Ch 2: Sensation and Perception

Question 1

sensation

Answer 1

conversion, or transduction, of physical, electromagnetic, auditory, and other information from the internal and external environment into electrical signals in the nervous system

Question 2

perception

Answer 2

processing of sensory information to make sense of its significance

Question 3

sensory receptors

Answer 3

nerves that respond to stimuli and trigger electrical signals

Question 4

sensory ganglia

Answer 4

sensory neurons are associated with this; collections of cell bodies outside the central nervous system

Question 5

projection areas

Answer 5

sensory stimuli are transmitted by these areas in the brain; which further analyze the sensory input

Question 6

common sensory receptors include

Answer 6

photoreceptors, hair cells, nociceptors, thermoreceptors, osmoreceptors, olfactory receptors, and taste receptors

Question 7

threshold

Answer 7

minimum stimulus that causes a change in signal transduction

Question 8

absolute threshold

Answer 8

minimum of stimulus energy that is needed to activate a sensory system

Question 9

threshold of conscious perception

Answer 9

minimum of stimulus energy that will create a signal large enough large enough in size and long enough in duration to be brought into awareness

Question 10

difference threshold or just-noticeable difference (jnd)

Answer 10

is the minimum difference in magnitude between two stimuli before one can perceive this difference

Question 11

weber’s law

Answer 11

states the jnd for a stimulus is proportional to the magnitude of the stimulus and that this proportion is constant over most of the range of possible stimuli

Question 12

signal detection theory

Answer 12

refers to the effects of nonsensory factors, such as experiences, motives, and expectations, on perception of stimuli

Question 13

signal detection theory allows us to look at ____, for a stimulus may or may not be given and the subject is asked to state whether or not the stimulus was given. there are four possible outcomes: hits, misses, false alarms, or correct negatives

Answer 13

response bias

Question 14

adaptation

Answer 14

refers to a decrease in response to a stimulus over time

Question 15

eye detects light in the form of

Answer 15

photons

Question 16

cornea

Answer 16

gathers and filters incoming light

Question 17

iris

Answer 17

divides the front of the eye into the anterior and posterior chamber. it contains two muscles, the dilator and constrictor pupillae, which opens and closes the pupil

Question 18

lens

Answer 18

refracts incoming light to focus it on the retina and is held in place by suspensory ligaments connected by the ciliary muscle

Question 19

the ciliary body produces ____ which drains into the canal of Schlemm

Answer 19

aqueous humor

Question 20

retina contains

Answer 20

rods and cones

Question 21

rods

Answer 21

detect light and dark

Question 22

cones

Answer 22

comes in three forms (short, medium, long wavelength) to detect colors

Question 23

retina contains mostly cones in the

Answer 23

macula, which corresponds to the central visual fields

Question 24

center of the macula

Answer 24

fovea, which contains only cones

Question 25

rods and cones synapse on

Answer 25

bipolar cells, which synapse on ganglion cells. integration of the signals from the ganglion cells and edge-sharpening is performed by horizontal and amacrine cells

Question 26

bulk of the eye is supported by the ____ on the inside and ___ and ____ on the outside

Answer 26

vitreous sclera and choroid

Question 27

visual pathway starts from the eye, and travels from through the ____x4 of the thalamus, and visual radiations to get to the visual cortex

Answer 27

optic nerves, optic chiasm, optic tracts, lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN)

Question 28

optic chiasm

Answer 28

contains fibers crossing from the nasal side of the retina (temporal visual fields) of both eyes

Question 29

visual radiations

Answer 29

run through the temporal and parietal lobes

Question 30

visual cortex

Answer 30

is in the occipital lobe

Question 31

vision like all senses is processed through

Answer 31

parallel processing; the ability to simultaneously analyze and combine information regarding color, shape, and motion

Question 32

color is detected by

Answer 32

cones

Question 33

parvocellular cells

Answer 33

detect shape, with high spatial resolution and low temporal resolution

Question 34

magnocellular cells

Answer 34

detect motion, with low spatial resolution and high temporal resolution

Question 35

ear is divided into

Answer 35

outer, middle, and inner

Question 36

outer ear consists of

Answer 36

pinna (auricle), external auditory canal, and tympanic membrane

Question 37

middle ear consists of

Answer 37

ossicles: malleus (hammer), incus (anvil), and stapes (stirrup)

Question 38

footplate of the stapes rests in the

Answer 38

oval window of the cochlea

Question 39

middle ear is connected to the nasal cavity by

Answer 39

eustachian tube

Question 40

inner ear contains the

Answer 40

bony labyrinth, within which is the membranous labyrinth

Question 41

the bony labyrinth is filled with ____; the membranous labyrinth is filled with ____

Answer 41

perilymph endolymph

Question 42

membranous labyrinth consists of the ____ ,which detects sound, ______ , which detect linear acceleration, and _____ , which detect rotational acceleration

Answer 42

cochlea utricle and saccule semicircular canals

Question 43

auditory pathway starts from the cochlea and travels through the ____ and ____ of the thalamus to get to the ____ in the temporal lobe

Answer 43

vestibulocochlear nerve medial geniculate nucleus (MGN) auditory cortex

Question 44

sound information also projects to the ___ which localizes the sound, and the ____, which is involved in the startle reflex

Answer 44

superior olive inferior colliculus

Question 45

smell is the detection of a volatile or aerosolized chemicals by the ___ in the olfactory epithelium

Answer 45

olfactory chemoreceptors (olfactory nerves)

Question 46

the olfactory pathway starts from the olfactory nerves and travels through the ___ and ____ to get to higher-order brain areas, such as the limbic system

Answer 46

olfactory bulb | olfactory tract

Question 47

pheromones

Answer 47

chemicals given off by animals that have an effect on social, foraging, and sexual behavior in other members of that species

Question 48

taste is the detection of dissolved compounds by ___ in ___. It comes in five modalities: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami (savory)

Answer 48

taste buds papillae

Question 49

somatosensation

Answer 49

refers to the four touch modalities: pressure, vibration, pain, and temperature

Question 50

two-point threshold

Answer 50

is the minimum distance necessary between two points of stimulation on the skin such that the points will be felt as two distant stimuli

Question 51

physiological zero

Answer 51

is the normal temperature of the skin, to which objects are compared to determine if they feel "warm" or "cold"

Question 52

nociceptors

Answer 52

responsible for pain perception

Question 53

gate theory of pain

Answer 53

states that pain sensation is reduced when other somatosensory signals are present

Question 54

kinesthetic sense (proprioception)

Answer 54

refers to the ability to tell where one's body is in three-dimensional space

Question 55

bottom-up (data-driven) processing

Answer 55

refers to recognition of objects by parallel processing and feature detection. it is slower, but less prone to mistakes

Question 56

top-down (conceptually driven) processing

Answer 56

refers to recognition of an object by memories and expectations, with little attention to detail. it is faster, but more prone to mistakes

Question 57

gestalt principles

Answer 57

are ways that the brain can infer missing parts of a picture when a picture is incomplete

Question 58

law of proximity

Answer 58

elements close to one another tend to be perceived as a unit

Question 59

law of similarity

Answer 59

objects that are similar appear to be grouped together

Question 60

law of good continuation

Answer 60

elements that appear to follow the same pathway tend to be grouped together

Question 61

subjective contours

Answer 61

perception of nonexistent edges in figures, based on the surrounding visual cues

Question 62

law of closure

Answer 62

when a space is enclosed by a group of lines, it is perceived as a complete or closed line

Question 63

law of pragnanz

Answer 63

says that perceptual organization will always be as regular, simple, and symmetric as possible