exam 3

Question 1

sensation

Answer 1

detecting stimuli from the environment though sensory preceptors (like eyes or ears)

Question 2

sensation is a…

Answer 2

physiological process

Question 3

perception

Answer 3

the way our brain interprets and organizes this sensory information, turning it into meaningful experiences

Question 4

perception is a…

Answer 4

psychological process

Question 5

difference between sensory and perception

Answer 5

sensation is the initial detection of stimuli, perception is the interpretation of that information

Question 6

5 basic senses

Answer 6

vision
hearing (audition)
smelling (olfaction)
taste (gustation)
touch (somatosensation)

Question 7

balance (vestibular sense)

Answer 7

helps us maintain equilibrium and posture, located in the inner ear

Question 8

body position and movement

Answer 8

helps us perceive where our body parts are and how they are moving

Question 9

pain (nociception)

Answer 9

sensory preceptors in the skin that alert us to potential injury

Question 10

temperature (thermoception)

Answer 10

sensory receptors in thr skin detect temp changes

Question 11

absolute threshold

Answer 11

the minimum amount of stimulus required for detection 50% of the time

Question 12

absolute threshold example

Answer 12

the quietest sound you can hear or the dimmest light you can see

Question 13

cornea

Answer 13

focuses light entering the eye

Question 14

pupil

Answer 14

the adjustable opening that allows light to enter the eye

Question 15

iris

Answer 15

controls the size of the pupil

Question 16

lens

Answer 16

focuses light onto the retina

Question 17

retina

Answer 17

contains photoreceptors (rods and cones) that detect light

Question 18

fovea

Answer 18

central area of the retina with high concentration of cones for sharp vision

Question 19

optic nerve

Answer 19

sends visual information to the brain

Question 20

blind spot

Answer 20

the point where the optic nerve exits the eye; no photoreceptors are here

Question 21

transduction

Answer 21

happens in the retina, where light is converted to neural signals

Question 22

visual accommodation

Answer 22

the process where the lens changes shape to focus on objects at different distances

Question 23

trichromatic theory

Answer 23

three types of cones (red, green, blue) that combine to produce the full spectrum of colors (color mixing experiments)

Question 24

opponent process theory

Answer 24

colors are processed in pairs (red-green, blue-yellow, black-white) afterimages and color blindness support this

Question 25

trichromatic vs opponent-process theory

Answer 25

both theories compliment each other, trichromatic theory explains the detection of colors in the retina while opp-process explains how colors are processed beyond the retina in the brain

Question 26

myopia (nearsightedness)

Answer 26

focus in front of the retina, causing difficulty seeing distant objects

Question 27

hyperopia (farsightedness)

Answer 27

image focuses behind the retina, causing difficulty seeing close objects

Question 28

outer ear

Answer 28

pinna and ear canal collect sound

Question 29

middle ear

Answer 29

ossicles (hammer, anvil, stirrup) amplify sound

Question 30

inner ear

Answer 30

cochlea (where sound transduction occurs) and semi-circular canals (balance)

Question 31

place theory

Answer 31

different pairs of the basilar membrane respond to different frequencies of sounds

Question 32

frequency theory

Answer 32

the rate at which hair cells fire matches the frequency of sound

Question 33

how do belief and expectations influence people

Answer 33

people with positive attitudes towards low-fat foods may perceive then as tastier (Muller-Lyer illusion)

Question 34

Illusions

Answer 34

caused by how the brain processes sensory information, blending properties of both sensation and perception

Question 35

Illusions examples

Answer 35

Muller-Lyer illusion (misjudging lengths), color illusions (misinterpreting color due to surrounding colors)

Question 36

process of perception

Answer 36

selection, organization, interpretation

Question 37

selection

Answer 37

deciding what to focus on from all available sensory information

Question 38

organization

Answer 38

grouping and arranging sensory data into patterns or categories

Question 39

interpretation

Answer 39

assigning meaning to the organized sensory input

Question 40

gestalt laws of perception

Answer 40

figure-ground, proximity, similarity, continuity, closure

Question 41

figure-ground

Answer 41

we separate an object (figure) from its back(ground)

Question 42

proximity

Answer 42

objects close together are perceived as a group

Question 43

similarity

Answer 43

objects that look alike are grouped together

Question 44

continuity

Answer 44

we tend to perceive continuous patterns

Question 45

closure

Answer 45

we complete the incomplete figures to form whole objects

Question 46

how does gestalt principles relate to selection, organization, and interpretation

Answer 46

they help organize and interpret sensory data in predictable ways

Question 47

top-down processing

Answer 47

perception is influenced by prior knowledge, expectations, and experiences; the brain applies these to interpret sensory data

Question 48

bottom-up processing

Answer 48

perception starts with sensory input; the brain builds a perception from the ground up