Glossary P Flashcards
Perception
The set of processes by which we recognize, organize and make sense of the sensations we receive from environmental stimuli
Parietal lobe
Associated with somatosensory processing
Perceptual constancy
Occurs when our perception of an object remains the same even when our proximal sensation of the distal object changes
Phoneme
The smallest unit of speech sound that can be used to distinguish one utterance in a given language from another
Phonemic-restoration effect
Sounds that are missing from the speech signal are constructed by the brain so it seems to the listener that he actually heard the missing sound
Phonological loop
Briefly holds inner speech for verbal comprehension and for acoustic rehearsal
Photopigments
Chemical substances that absorb light, thereby starting the complex transduction process that transforms physical electromagnetic energy into an electrochemical neural impulse. Rods and cones contain different types of photopigments.
Photoreceptors
The third layer of the retina contains the photoreceptors, which transduce light energy into electrochemical energy
Phrase-structure grammar
Syntactical analysis of the structure of phrases as they are used
Pons
Serves as a relay station because it contains neural fibers that pass signals from one part of the brain to another
Positive transfer
Occurs when the solution of an earlier problem makes it easier to solve a new problem
Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scans
measure increases in glucose consumption in active brain areas during particular tasks
pragmatic reasoning schemas
general organizing principles or rules related to particular kinds of goals
pragmatics
the study of how people use language
pragmatists
ones who believe that knowledge is validated by its usefulness
premises
propositions about which arguments are made
primacy effect
refers to superior recall at the beginning of a list
primary motor cortex
is chiefly responsible for directing motor commands
primary somatosensory cortex
receives information from the senses about pressure, texture, temperature and pain
prime
a node that activates a connected node; this activation is known as the priming effect
proactive interference
occurs when the interfering material occurs before learning of the to-be-remembered material
problem-solving cycle
problem identification -> problem definition -> strategy formulation -> organization of information -> allocation of resources -> monitoring -> evaluation
problem space
the universe of all possible actions
procedural knowledge
knowledge of procedures that can be implemented
production
the generation and output of a procedure
production system
an ordered set of productions
productive thinking
goes beyond the bounds of existing associations -> needs insights
proposition
a statement which can be true or false
propositional theory
belief suggesting that knowledge is represented only in underlying propositions, not in the form of images or words or other symbols
prototype
an average of a class
prototype theory
suggests that categories are formed on the basis of prototypes
