Module #19 Vocab

Question 1

Wavelength

Answer 1

the distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next

Question 2

Hue

Answer 2

the dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of light

Question 3

Intensity

Answer 3

the amount of energy in a light wave or sound wave, which influences what those with typical vision or hearing perceive as brightness or loudness

Question 4

Retina

Answer 4

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

Question 5

Accommodation

Answer 5

(1) adapting our current schemas (understandings) to incorporate new information. (2) the process by which the eye’s lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina

Question 6

Rods

Answer 6

retinal receptors that detect black, white, and gray, and are sensitive to movement

Question 7

Cones

Answer 7

retinal receptors that are concentrated near the center of the retina and that function in daylight or in well-lit conditions

Question 8

Optic Nerve

Answer 8

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

Question 9

Blind Spot

Answer 9

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

Question 10

Fovea

Answer 10

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

Question 11

Opponent-Process Theory

Answer 11

the theory that opposing retinal processes (red-green, blue-yellow, white-black) enable color vision

Question 12

Young-Helmholtz Trichromatic (three-color) Theory

Answer 12

the theory that the retina contains three different types of 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 13

Feature Detectors

Answer 13

nerve cells in the brain’s visual cortex that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement

Question 14

Parallel Processing

Answer 14

processing multiple aspects of a stimulus or problem simultaneously

Question 15

Gestalt

Answer 15

an organized whole

Question 16

Figure-Ground

Answer 16

the organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) that stand out from their surroundings (the ground)

Question 17

Grouping

Answer 17

the perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups

Question 18

Depth Perception

Answer 18

the ability to see objects in three dimensions, although the images that strike the retina are two-dimensional; allows us to judge distance

Question 19

Visual Cliff

Answer 19

a laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals

Question 20

Binocular Cue

Answer 20

a depth cue, such as retinal disparity, that depends on the use of two eyes

Question 21

Retinal Disparity

Answer 21

a binocular cue for perceiving depth. By comparing retinal images from the two eyes, the brain computes distance—the greater the disparity (difference) between the two images, the closer the object

Question 22

Monocular Cue

Answer 22

a depth cue, such as interposition or linear perspective, available to either eye alone

Question 23

Phi Phenomenon

Answer 23

an illusion of movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in quick succession

Question 24

Perceptual Constancy

Answer 24

perceiving objects as unchanging (having consistent color, brightness, shape, and size) even as illumination and retinal images chang

Question 25

Perceptual Adaptation

Answer 25

the ability to adjust to changed sensory input, including an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field