Exam1 Flashcards
1
Q
Represents the five senses: vision, hearing, touch, smell, taste
A
Sensation
2
Q
focuses on how you detect or process environmental info
A
Sensation
3
Q
To take in information
A
Process
4
Q
a more complex process by which it involves higher-order mechanisms of awareness
Interpreting what you detect
A
Perception
5
Q
How is perception different than sensation?
A
Sensation is the process
Perception is the awareness (interpreting)
6
Q
Why is term sensation not commonly used in the textbook?
A
Deciding what is sensation or perception is not always obvious
You need sensation for perception to occur
7
Q
The Perception Process has how many steps for perception to occur?
A
7 + Knowledge
8
Q
Anything in the environment we observe or sense
A
Environmental Stimulus
9
Q
Sensory receptors send electrical signals to the brain
A
Neural Processing
10
Q
Transmit electrical signals from one neuron to another
Change electrical signals to perceive info in the brain
A
Neurons
11
Q
Where are the lobes located?
A
Cerebral Cortex
Outer layer of the brain
12
Q
What are the 4 lobes?
A
Occipital lobe
Temporal lobe
Parietal lobe
Frontal lobe
13
Q
What are neurons and what are the two things that happen with these neurons in neural processing?
A
Transmit electrical signals from one neuron to another
Change electrical signals to perceive info in the brain
14
Q
What are the primary receiving areas?
A
Occipital lobe
Temporal lobe
Parietal lobe
Frontal lobe
15
Q
Occipital lobe
A
Visual
16
Q
Temporal lobe
A
Auditory (hearing)
17
Q
Parietal lobe
A
Somatosensory (touch)
18
Q
Frontal lobe
A
Motor area (movement/receives signals from other senses)
19
Q
Step 5
A
Perception
20
Q
Conscious awareness is
A
Perception
21
Q
what we observe
A
Conscious awareness
22
Q
Step 6
A
Recognition
23
Q
Provides meaning to what we observe
A
Recognition
24
Q
Dr. P and visual form of agnosia
A
Brain tumor with the inability to recognize objects
Can see chair but not recognize or name it
25
Step 7
Action
26
To do something with your sensory experiences / survival
Action
27
Info we bring to a situation to perceive a stimulus
Knowledge
28
Rat-man demonstration
Is it a rat or man?
Our knowledge (patterns) can influence perception
29
Name objects, places, and things into an organized way
categorized
30
Perceive based in incoming data without prior knowledge
Bottom-up (data based) possessing
31
Perceive based on prior knowledge, experience, and exception
Top-down (knowledge-based) processing
32
3 relationships that researchers look at to examine the perceptual process
Stimulus-behavior
Stimulus-physiology
Physiology-behavior
33
Most widely used before fMRI;
People presented with something and their observed behaviors are assesed
Stimulus-behavior
34
Grading acuity is a
Stimulus-behavior
35
measuring how well people can detect the width of black and white lines (gratings)
Grading acuity
36
People are presented with something and their brain activity is assessed
Stimulus-physiology
37
people see vertical or horizontal lines better than slanted (oblique) lines
Oblique effect
38
People's brain activities are evaluated by certain behaviors
the ability to detect different orientations of lines (Oblique effect)
Physiology-behavior
39
Knowledge (top-down processing) and other mental activities will have a strong influence on perception
Cognitive influences
40
the detection of limits of our sensory system
Thresholds
41
Gustav Fechner
proposed psychophysics as a way to asses the mind by looking at thresholds
42
Other techniques are used to evaluate perception
magnitude estimation
recognition test
reaction time
phenomenological method
physical tasks and judgments
43
What is magnitude estimation?
Magnitude estimation assesses how intensity affects our awareness based on how we perceive it.
## Footnote
Example: Detect heaviness of weights.
44
What is a recognition test?
A recognition test involves being able to categorize stimuli, such as seeing a face or a house.
45
What does reaction time measure?
Reaction time measures how long a person takes to respond to a presentation.
46
What is a phenomenological report?
A phenomenological report asks a person to describe their perception of an occurrence in their environment.
47
What are physical tasks and judgments?
Physical tasks and judgments involve acting upon something that is perceived, such as picking up objects and reacting to them.
48
What is the distinction between physical and perceptual?
Physical refers to what is actually there, while perceptual refers to how we interpret our perception of what is there.
49
What is involved in neural processing?
The interaction of signals from many neurons.
## Footnote
Example: Taking in electrical signals from the environment to your body.
50
How do signals occur in neurons?
Signals occur electrically in the neurons.
51
What are neurons?
Millions of nerve cells that communicate with each other for perception to occur.
52
What is the role of sensory receptors?
They are specialized neurons that respond to specific kinds of energy.
## Footnote
Example: Light energy is detected by rods and cones.
53
What are dendrites?
An area that receives electrical signals via chemicals called neurotransmitters.
54
What is the function of the cell body (SOMA) in a neuron?
It is important to operate the neuron.
55
What is an axon?
A nerve fiber that contains fluid that creates electrical signals.
56
What is transduction in the context of sensory receptors?
The process of converting environmental energy to electrical energy.
57
58
What do axons contain?
Axons contain ions (electrically charged molecules) in and outside of the membrane.
59
What is the concentration of charged ions inside an axon during resting potential?
There is a higher concentration of negatively charged ions (electrons) inside the axon during resting potential.
60
What happens to sodium (Na+) and potassium (K+) ions during an action potential?
Sodium ions (Na+) enter the axon, while potassium ions (K+) exit the axon.
61
What is the change in voltage during an action potential?
The voltage changes from -70mV (resting potential) to +40mV (action potential).
62
What allows Na+ ions to enter an axon during an action potential?
