Chapter 16: Fallibility & Distortions of Perception: Taste & Vision Flashcards
Define visual illusion
A figure structured so that perception will consistently differ from objective reality.
What is the motion after effect (MAE) illusion?
The apparent motion of a stationary stimulus (object) following the extended viewing of a continuously moving stimulus. The stationary stimulus appears to move in the opposite direction.
Describe the Ames room illusion
A room that is constructed in a trapezoidal shape, but is made to appear square when observed through a peephole. When a person walks from the left to the right corner, the observer maintains shape but not size constancy- so the person appears to be growing rapidly in size.
Why does the Ames room illusion occur?
Because it prevents the use of both eyes so that the strongest binocular depth cues do not work. The rear wall actually runs from right to left, away from the viewer. The ceiling also is not parallel to the floor.
What is the Ponzo illusion?
An illusion where the upper horizontal line in each diagram is perceived to be longer than the lower horizontal line. We mistakenly perceive this because of the depth cues of linear perspective and height in the visual field. Because it casts the same-size image on the retina, we perceive the ‘more distant’ line to be longer.
What is the Müller-Lyer illusion?
Consists of two lines of equal length. One line has regular arrowheads, the other has inverted arrowheads (feather-tails). The line with feather-tails is perceived as being longer than the arrow-headed line.
What is the carpentered world hypothesis?
(Richard Gregory)
Involves the ‘misapplication of size constancy’. In a 3D world, we maintain a constant perception of the size of a familiar object by considering its distance from us. Gregory argued that we mentally make a 3D form of each figure, using familiar features of buildings to do so. This causes the observer to perceive the arrow-headed and line as the leading vertical edge of a buildings outer wall. The line with the feather-tails is perceived as being further away.
What is the perceptual compromise theory?
(Ross Day)
- Both parallel lines cast identical size images on the retina.
- The arrowhead of the feather-tail lines at the end of the figures create ‘open’ figures that cause us to apply the Gestalt principle of closure. -This creates a more solid figure, and because of the perceptual compromise made, we perceive each figure to be the length of the average between the internal line and the external lines.
- As a result of this figure A is perceived to be much shorter than figure B.
Describe how colour intensity can affect our perception of taste
Colour intensity plays an important role, not just on our assessments of food, but in our prediction of the type of flavour we will experience. Eg, a red drink would be expected to be sweet.
Describe how texture can affect our perception of taste
Texture, or the way food and drink feels in our mouth, plays an important role in our perception of flavour as it works on our expectations. We have learned from our experiences and exposure to marketing that certain things should feel a certain way. Eg, words such as crispy, tender, juice, and creamy all describe texture and are usually seeing on menus as they are appealing.
What is synaesthesia?
An intriguing phenomenon that concerns connections between senses. It is a cross modal experience- the presentation of a stimulus from one sensory system automatically triggers a perception in a second sensory system or cognitive process, such as; experiencing particular smells when hearing a particular sound, or seeing a certain colour in response to the sound of a certain word.
