Chapter 5 Flashcards
What is sensation?
the sense organs’ detection of external physical stimulus and the transmission of information about this stimulus to the brain
what is perception?
the processing, organization, and interpretation of sensory signals in the brain; these processes result in an internal neural representation of the physical stimulus; perception is subjective
what is tranduction?
a process by which sensory receptors change physical stimuli into signals that are eventually sent to the brain
what is a neural message?
brain doesn’t have direct communication with our senses and the world; brain senses the world indirectly
what is the process of sensation and perception?
stimulus > sensation > transduction > perception
what is sensory adaption?
our senses are on the lookout for change; sensation is influenced by change; diminishes our responsiveness of our sensory systems to prolong stimulation
what do our sense organs specialize in?
gathering information about new/changing events
What is Weber’s Law?
perceived as different, the stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage (rather than consistent amount)
What is Fechner’s Law?
the size of JND (just-noticeable difference or difference threshold) is proportional to the intensity of the stimulus; the JND is large when the intensity of the stimulus is high
what is Steven’s Power Law?
a law of magnitude that is more accurate than Fechner’s law and covers a wider variety of stimuli
what is the signal detection theory?
sensation depends on the characeteristics of the stimulus, background stimulus and detector
what is the absolute threshold?
the smallest amount of physical stimulation required to detect a sensory input of the time it is present; the second you hear or feel something it cross the AT
what is the difference threshold?
the minimum difference in physical stimulation required to detect a difference between sensory inputs (also known as JND)
what is taste?
sense of taste is gustation
what are the 4 qualities of human taste?
sweet, sour, bitter, salty
how can taste be damaged?
by alcohol, smoking, acids, and hot foods
how do miracle berries affect taste?
they coat the sour receptors to make things sweet
how does light work?
the eye converts characteristics of light into the neural signals that the brain can process; this tranduction happens in the retina
what is the optic nerve?
nerve that carries visual information from the eye to the occipital lobes
what is the blind spot?
point where optic nerve exits the eye and where there are not photoreceptors (no rods or cones)
what are taste buds?
structures located in papillae on the tongue, that contain the sensory receptors
what are papillae?
structures on the tongue that contain groupings of taste buds
what are supertasters?
people who are highly aware of flavors and textures and are more likely that others to feel pain when eating spicy foods
what are photoreceptors?
light-sensitive cells (neurons) in retina that convert light energy into neural energy
