CH4

Question 1

bottom-up processing

Answer 1

process of “sensation”, input of sensory information from the external world is received and sensed as it is

Question 2

top-down processing

Answer 2

interpretation of incoming information based on our prior knowledge, experiences, and expectations, perception heavily relies on top-down processing

Question 3

sensation

Answer 3

simple stimulation of sense organ

Question 4

perception

Answer 4

forming a mental representation

Question 5

transduction

Answer 5

sense receptors convert physical signals from the environment into neural signals that are sent to the central nervous system

Question 6

what is the psychological dimension for light waves of LENGTH

Answer 6

hue/colour

Question 7

sensation → perception from eyes

Answer 7

light waves → retina →rods & cones (photo receptors) →ganglion cells → optic nerve → thalamus → visual cortex

Question 8

retina

Answer 8

contains sensory receptors that transduce light into neural signals

Question 9

photoreceptors

Answer 9

rods and cones transduce light waves into signals

Question 10

bipolar cells

Answer 10

sensory neurons; transfer visual input to ganglion cells

Question 11

ganglion cells

Answer 11

generates an action potential, sent to the brain by the optic nerve

Question 12

thalamus

Answer 12

relaying signal to visual cortex

Question 13

binocular depth cues (binocular disparity)

Answer 13

difference in the retinal images of the 2 eyes that provide information about depth (greater disparity = closer object)

Question 14

monocular depth cues

Answer 14

information about depth when viewed with only one eye; linear perspective, texture gradient, interposition, relative height, relative size, familiar size

Question 15

colour blindness

Answer 15

genetic disorder where one (or more) of the cone types is missing causing a colour vision deficiency

Question 16

synethesia

Answer 16

see words as colours

Question 17

trichromatic theory

Answer 17

colour vision based on 3 primary colours (red/green/blue → 3 different cone receptors)

Question 18

what colour & wavelength is the L- cone

Answer 18

red, long

Question 19

what colour & wavelength is the M- cone

Answer 19

green, medium

Question 20

what colour & wavelength is the S- cone

Answer 20

blue, short

Question 21

Opponent process theory

Answer 21

perceive colours in terms of 3 pairs of opposing colours: red vs green, blue vs yellow, white vs black

Question 22

How do we perceive motion

Answer 22

to sense motion, the visual system must encode information about both space and time (PERCEIVING CHANGE OVER TIME)

Question 23

dorsal visual stream

Answer 23

travels up from the occipital lobe to the parietal lobes; enables us to identify where an object is and how it is moving; crucial for guiding actions

Question 24

ventral visual stream

Answer 24

travels from the occipital visual regions into the lower temporal lobe; enables us to identify what we see

Question 25

what are the 3 physical properties of sound waves?

Answer 25

frequency, amplitude, complexity

Question 26

frequency

Answer 26

repetition rate, corresponds to our perception of pitch (low frequency = low pitched)

Question 27

amplitude

Answer 27

corresponds to our perception of loudness (high amplitude = loud sound)

Question 28

complexity

Answer 28

corresponds to our perception of timbre (simple = pure tone)

Question 29

sound waves from sensation to perception

Answer 29

sound waves enter the outer ear, making the eardrum vibrate. they pass to the middle ear making ossicles and oval windows vibrate. finally, they pass to the cochlea in your inner ear

Question 30

sensation of sound waves

Answer 30

pressure waves in the cochlea move the basilar membrane, stimulating the sensory receptors, called hair cells, in your inner ear.

Question 31

transduction of sound waves

Answer 31

when the hair cells bend they convert the pressure waves into signals that are sent to the brain by the auditory nerve

Question 32

perception of sound waves

Answer 32

the auditory nerve carries the neural signal first to the thalamus and then to the primary auditory cortex which processes your perception of the sound

Question 33

how does the pitch, timbre, and loudness of a sound relate to its physical properties

Answer 33

low pitch → low frequency
pure tone/timbre → simple
loud sound → high amplitude

Question 34

how do touch receptors transmit messages to the brain?

Answer 34

stimuli from the external world from skin → receptors in skin transmit signal → pathway along cranial nerve/spinal nerve through the thalamus to area of somatosensory cortex that processes the body parts that were touched

Question 35

how do odourant molecules convert into neural impulses?

Answer 35

smell stimuli → oderants pass into your nose and nasal cavity → olfactory receptors in the olfactory epithelium transmit signal to olfactory bulb →olfactory bulb transmit signal along olfactory nerve to areas of cortex and amygdala

Question 36

what is the importance of smell in personal and social experiences?

Answer 36

smells have close relationship w/ areas involved with emotional & social behaviour and memory, perception of smell can be influenced by previous experience

Question 37

how are taste sensations converted into neural impulses by tongue?

Answer 37

bit into something → molecules dissolve in fluid on your tongue → received by taste receptors in taste buds on your tongue and in your mouth and throat → taste buds transmit signal along cranial nerve through thalamus to other areas of brain

Question 38

what sense contributes to perception of flavour?

Answer 38

smell

Question 39

heritability

Answer 39

measure of the variability of behavioural traits among individuals that can be accounted for by genetic factors

Question 40

4 important points about heritability

Answer 40

1. heritability is an abstract concept
2. heritability is a population concept
3. heritability is dependent on the environment
4. heritability is not fate