while EX: you don't hear a fan humming until it is off

wavelength

horizontal distance from one wave peak to the next

hue

dimension of color determined by wavelength of light

intensity

amount of energy in a wave determined by amplitude (brightness/loudness)

cornea

clear protective tissue that covers the front of the eye (bends light allowing to focus)

pupil

adjustable opening in the center of the eye through which light enters

iris

colored muscle that dilates or constricts in response to light intensity

lens

clear structure behind pupil that changes shape to help focus images in retina

retina

light-sensitive inner surface in the back of the eye that contains rods and cones that begin processing information

accommodation

process in which the lens in the eye changes curvature/thickness to focus light rays

nesrsighted

myopia - long eye

farsighted

hyperopia-short eye

rods

found in the retina, detect black, white and movement in peripheral vision (more rods than cones)

cones

found in center of retina, functions in well-lit areas to apply color and fine detail to visual fields

retina layers

Rods and cones -> bipolar cells-> ganglion cells -> optic nerve

optic nerve

Made up of axons of ganglion cells; Nerve in eye that carries neural impulses form the eye to the brain

blindspot

point in eye where optic nerve exits, no receptor cells

fovea

central focal point of eye, cones are clustered here densely

Cute puppies lick roses

cornea, pupil, lens, retina

bipolar cells and ganglion cells

These cells make up different layers in the retina.

In the retina, light activates rod and cone cells.

Rods and cones send signals to the next layer of cells in the retina: bipolar cells

Bipolar cells send signals to the next layer of cells in the retina: Ganglion cells

Ganglion cells send signals to the brain through the optic nerve

optic chiasm

X-shaped crossover of right/left eye's optic nerves; enables vision to be processed by opposite sides of brain

Young-Hemholtz trichromatic (three-color) theory

theory that the retina contains 3 different color receptors (Red, Blue and Green) which can create any color when stimulated

after-image

an image that remains after a stimulus is removed especially if the colors are opposites (Stare at a green object for a while, once it is removed a red image will be seen)

opponent process theory

opposing retinal processes (red-green, yellow-blue, white-black) enable color vision

Tri-chromatic

normal color vision

Dichromatic

can see 2 color pairs (Colorblind)

Monochromatic

seeing only black and white

feature detectors

nerve cells in the visual cortex that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement

supercell clusters

responds to feature detector signals in cortical areas

fusiform face area

A region of the right temporal lobe that helps us recognize faces (a person with propagnosia will have damage here)

parallel process theory

processing of multiple aspects of similar problems simultaneously

Order of processing vision

scene-retinal processing-feature detection-parallel processing- recognition

audition

sense or act of hearing

frequency

number of complete wavelengths that pass a point within a given time

pitch

a tone's experienced highness or lowness; depends on frequency

middle ear

chamber between eardrum and cochlea , contains three small bones (Hammer, anvil and stirrup)

cochlea

coiled, bony, fluid filled tube in the inner ear, sound vibrations in the fluid trigger nerve impulses

inner ear

inner-most portion of ear containing cochlea, semi-circular canals and vestibular sacs

sensorialneural hearing loss; nerve deafness

Common; caused by damage to cochlea's hair receptors- processes sound but has hard time fully understanding what is being heard

conduction hearing loss

Uncommon; caused by damage to mechanical system that conducts sound to cochlea

loudness

sounds intensity, interpreted from the # of hairs activated in ear

place theory

theory that links pitch with the place where the cochlea's membrane is stimulated (place coding) explains high pitched sounds but not low pitched

frequency theory

theory that the rate of nerve impulses travelling up auditory nerve matched frequency (temporal coding) does not explain high sound

volley theory

theory that since nerves can only fire at 1000 waves per second but we can hear much higher that that, nerves fire in succession to go faster

noiceptors

sensory receptors in skin/muscles/organs that detect pain

gate control theory

the theory that the spinal cord contains a neurological "gate" that either blocks or allows pain messages to be processed

phantom limb

perceived sensation, following the amputation of a limb, that the limb still exists and is receiving stimulation

gustation

sense of taste (sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami)

olfaction

sense of smell

olfactory bulb

brain structure located above nasal cavity beneath frontal lobes and very close to hippocampus (why smells bring back vivid memories)

kinesthesis

sense of movement enabled by proprioceptors

Vestibular sense

sense of balance and head position due to fluid moving in inner ear and eye movement

gestalt

pattern, figure or form that has a uniform organization; helps us perceive things as organized wholes

closure

tendency to complete figures that are incomplete

Figure-ground

the organization of the visual field into objects that standout from their surroundings

proximity

objects that are close tend to be grouped together (Circles that "make" a block but don't actually)

similarity

the tendency to perceive things that look similar to each other as being part of the same group

depth perception

ability to see in three dimensions, although images striking the retina are 2-dimensional; allows judgement of distances

binocular cues

depth cues depending on the use of two eyes

Retinal disparity

Binocular: difference between images provided by the two retinas

convergence

Binocular: cue for perceiving depth, eyes converge inward towards an object

monocular cues

depth cues available to either eye alone

linear perspective

Monocular: parallel appear to converge with distance (rail road tracks)

relative size

Monocular: assumption that 2 objects are the same size and if one appears smaller, it is farther away (small retinal image) and if it appears larger, it is closer (large retinal image)

relative clarity

Monocular: perception that hazy objects are farther then sharp, in-focus objects

Interposition

Monocular: if one object partially blocks our view of another object, we perceive it as closer

perceptual constancy

Monocular: tendency to perceive objects as stable/ unchanging

Size constancy

Monocular: despite distance, objects don't change size EX: one person is farther ad lower than another, they are still similar sizes

Color constancy

Monocular: Colors do not change when light does EX: apple in the sun and apple in the shade are not different colors

Shape constancy

Monocular: despite distance, objects do not change size EX:a chair in front of you is the same size as one across the room even though one appears smaller it does not actually change shape

texture gradient

monocular: coarse, distinct texture is closer than indistinct texture EX: the bumps in the wall that are close to you are very clear, but the bumps slowly become indistinct further down the hallway

Phi Phenomenom/apparent motion

illusion of movement created by a stationary object through use of blinking in succession EX: there appears to be a yellow circle moving around a circle of blue lights but it is just the blue lights blinking yellow in succession with another light

perceptual adaptation

ability to adjust to artificially displaced or inverted visual field

sensory interaction

principle that one sense may influence another, smell and taste interact

embodied cognition

influence of bodily sensations, gestures, other states on cognitive preferences or judgements EX: sitting on a hard chair will make a person act more harsh

Synesthesia

blended sensations EX: hearing numbers triggers someone to smell particular scents or taste a particular flavor for that number

selective attention

focusing conscious awareness on a particular stimulus

inattentional blindness

failing to see visible objects when our attention is focused elsewhere

EX: how many times was the ball passed? you were so focused on the ball that you failed to see the gorilla walk into frame and beat his chest

change blindness

failing to notice a change in the environment

EX: A man in a yellow coat asks for directions, 2 people carrying a painting walk through them and a woman in a red coat is now talking to the man giving directions and he doesn't notice a difference

perceptual set

mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another

EX: Do you see a vase or 2 side profiles?

cocktail party effect

ability to attend to only one voice among many

EX: you can only hear your friends voice while you are at a party (hearing your name catches your attention)

stroboscopic movement

illusion of apparent movement based on rapid movement of slightly varying still images

EX: a flipbook

Autokinetic effect

illusion that a stationary point of light in a dark room us moving ("Movement" is caused by our eye movement)