Na+ ions can enter an axon due to the axon's permeability.
63
What is the function of the Na+/K+ pump?
The Na+/K+ pump helps return the axon to resting potential after an action potential.
64
What occurs during the refractory period?
The pump may overdo it, making the axon more negative than -70mV.
65
What is a synapse?
A synapse is the space between neurons.
66
What are neurotransmitters?
Neurotransmitters are chemicals released into the synapse that determine electrical signals.
67
What are the two responses neurotransmitters can create on neurons?
1) Depolarization - excitatory response; 2) Hyperpolarization - inhibitory response.
68
What is depolarization?
Depolarization is an excitatory response that triggers action potentials, resulting in more positive ions inside the axon.
69
What is hyperpolarization?
Hyperpolarization is an inhibitory response that prevents action potentials, resulting in more negative ions inside the axon.
70
Why is inhibition important in neurons?
Inhibition allows information to be processed or detected in the environment, not relying solely on excitatory responses.
71
What does sensory coding focus on?
Sensory coding focuses on how neurons represent various characteristics in the environment in the brain.
72
What is specificity coding?
Specificity coding involves a specialized neuron that responds or fires to one concept or stimulus.
73
What is the 'grandmother cell' concept?
The 'grandmother cell' concept suggests that one neuron corresponds to one specific stimulus, like a grandmother's image.
74
What is sparse coding?
Sparse coding involves a pairing of firing with a small group of neurons to represent a stimulus.
75
What is population coding?
Population coding involves a pattern of firing that activates a large number of neurons.
76
What did Franz Joseph Gall and Johann Spurzheim believe about the skull?
They believed the skull represented abilities and traits in the brain through a method called phrenology.
77
What is modularity in the brain?
Modularity is the idea that specific areas of the cortex are specialized for processing specific types of stimuli.
78
What is neuropsychology?
Neuropsychology is the study of how brain damage affects behavior.
79
What is the purpose of brain imaging?
Brain imaging is used to examine modularity in the brain.
80
What is MRI?
MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) allows researchers to see brain structure in a 2-dimensional perspective.
81
What is fMRI?
fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) allows researchers to see neural activity through blood flow.
82
What does distributed representation mean?
Distributed representation means a stimulus fires across different parts of the brain rather than in one single area.
83
84
What is vision based on?
Vision is based in visible light (light energy or photons from the environment).
85
What is the electromagnetic spectrum?
The electromagnetic spectrum is electrical energy spreading microscopic waves.
86
What wavelengths of light can humans perceive?
Humans perceive wavelengths from 400 to 700 nanometers (nm).
87
What colors correspond to different wavelengths?
Short wavelength = blue; Medium wavelength = green; Long wavelength = yellow, orange, red.
88
What does the retina contain?
The retina contains rods and cones, which are visual receptors.
89
What are visual pigments?
Visual pigments are light-sensitive chemicals that react to light and create electrical signals to the optic nerve.
90
What happens without rods and cones?
Without rods and cones, transduction cannot occur.
91
What is the shape of rods and cones?
Rods are larger and cylinder-shaped; cones are small and cone-like.
92
Where are cones concentrated in the retina?
Cones are concentrated in the fovea, which contains about 50,000 cones.
93
What is macular degeneration?
Macular degeneration is the destruction of the fovea, leading to an inability to see the direct center of vision.
94
Who is most commonly affected by macular degeneration?
Macular degeneration is common in older adults.
95
What is retinitis pigmentosa?
Retinitis pigmentosa is a degeneration of the retina passed on from one generation to another, leading to poor peripheral vision.
96
What is a blind spot?
A blind spot is an absence of the retina located near the optic nerve.
97
Why is our blind spot not noticeable?
Our blind spot is not noticeable because the brain fills it in with surrounding visual information.
98
What is accommodation in vision?
Accommodation is the unconscious adjustment of the lens’s shape to focus images.
99
What happens when ciliary muscles tighten?
When ciliary muscles tighten, the lens becomes thicker to focus on near objects.
100
What is the near point?
The near point is the closest distance at which an object can be seen clearly.
101
What is the far point?
The far point is the farthest distance at which an object can be seen clearly.
102
What are refractive errors?
Refractive errors are problems related to light not reaching the retina properly.
103
What is transduction in vision?
Transduction is the change from environmental energy to electrical energy in the brain.
104
What are visual pigment molecules made of?
Visual pigment molecules contain opsin (a long protein) and retinal (a light-sensitive molecule).
105
What is isomerization?
Isomerization is the change of a visual pigment molecule's shape when it absorbs light energy.
106
What is dark adaptation?
Dark adaptation is the process of adjusting to dim light over time.
107
What are the three adaptation curves?
1) Cones adapt in 3-4 minutes; 2) Rod-cone break occurs when cones stop adapting; 3) Rods adapt in 20-30 minutes.
108
What is visual pigment bleaching?
Visual pigment bleaching occurs when retinal breaks apart from opsin, making it not useful for vision.
109
What is visual pigment regeneration?
Visual pigment regeneration is the process of reforming molecules so that color comes back.
110
What is the spectral sensitivity curve?
The spectral sensitivity curve helps us sense color from different wavelengths in rods and cones.
111
What is the Purkinje shift?
The Purkinje shift is the enhanced ability to perceive short wavelengths in the dark.
112
What is the optic nerve?
The optic nerve is made up of axons from the ganglion cells in the retina.
113
What is the center-surround organization?
Center-surround organization is a neural firing pattern that detects light differences.
114
What is lateral inhibition?
Lateral inhibition is the decrease of neural firing across neighboring neurons in the retina.
115
What do Chevreul and Mach Borders demonstrate?
They demonstrate how we see borders between light and dark due to lateral inhibition.
