Mods 16-18

Question 1

Sensation

Answer 1

the process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment

Question 2

Perception

Answer 2

the process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events

Question 3

bottom-up processing

Answer 3

analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain’s integration of sensory information

Question 4

Top-down Processing

Answer 4

information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations

Question 5

Selective attention

Answer 5

the focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus

Question 6

Inattentional blindness

Answer 6

Failing to see visual objects when our attention is directed elsewhere

Question 7

change blindness

Answer 7

failing to notice changes in the environment; a form of inattentional blindness

Question 8

Transduction

Answer 8

conversion of one form of energy into another. In sensation, the transforming of stimulus energies, such as sights, sounds, and smells, into neural impulses our brains can interpret.

Question 9

Psychophysics

Answer 9

the study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity, and our psychological experience of them

Question 10

Absolute threshold

Answer 10

the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50 percent of the time

Question 11

Signal detection theory

Answer 11

a theory predicting how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus (signal) amid background stimulation (noise). Assumes there is no single absolute threshold and that detection depends partly on a person’s experience, expectations, motivation, and alertness.

Question 12

Subliminal

Answer 12

below one’s absolute threshold for conscious awareness

Question 13

Difference threshold

Answer 13

the minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50 percent of the time

Question 14

Priming

Answer 14

the activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one’s perception, memory, or response

Question 15

Weber’s Law

Answer 15

The principle that to be perceived as different, two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage (rather than a constant amount).

Question 16

Sensory adaptation

Answer 16

diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation

Question 17

Perceptual set

Answer 17

a mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another

Question 18

extrasensory perception (ESP)

Answer 18

the controversial claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input; includes telepathy, clairvoyance, and precognition

Question 19

Parapsychology

Answer 19

the study of paranormal phenomena, including ESP and psychokinesis

Question 20

Wavelength

Answer 20

the distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next. Electromagnetic wavelengths vary from the short blips of cosmic rays to the long pulses of radio transmission

Question 21

Hue

Answer 21

the dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of light; what we know as the color names blue, green, and so forth

Question 22

Intensity

Answer 22

the amount of energy in a light or sound wave, which we perceive as brightness or loudness, as determined by the wave’s amplitude

Question 23

Cornea

Answer 23

The eyes clear, protective, outer layer, covering the pupil and iris

Question 24

Iris

Answer 24

a ring of muscle tissue that forms the colored portion of the eye around the pupil and controls the size of the pupil opening

Question 25

Lens

Answer 25

the transparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to help focus images on the retina

Question 26

Retina

Answer 26

the light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, containing the receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual information

Question 27

Accommodation

Answer 27

the process by which the eye’s lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina

Question 28

Rods

Answer 28

retinal receptors that detect black, white, and gray; necessary for peripheral and twilight vision, when cones don’t respond

Question 29

Cones

Answer 29

retinal receptor cells that are concentrated near the center of the retina and that function in daylight or in well-lit conditions. The cones detect fine detail and give rise to color sensations.

Question 30

Optic nerve

Answer 30

the nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain

Question 31

Blind spot

Answer 31

the point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, creating a “blind” spot because no receptor cells are located there

Question 32

Fovea

Answer 32

the central focal point in the retina, around which the eye’s cones cluster

Question 33

Young-Helmholtz trichromatic (three-color) theory

Answer 33

the theory that the retina contains three different color receptors—one most sensitive to red, one to green, one to blue—which, when stimulated in combination, can produce the perception of any color.

Question 34

opponent-process theory

Answer 34

the theory that opposing retinal processes (red-green, yellow-blue, white-black) enable color vision. For example, some cells are stimulated by green and inhibited by red; others are stimulated by red and inhibited by green