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MCAT Biology > Nervous system - Sensation and perception > Flashcards

Nervous system - Sensation and perception Flashcards

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1
Q

Sensation

A

Act of receiving information

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2
Q

Perception

A

Act of organizing and interpreting the sensory input into useful and meaningful information

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3
Q

Sensory receptors

A

Detect stimulus from either inside or outside body (interoceptors vs exteroceptors) and transmits that information to sensory neurons

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4
Q

Mechanoreceptors

A

Respond to mechanical disturbances

e.g. Auditory hair cell and vestibular hair cells

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5
Q

Chemoreceptors

A

Respond to chemicals

e.g. olfactory receptors and gustatory receptors (taste buds)

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6
Q

Nociceptors

A

Pain receptors, stimulated by tissue injury and detect chemical signs of tissue damage. In a sense it is a simple chemoreceptor

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7
Q

Thermoreceptors

A

Stimulated by changes in temperature

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8
Q

Electromagnetic receptors

A

Stimulated by electromagnetic waves. In humans only example are the rod and cone cells of the retina of the eye, aka photoreceptors

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9
Q

Four types of information of the nature of stimulus to be communicated to the CNS:

A

1) Modality - type or mode of sensory receptor fired
2) Location
3) Intensity
4) Duration

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10
Q

Adaptation to stimulus

A

Decrease in firing frequency of action potential as stimulus remains constant
e.g. Stop smelling something after some duration

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11
Q

Proprioceptors

A

1) Category of receptors which include many different types of receptors (could be mech or chemo)
2) Awareness of self or kinesthetic self
E.g. Muscle spindle (mechanoreceptor) detects muscle stretch

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12
Q

Olfactory bulbs (part of brain)

A

Olfactory nerves project directly to olfactory bulbs, located in the temporal lobe of the brain near the limbic system, an area important for memory and emotion. Explains why smelling can give rise to memories or feelings

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13
Q

Gustation

A

Taste

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14
Q

Pheromones

A

Chemical signal that cause social response in members of the same species (bees)

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15
Q

Steps of hearing

A

1) Sound waves
2) Auricle or pinna (outer ear)
3) External auditory canal (outer ear)
4) Tympanic membrane (eardrum)
5) Malleus (middle ear)
6) Incus (middle ear)
7) Stapes
8) Oval window
9) Perilymph (liquid in cochlea, inner ear)
10) Endolymph
11) Basilar membrane (organ of corti)
12) Auditory hair cells (cilia)
13) Tectorial membrane (moved)
14) Neurotransmitters released, stimulate sensory (auditory) neurons
15) Brain (auditory cortex in temporal lobe)
16) Perception

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16
Q

Pitch (frequency)

A

Distinguished by which regions of the basilar membrane vibrate and stimulates different auditory neurons (different regions have different thickness)

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17
Q

Loudness

A

Amplitude of vibration

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18
Q

Semicircular canals

A

Consists of:

1) Utricle
2) Saccule
3) Ampullae
- Tubes filled with endolymph

Detects rotational acceleration of the head, maintains equilibrium and balance

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19
Q

Round window

A

Near oval window and releases excess pressure

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20
Q

Eustachian tube (auditory tube)

A

Passageway from the back of the throat to the middle ear, functions to equalize pressure on both sides of the eardrum and causes ‘ear popping’ in high altitudes

21
Q

Cornea

A

Light first enters the eye by passing through cornea; light is bent or refracted through cornea

22
Q

Sclera

A

White of the eye, continuous along the cornea

23
Q

Choroid

A

Darkly pigmented cells, absorbs excess light within the eye. Continous along the schlera and behind retina

24
Q

Retina

A

Surface upon which light is focused; contains rod and cone cells

25
Q

Anterior chamber

A

Behind cornea, contains aqueous humor (liquid)

26
Q

Posterior chamber

A

Behind iris, contains aqueous humor (liquid) and in front of lens

27
Q

Lens

A

Fine tune angle of incoming lights so that beams are perfectly focused upon the retina. Curvature of the lens (and its refractive power) is varied by the ciliary muscle

28
Q

Vitreous chamber

A

Contains vitreous humor, maintains shape of eye

29
Q

Rod cells

A

Detecting dim light in the dark

30
Q

Cone cells

A

Detect colors when there is light

31
Q

Bipolar cells

A

Rod and cone cells synapse with bipolar cells with one axon and dendrite. In turn synapse with ganglion cells, whose axons comprise the optic nerve

32
Q

Optic nerve

A

Travels from each eye toward the occipital lobe of the brain

33
Q

Optic disk (blind spot)

A

Where many axons from ganglion cells converge to form the optic nerve, also known as blind spot because it contains no photoreceptors

34
Q

Macula (center is called fovea centralis or focal point)

A

Macula is special region of the retina, and at the center of it is the focal point which contains only cones and is responsible for extreme visual acuity, or where the image is focused

35
Q

Photoreceptors

A

Consists of:

1) Opsin - protein bound to one molecule of retinal
2) Retinal - derived from vitamin A, consists of several trans double bonds and one cis double bond
- In this conformation sodium channels open and cell is depolarized, and upon absorbing photon of light retinal is converted to all-trans form and sodium channel closed

36
Q

On-center off-center bipolar cells

A

On center inhibited by glutamate

Off center stimulated by glutamate

37
Q

Steps of visual processing (Dark)

A

1) Dark
2) Cone depolarized
3) Glutamate release increased
4) On-center hyperpolarized (inhibited) transmitter release stopped/ Off-center depolarized transmitter release increased
5) Firing of ganglion cell stops/ Firing of ganglion cell starts

38
Q

Steps of visual processing (Light)

A

1) Light
2) Cone hyperpolarized
3) Glutamate release stopped
4) Off-center hyperpolarized (inhibited) transmitter release stopped/ On-center depolarized transmitter release increased
5) Firing of ganglion cell stops/ Firing of ganglion cell starts

39
Q

Emmetropia

A

Normal vision, normal curvature of the cornea or lens

40
Q

Myopia

A

Near-sightedness; too much refraction or curvature at the lens or eyeball too long results in a focal length that is too short

41
Q

Hyperopia

A

Far-sightedness; too little refraction or curvature at the lens or eyeball too short results in a focal length that is too long

42
Q

Presbyopia

A

Inability for lens to accommodate or focus due to loss of flexibility of lens; occurs with aging

43
Q

Feature detection theory

A

The feature detector model of form perception is based on the fact that neurons farther into the visual cortex become more selective in what they respond to. Explains how we can see complex patterns, including hand-shaped and face-shaped patterns

44
Q

Parallel processing

A

Many aspects of a visual stimulus (form, motion, color, depth) are processed simultaneously instead of in a step-by-step fashion. Also employed by other stimuli, not only visual. Occipital lobe constructs a holistic image by integrating all of the separate elements of an object.

45
Q

Absolute threshold

A

Minimum stimulus intensity required to activate a sensory receptor 50% of the time (thus detect a sensation)

46
Q

Difference threshold (just noticeable difference)

A

Minimum noticeable difference between any two sensory stimuli, 50% of the time.
E.g. holding 100 lb weight vs 101 lb weight

47
Q

Weber’s law

A

Dictates that two stimuli must differ by a constant proportion in order for their difference to be perceptible

48
Q

Signal detection theory

A

Attempts to predict how and when someone will detect the presence of a given sensory stimulus (the signal) admist all of the other sensory stimuli in the background

49
Q

Gestalt Psychology (Whole)

A

Humans perceive an object as a whole rather than seeing individual characteristics such as lines, angles or colors

MCAT Biology (4 decks)

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