Chapter 3 - Sensation and Perception Flashcards
provides the raw information
Sensation
how we detect physical energy from the environment and encode it as neural signals
Sensation
contracts raw information into our own experiences
Perception
how we select, organize, and interpret this information
Perception
taking in the energy from the environment and turning it into signals that our brains can understand through our 5 senses
“Bottom-Up Processing”
high level brain functions (experiences, motivations, expectations) and interpret what we build from sensation
“Top-Down Processing”
minimum stimulation needed to detect something half the time
- detect a signal 50% of the time (ex., ticking clock)
Absolute Threshold
predicting how and when we detect the presence of a signal amid background noise
Signal Detection Theory
minimum difference a person can detect between two stimuli 50% of the time
- just noticeable difference (JND)
Difference Threshold
principle that 2 stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage in order to be perceived as different
- ex., having 60 candles lit in a room and adding one more candle makes the room more brighter half the time and the other half not (JND)
Weber’s Law
reduced sensitivity resulting from constant stimulation
- benefit: allows us to focus on informative changes in our environment without being distracted by the uninformative constant stimulation
Sensory Adaptation
our ability to select how we want to pay attention
Selective Attention
sensation
Vision
part of the eye that…
- eyes back surface that contains receptor cells that converts light energy into neural impulses sent to the brain
The Retina
part of the eye (retina) that…
- responsible for seeing black, white, and gray
- peripheral and twilight vision
Rods
part of the eye (retina) that…
- responsible for seeing fine detail color
- daylight or well-lit conditions
Cones
part of the eye (retina) that…
- bundle of axons of ganglion cells
- carries neural impulses from eye to brain
Optic Nerve
part of the eye (retina) that…
- point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye
Blind Spot
images we “see” are not made of light, they are made of neural signals
Visual Information Processing
the retina contains 3 different type of color receptors (red, green, blue)
- when stimulated in combination can produce the perception of any color
Trichromatic Theory
opposing retinal process (red-green, yellow-blue, black-white) enable color vision
- some neurons are turned “on” by red and turned “off” by green
Opponent Process Theory
audition
Hearing
part of the inner ear…
- spiral fluid filled structure in inner ear that sends sound waves to the brain
The Cochlea
olfaction
Smell
regions in the brain involve smell
- including amygdala and cerebral cortex
Olfactory Cortex
gustation
Taste
can detect 4 basic qualities
1. sweetness
2. saltiness
3. sourness
4. bitterness
5. umami (argued)
Taste
sense of the position and movement of the body parts
- ex., when your alarm goes off, you know where to put your arm to turn it off
Kinesthetic Sense
sense of balance
Vestibular Sense
gestalt
Perception
- means “whole”
- our tendency to integrate pieces of information into meaningful wholes
Gestalt
form, depth, constancy
Perceptual Principles
- part of “form” principle
- organization of the visual field into objects that stand out from their surrounding
Figure-Ground
- part of “depth” principle
- ability to see objects in 3-D although the images that strike the retina are 2-D (allows us to judge distance)
Depth Perception
- part of “depth” principle
- depend on the use of the 2 eyes
Binocular Cues
- part of “depth” principle
- depth cues that our brain looks for that requires the use of only 1 eyes
Monocular Cues
- part of “constancy” principle
- we perceive the form of familiar objects as constant even while our retinal images of them change
Shape Constancy
- part of “constancy” principle
- we perceive the size of familiar objects as constant even while our retinal images of them change
Size Constancy
a mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another
Perceptual Set
interposition, relative height, relative size, linear perspective
Monocular Cues
retinal disparity and convergence
Binocular Cues
