Chapter 5.5

Question 1

Which of the following perceptions, as evidenced by the results of cross- cultural studies, is believed to be partially learned?

Answer 1

Artistsworkingintwo- dimension media rely on monocular depth cues to represent a three- dimensional world. These include interposition (obstructed objects appearing more distant), elevation (objects higher on a plane of view appear higher up toward the horizon), and linear perspective (parallel lines appear to converge in the distance). Cross-cultural research shows that while monocular perception appears to be innate, it is in fact learned. People in technologically less developed countries who have not seen photography have difficulty in recognising even their own images in two- dimensional form.

Question 2

The receptive fields of ‘motion detectors’:

Answer 2

Thereceptivefieldsofneurons that detect motion grow larger with each ‘step’ along the processing stream in the brain. Several ganglion cells project to the motion-detecting neurons in the thalamus, with several of these thalamic neurons feeding into the motor sensitive neurons in the primary visual cortex. Information then travels through a region of the temporal lobe (the medial temporal (MT)) to the parietal lobe. The receptive fields in the MT are larger than those in the primary visual cortex.

Question 3

The three types of perceptual constancies are:

Answer 3

Size,shapeandcolourare the three types of perceptual constancies in vision. Size constancy describes the way objects do not appear to change in size when viewed from different distances; shape constancy is the ability to maintain perceptions of an object’s shape each time it is encountered; and colour constancy refers to the tendency to perceive the colour of objects as stable despite changing illumination.

Question 4

The ‘carpentered world hypotheses’ asserts that:

Answer 4

The’carpenteredworld hypothesis’ holds that the nature of architecture in a culture influences the tendency to experience particular illusions. People reared in cultures without, for example, rectangular buildings and angled roofs, should be less susceptible to the Müller-Lyer illusion because they lack experience with the types of cues that give rise to it.

Question 5

The Ponzo illusion (i.e., two lines of equal length, one above the other, that do not appear to be of equal length) depends on:

Answer 5

ThePonzoillusionappearsto be influenced by culture. People who live in environments in which lines converge in the distance appear to be more susceptible to this illusion than do people from environments with relatively few converging lines.

Question 6

The theory of __________ contends that the meaning of stimuli is often immediate and obvious, even to the ‘untrained’ eye.

Answer 6

Directperceptionholdsthat the meaning of stimuli is often immediate and obvious, even to the untrained eye. For example, we automatically perceive depth on an object that has a patterned texture because when the elements of the texture diminish in size, the brain interprets the change as a depth one.

Question 7

Schemas:

Answer 7

Schemasarepatternsof thinking about a domain that render the environment relatively predictable. We have memory schemas (organised knowledge) about objects, people, and situation. Because these schemas are held in memory, it allows us to anticipate what we encounter and thereby increase the speed and efficiency of perception.

Question 8

Which of the following is not a major perceptual rule by which the brain automatically and unconsciously organises sensory input into meaningful wholes, as proposed by Gestalt psychologists?

Answer 8

Gestaltpsychologistsproposed a number of basic perceptual rules and laws of perceptual organisation. These included figure-ground perception, similarity, proximity, good continuation, simplicity and closure.

Question 9

According to the authors of your textbook, the evidence suggests that in regards to top-down processing and bottom-up processing:

Answer 9

Accordingtocurrentthinking, both types of processing (top-down and bottom-up) occur simultaneously.

Question 10

The idea of figure-ground refers to:

Answer 10

Figure-ground is a Gestalt principle of how we organise sensory input into meaningful wholes. According to the figure-ground perceptual rule, people inherently distinguish between the figure that they are looking at and the background (or ground).

Question 11

According to Biederman’s recognition-by-components theory, incomplete figures are recognised quickly, as long as:

Answer 11

Biederman’s recognition- by-components theory examines the way in which people perceive and categorise objects by breaking them down into their parts. The brain will fill in the gaps as long as the relationships between geons (basic geometrical forms) is clear.

Question 12

Perceptual illusions result from:

Answer 12

Perceptual illusions occur when the brain’s effort to organise sensations into a coherent and accurate percept fails. Perceptual misinformation occurs in response to many types of illusions such as impossible figures.

Question 13

Which is a type of binocular cue?

Answer 13

Binocular cues are a source of information about depth and distance and consist of retinal disparity (the different image received by each retina) and convergence (close objects require retinal convergence while distant objects require retinal divergence).

Question 14

Monocular cues to depth perception include:

Answer 14

Feedback: Monocular cues include interposition (obstructed objects appearing more distant), shading (interpreting shading differently at the top and bottom of objects), and linear perspective (parallel lines appear to converge in the distance).

