lec 5 Flashcards
What is sensation?
Detection of physical energy by sense organs which then send information to the brain
What is perception?
Brain’s interpretation of the raw sensory inputs it receives from our senses
What is transduction?
Process of converting an external energy into electrical activity within neurons
What are specialized cells in the sensory system responsible for?
Converting external stimuli into neural activity
What is the significance of the specialized cells in the back of the eye?
They detect light
What is sensory adaptation?
Process in which activation is greatest when a stimulus is first detected
What is inattentional blindness?
Failure to detect stimuli that are in plain sight when our attention is focused elsewhere
What is selective attention?
Process of selecting one sensory channel and ignoring or minimizing others
What is the purpose of a mental filter in attention?
Allows us to pay attention to important stimuli and ignore others
What is the cocktail party effect?
Ability to pick out an important message in a conversation that doesn’t involve us
What is sensory binding?
Our brains manage to combine diverse pieces of information into a unified whole
What is the visible spectrum?
The narrow range of wavelengths of light that we respond to
What do white objects do with light?
Reflect all the light that is shone on them
What do black objects do with light?
Absorb all the light that is shone on them
What is hue?
Colour of light
What are primary colors?
Red, Green, Blue
What happens when mixing equal amounts of red, green, and blue light?
Produces white light
What is pupil constriction?
Closing of the pupils in response to light to decrease the amount of light allowed into them
What is the cornea?
Curved transparent layer that covers the iris and pupil
What is the retina responsible for?
Converting light into neural activity
What are the two types of receptor cells in the retina?
- Rods * Cones
What do rods allow us to see?
Black and white in low light conditions
What do cones require to function?
More light
What is the optic nerve?
Nerve that travels from the retina to the brain
What is the optic chiasm?
Where half of the axons cross over to the other side of the brain
What are the two major routes of vision from the thalamus?
- Primary visual cortex (V1) * Secondary visual cortex (V2)
What is the trichromatic theory?
Colour vision is based on our sensitivity to three kinds of cones
What does colour blindness involve?
Absence of one or more types of cones
What is the opponent process theory?
We perceive colours in terms of three pairs of opposing colours
What does audition refer to?
The sense of hearing
What is the relationship between sound waves and pitch?
Pitch corresponds to the frequency of the wave
What are the three parts of the ear?
- Outer ear * Middle ear * Inner ear
What is the cochlea responsible for?
Converting vibration into neural activity
What are the five basic tastes?
- Sweet * Sour * Salty * Bitter * Umami
What is olfaction?
The sense of smell
What is gustation?
The sense of taste
What is the somatosensory system?
Our sense of touch, temperature, and pain
What is perceptual set?
Set formed when expectations influence perceptions
What are the Gestalt principles?
Principles explaining how we perceive objects as wholes within their overall context
What is depth perception?
Ability to judge distance and three-dimensional relations
What is visual constancy?
Awareness that objects remain constant despite changes in viewing conditions
What is holistic processing in face recognition?
Visualizing a face as a whole rather than the sum of its parts
What is prosopagnosia?
Inability to recognize faces
What brain area is crucial for face recognition?
Fusiform gyrus
