Perception

Question 1

What is perception?

Answer 1

Partofanintegratedsystemthatgathersandtransmits information from the world (sensation) that is then organised and interpreted (perception)

Question 2

What is sensation?

Answer 2

The reception and transmission of information aboutphysical aspects of the world

Our interface with the world—what we have access to

Question 3

Why study perception?

Answer 3

• Perception is a fundamental aspect of who we are
• Perception is tractable
• Perception has important applications

Question 4

What is Transduction?

Answer 4

Physical stimulus energy from the environment is transduced into neural energy

Question 5

What is ‘Absolute thresholds’?

Answer 5

The minimum amount of physical energy that supports reliable detection is the absolute threshold.

Examples:
Vision: candle from 50km on a dark, clear night Hearing: watch ticking from 6m in a quiet place Smell: drop of perfume in a large house Taste: teaspoon of sugar in 10 litres of water

Varies depending on the perceiver and other aspects of the environment

Question 6

Which of the following refers to perception rather than sensation?

a) Pressure on your skin
b) Photoreceptor photon catch
c) Hearing someone speak your name
d) Tastebud signals

Answer 6

c) Hearing someone speak your name

Question 7

True or false: We perceive the world through mostly passive processes with the goal of collecting all the available information about the environment

Answer 7

False

Question 8

Which of the following is the most prominent potential benefit of short-term adaptation?

a) Can allow for greater efficiency of neuronal signalling
b) Prevents useless senses from continuing to operate
c) Stops the need for sensory signals to be interpreted
d) Improves absolute thresholds for the adapted stimulus

Answer 8

a) Can allow for greater efficiency of neuronal signalling

Question 9

Describe how the light reaching the eye relates to properties of the environment

Answer 9

Since light travels very quickly ,gives an almost immediate quantification of the immediate surroundings

As light travels instraight lines, it preserves the geometric structure of the environment

The light contains information about the properties of surfaces in the world

Question 10

Explain the transduction of light in the eye

Answer 10

Surfaces in the world reflect light, with a particular reflectance spectrum, and the light reaching the eye is the product of the illumination and the surface reflectance

Question 11

Give details on the fundamentals of colour perception

Answer 11

Colour is a perception that arises from the sensation of the light spectrum