chapter 5

Question 1

perception vs sensation

Answer 1

perception is the interpretation of sensation
-sensation: light hitting the retina
-perception: seeing a star in the sky

Question 2

how are receptor cells limited?

Answer 2

they are limited in the range of stimuli they respond to
- they do not become active until the stimulus exceeds a minimum intensity level

Question 3

what is vision limited to?

Answer 3

wavelengths in the range of 400-700

Question 4

adaptation

Answer 4

neurons continue to fire as long as the stimulus continues, but their rate of firing slows down
- the longer the stimulus, the less frequent the action potentials are

Question 5

acuity depends on what two factors?

Answer 5

1. design of the stimulus collection system
2. cortical representation

Question 6

acuity

Answer 6

how accurate your vision is (like shooting an arrow, your fovea is in the middle)

Question 7

which sense does not synapse within the thalamus?

Answer 7

olfaction

Question 8

Pathway of olfaction

Answer 8

odorants ->glomeruli (synapse) -> olfactory nerve -> pyriform cortex - > orbitofrontal cortex - >primary olfactory cortex

Question 9

olfactory epithelium

Answer 9

mucous membrane of the roof of the nasal cavity, where odor receptors are embedded

Question 10

is smell ipsilateral or contralateral?

Answer 10

Smell sensed through the right nostril is mainly processed on the right side of the brain, but the smell is overall received by both sides

Question 11

tears modulate social and sexual interactions with others by:

Answer 11

decreasing sexual arousal, decreasing physiological arousal, decreasing testosterone level, brain activity (?)

Question 12

taste receptor cells are in…

Answer 12

the taste pores, which are in the taste buds, which are on the papillae (bumps on the tongue)

Question 13

five types of taste

Answer 13

salt, sour, bitter ( the most receptors), sweet, umami

Question 14

neural pathway of gustation

Answer 14

tastant -> CN7 (facial nerve) -> gustatory nucleus (which is the solitary tract in the nucleus)-> VPM (ventral posterior medial nucleus (thalamus)) -> primary gustatory cortex (which is connected to the orbitofrontal cortex

Question 15

when does sensory transduction begin?

Answer 15

when a tastant (food molecule) stimulates a taste receptor cell and causes it to depolarize

Question 16

what is the essential role of the basic tastes?

Answer 16

to activate the appropriate behavioral; actions: consume or reject

Question 17

somatosensory perception

Answer 17

perception of all mechanical stimuli; indicate position of our limbs/head, and our senses of temp, pressure, touch, and pain

Question 18

Meissner’s corpuscles

Answer 18

general touch (medium)

Question 19

nociceptors

Answer 19

pain

Question 20

proprioceptors

Answer 20

tell you where the position of your body is

Question 21

Merkel’s cells

Answer 21

light touch (outer layer of skin)

Question 22

Pacinian corpuscles

Answer 22

deep touch (deep in skin)

Question 23

Ruffini corpuscles

Answer 23

temperature

Question 24

Different between myelinated and nonmyelinated afferent pain neurons

Answer 24

myelinated is sharp, quick pain, and unmyelinated is dull long pain (like the pain after a burn)

Question 25

neural pathway of somatosensation

Answer 25

touch receptors -> spinal cord -> medulla (first synapse) -> midbrain/thalamus -> primary somatosensory cortex (S1)

Question 26

sensory homunculus

Answer 26

the somatotopic representation of the body which is in S1

Question 27

somatotopic maps

Answer 27

show variation with species, certain body parts are sized based on their usage
- ie spider monkey have large tails and rats have long whiskers

Question 28

secondary somatosensory cortex S2

Answer 28

build more complex representations
- may code more info about object texture and size
- builds up an integrated representation of the somatosensory info

Question 29

how is audition organized

Answer 29

tonotopically

Question 30

neural pathway of audition

Answer 30

auditory nerve -> cochlear nerve -> superior olivary complex -> inferior colliculus -> medial geniculate nucleus of the thalamus -> primary auditory cortex

Question 31

rods and cones (photoreceptors)

Answer 31

rods- black and white and dim light (in the periphery)
cones - color and bright light (fovea)

Question 32

distribution of photoreceptors on retina

Answer 32

fovea - cones
peripheral retina - both cones and rods
periphery - rods (few cones) red green and blue cones

Question 33

rods and cones are connected to…

Answer 33

bipolar cells which synapse with ganglion cells (outer layer of retina)

Question 34

optic nerve

Answer 34

transmits info from ganglion cells to the central nervous system

Question 35

neural pathway of vision

Answer 35

retina - > optic nerve -> crosses over at optic chiasm -> lateral geniculate of thalamus -> primary visual cortex

Question 36

how is vision organized

Answer 36

retinotopic maps

Question 37

receptive field

Answer 37

part of the visual field that excites or inhibits a cell in the visual system of the brain

Question 38

structures in the outter ear

Answer 38

pinna and auditory canal

Question 39

structures in the middle ear

Answer 39

ossicles (malleus, stapes, incus), and oval window

Question 40

structures in inner ear

Answer 40

cochlea/hair cells and auditory nerve