chapter 4 vocab Flashcards
absolute threshold
the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50% OF THE TIME
Accommodation
involves altering one’s existing schemas, or ideas, as a result of new information or new experiences
Audition
the sense or act of hearing
basilar membrane
runs the length of the spiral cochlea, holds the auditory receptors, called hair cells
blind spot
point where the optic nerve leaves eye, there are are no receptors cells there
binocular depth cues
clues about distance based on differing views of the two eyes
bottom-up processing
analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up the brains integration of sensory information
change blindness
a phenomenon of visual perception that occurs when a stimulus undergoes a change without it being noticed by the observer
cocktail party effect
the ability to focus one’s attention on a particular stimulus while filtering out a range of other stimuli
Cochlea
a snail-shaped tube in the inner ear, where the physical stimuli of the sound wave is converted into a neural impulse.
depth perception
involves interpretation of visual cues that indicate how near or far away objects are
Cones
retinal receptor cells that are concentrated near the center of the retina and that function in daylight or in well-lit conditions, distinguishes colors
difference threshold
also known as just noticeable difference, the minimum difference a person can detect between any two stimuli half the time
feature detectors
nerve cells in the brain that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as shape, angle, movement
fovea
the retina’s area of central focus
frequency theory
The rate of nerve impulses traveling up the auditory nerve matches the frequency of a tone; enabling us to sense its pitch.
gate-control theory
a mechanism which pain signals can be sent up to the brain to be processed to accentuate the perceived pain
Gestalt
the different ways individuals group stimuli together in order to make a whole that makes sense to them.
proximity, similarity, continuity, connectedness, and closure.
gustatory system -
the sensory for taste
inattentional blindness
failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere
Kinesthesis
the perception of body movements
Iris
a colored muscle that adjusts light intake
Lens
focusing incoming light rays into an image
middle ear
carry sound waves from the outer ear to the inner ear,
olfactory system
the sensory system for smell
opponent processing theory
Ewald Hering, the theory that opposing retinal processes enable color vision (red-green, yellow-blue)
parallel processing
the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously, brain’s natural mode of information processing
perceptual constancy
consistency, a tendency to experience a stable perception in the face of a continually changing sensory input
phi phenomenon
the illusion of movement created by presenting visual stimuli in rapid succession
Perception
the process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events
perceptual set
a readiness to perceive a stimulus in a particular way
place theory
presumes that we hear different pitches because different sound waves trigger activity at different places
Priming
the activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one’s perception, memory, or response
Retina
a multilayered tissue on the eyeball’s sensitive inner surface
Psychophysics
the study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli and our psychological experience of them
Pupil
a small adjustable opening
Rods
retinal receptors that detect black, white, gray, necessary for peripheral and twilight vision, when cone doesn’t respond
Sensation
the process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment
selective attention
the focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus
sensory adaptation
our diminishing sensitivity to an unchanging stimulus
signal detection theory
a theory predicting how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus (signal) and background stimulation (noise)
Subliminal
below one’s absolute threshold for conscious awareness
top-down processing
construct perceptions drawing on sensations coming bottom-up to their brain and on experience and expectations
Transduction
conversion of one form of energy into another
trichromatic theory
three color theory, that the retina contains 3 different color receptors, when stimulate in combination can produce the perception of any color, the cones do their color magic in teams of 3
vestibular sense
the movement, gravity, balance sense that allows us to move smoothly
visual illusion
involves an apparently inexplicable discrepancy between the appearance of a visual stimulus and its physical reality
Weber’s Law
computes the difference threshold/just noticeable difference, the change needed is proportional to the the original intensity of the stimulus
