Chapter 3 Perception Quiz 1

Question 1

Action pathway

Answer 1

Neural pathway, extending from the occipital lobe to the parietal lobe, that is associated with neural processing that occurs when people take action. Corresponds to the where pathway.

Question 2

Apparent movement

Answer 2

An illusion of movement perception that occurs when stimuli in different locations are flashed one after another with the proper timing.

Question 3

Bayesian inference

Answer 3

The idea that our estimate of the probability of an outcome is determined by the prior probability (our initial belief ) and the likelihood (the extent to which the available evidence is consistent with the outcome).

Question 4

Bottom-up processing

Answer 4

Processing that starts with information received by the receptors. This type of processing is also called data-based processing.

Question 5

Brain ablation

Answer 5

A procedure in which a specific area is removed from an animal’s brain. It is usually done to determine the function of this area by assessing the effect on the animal’s behavior.

Question 6

Direct pathway model

Answer 6

Model of pain perception that proposes that pain signals are sent directly from receptors to the brain.

Question 7

Dorsal pathway

Answer 7

Pathway that extends from the visual cortex in the occipital lobe to the parietal lobe. This is also known as the where pathway.

Question 8

Gestalt psychologists

Answer 8

A group of psychologists who proposed principles governing perception, such as laws of organization, and a perceptual approach to problem solving involving restructuring.

Question 9

Inverse projection problem

Answer 9

Task of determining the object that caused a particular image on the retina.

Question 10

Law of pragnanz

Answer 10

Law of perceptual organization that states that every stimulus pattern is seen in such a way that the resulting structure is as simple as possible. Also called the law of good figure and the law of simplicity.

Question 11

Landmark discrimination problem

Answer 11

Problem in which the task is to remember an object’s location and to choose that location after a delay. Associated with research on the whereprocessing stream.

Question 12

Light-from-above assumption

Answer 12

The assumption that light is coming from above. This is a heuristic that can influence how we perceive three-dimensional objects that are illuminated.

Question 13

Likelihood

Answer 13

In Bayesian inference, the extent to which the available evidence is consistent with the outcome.

Question 14

Likelihood principle

Answer 14

Part of Helmholtz’s theory of unconscious inference that states that we perceive the object that is most likely to have caused the pattern of stimuli we have received.

Question 15

Mirror neurons

Answer 15

Neurons in the premotor cortex, originally discovered in the monkey, that respond both when a monkey observes someone else (usually the experimenter) carrying out an action and when the monkey itself carries out the action. There is also evidence for mirror neurons in humans.

Question 16

Mirror neuron system

Answer 16

A network of neurons in the brain that have mirror neuron properties.

Question 17

Object discrimination problem

Answer 17

A problem in which the task is to remember an object based on its shape and choose it when presented with another object after a delay. Associated with research on the what processing stream.

Question 18

Oblique effect

Answer 18

The finding that vertical and horizontal orientations can be perceived more easily than other (slanted) orientations.

Question 19

Perception

Answer 19

Conscious experience that results from stimulation of the senses.

Question 20

Perception pathway

Answer 20

Neural pathway, extending from the occipital lobe to the temporal lobe, that is associated with perceiving or recognizing objects. Corresponds to the what pathway.

Question 21

Physical regularities

Answer 21

Regularly occurring physical properties of the environment. For example, there are more vertical and horizontal orientations in the environment than oblique (angled) orientations.

Question 22

Placebo

Answer 22

A pill or procedure that patients believe delivers active ingredients (usually pain killers), but which contains no active ingredient.

Question 23

Placebo effect

Answer 23

Decrease in pain from a procedure or substance that delivers no active ingredient.

Question 24

Principle of good continuation

Answer 24

Law of perceptual organization stating that points that, when connected, result in straight or smoothly curving lines are seen as belonging together. In addition, lines tend to be seen as following the smoothest path.

Question 25

Principle of good figure

Answer 25

Law of perceptual organization that states that every stimulus pattern is seen in such a way that the resulting structure is as simple as possible. Also called the law of good figure and the law of simplicity.

Question 26

Principle of similarity

Answer 26

Similar things appear to be grouped together.

Question 27

Principles of perceptual organization

Answer 27

This idea that the whole is different than the sum of its parts led the Gestalt psychologists to propose a number of principles of perceptual organization to explain the way elements are grouped together to create larger objects.

Question 28

Prior / Prior probability

Answer 28

A person’s initial belief about the probability of an outcome.

Question 29

Regularities in the environment

Answer 29

Characteristics of the environment that occur frequently. For example, blue is associated with open sky, landscapes are often green and smooth, and verticals and horizontals are often associated with buildings.

Question 30

Scene schema

Answer 30

A person’s knowledge about what is likely to be contained in a particular scene. This knowledge can help guide attention to different areas of the scene. For example, knowledge of what is usually in an office may cause a person to look toward the desk to see the computer.

Question 31

Semantic regularities

Answer 31

Characteristics associated with the functions carried out in different types of scenes. For example, food preparation, cooking, and perhaps eating occur in a kitchen.

Question 32

Size-weight illusion

Answer 32

When a person is presented with two similar objects that are the same weight but different sizes, the larger one seems lighter when they are lifted together.

Question 33

Speech segmentation

Answer 33

The process of perceiving individual words within the continuous flow of the speech signal.

Question 34

Statistical learning

Answer 34

The process of learning about transitional probabilities and about other characteristics of language. Statistical learning also occurs for vision, based on learning about what types of things usually occur in the environment.

Question 35

Theory of natural selection

Answer 35

Darwin’s theory that characteristics that enhance an animal’s ability to survive and reproduce will be passed on to future generations.

Question 36

Top-down processing

Answer 36

Processing that involves a person’s knowledge or expectations. This type of processing has also been called knowledge-based processing.

Question 37

Transitional probabilities

Answer 37

In speech, the likelihood that one speech sound will follow another within a word.

Question 38

Unconscious inference

Answer 38

Helmholtz’s idea that some of our perceptions are the result of unconscious assumptions that we make about the environment.

Question 39

Ventral pathway

Answer 39

The pathway from the visual cortex in the occipital lobe to the temporal lobe. This is also known as the what pathway.

Question 40

Viewpoint invariance

Answer 40

The ability to recognize an object seen from different viewpoints.

Question 41

What pathway

Answer 41

Neural pathway, extending from the occipital lobe to the temporal lobe, that is associated with perceiving or recognizing objects. Corresponds to the perception pathway.

Question 42

Where pathway

Answer 42

Neural pathway, extending from the occipital lobe to the parietal lobe, that is associated with neural processing that occurs when people locate objects in space. Roughly corresponds to the action pathway.