Question 15

Motion parallax is a useful monocular depth cue because:

Answer 15

Motion parallax is a monocular depth cue and occurs when a person is moving and nearby objects appear to move by faster than distant objects

Question 16

Which of the following is NOT a monocular depth cue?

Answer 16

The following are monocular depth cues: texture gradient (textured surfaces appear coarser at close range), interposition (an obstructed object appears more distant) and familiar size (knowledge about an object’s usual size can influence perceptions of closeness). Convergence is a binocular depth cue and refers to the convergence of the eyes toward each other when looking at objects close by.

Question 17

The moon illusion is an example of:

Answer 17

Helmholtz recognised that the brain adjusts for distance when assessing the size of objects; a process he called unconscious inference because people have no consciousness of the computations involved.

Question 18

The Müller-Lyer illusion involves two lines of equal length that appear to be different in size. This illusion is thought to be affected by:

Answer 18

The Müller-Lyer illusion stems from misinterpretation of depth cues such as linear perspective and cultural factors such as the ‘carpentered world hypothesis’. This idea holds that the nature of architecture in a culture influences the tendency to experience particular illusions. People reared in cultures without, for example, rectangular buildings and angled roofs, should be less susceptible to the Müller-Lyer illusion because they lack experience with
the types of cues that give rise to it.

Question 19

According to the theory of direct perception championed by Gibson, perception is based on _____ the order that exists in nature.

Answer 19

Direct perception holds
that the meaning of stimuli is often immediate and obvious, even to the
untrained eye. We detect the order that exists in nature.

Question 20

As a flock of Canadian geese flies overhead in its familiar “V” formation, the geese are seen as _____ and the sky as _____.

Answer 20

People appear to automatically
distinguish between figure (the object they are viewing) and ground (or background). This is a fundamental interpretation involved in most percepts.

Question 21

Retinal disparity works as a cue for depth perception because:

Answer 21

Most objects will produce different images on each retina, except for distant objects. This is known as retinal disparity and occurs because the eyes are in slightly different locations. Most cells in the primary visual cortex are binocular cells (receive information from both eyes). Some of these cells respond most vigorously when the same input arrives from each eye. Other binocular cells respond to disparities between the eyes.

Question 22

When you look out the window of a moving car, you see trees passing very quickly. However, when you look straight ahead, the trees appear to be moving much more slowly. This phenomenon is known as:

Answer 22

Motion parallax is a monocular depth cue and refers to the tendency to see nearby objects as moving past quickly and distant objects as moving by slowly, when you are moving.

Question 23

I get bored one day and decide that I need to change my appearance. I walk into class with my right eye pierced, my nose pierced three times, my hair dyed ice blue, and with some very different clothing. Despite the numerous changes, my students still recognise me. They are displaying:

Answer 23

Perceptual constancy is a form of perceptual organisation and refers to the perception of objects as relatively stable despite changes in the simulation of sensory receptors.

Question 24

You are in a museum. A statue is in the middle of the room. You walk around it and examine it from many places in the room. The retinal images of the statue change, but you do not perceive the statue as changing. This process is known as:

Answer 24

Perceptual constancy refers to the perception of objects as relatively stable despite changes in the stimulation of sensory receptors

Question 25

The houses in my neighbourhood are dull so I decide to build my own. I build it from scratch. According to some, perception is based on the same thing. Some have argued that object recognition is based on how geons are put together and arranged. What this is all dealing with is:

Answer 25

Bottom-up processing refers to processing that begins at the bottom (i.e., raw sensory data) and feeds this information up (to the brain).

Question 26

I hear a review of a movie and then see it. If my perception of that movie is influenced by the reviews that I have heard, then this would support:

Answer 26

Top-down processing occurs when previous experience or expectations influence our perception. That is, the processing starts at the top (expectation, knowledge) and it gets fed down (to what we perceive).

Question 27

I read a review of a book and then read the novel. If my perception of the book is influenced by the reviews that I have read, then this would support:

Answer 27

Top-down processing occurs when previous experience or expectations influence our perception. That is, the processing starts at the top (expectation, knowledge) and it gets fed down (to what we perceive).

Question 28

When you see a partially opened door, you know that the door is rectangular even though the image being detected by your retina is a trapezoid. This is an example of the perceptual principle called:

Answer 28

Shape constancy is the perceptual maintenance of the shape of objects despite the fact that the same object can appear to us, from different angles, as having quite a different shape.