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Sensation And Perception Flashcards

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1
Q

Psychophysics

A

Branch of psychology that studies the effects of physical stimuli on sensory perceptions and mental States

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2
Q

What was Gustav Fechner the first to study

A

The relationship between the strength of a stimulus and a person’s ability to detect the stimulus

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3
Q

What was one of the important criterion when Fechner designed his experiment to determine the limits of humans sensation

A

Absolute threshold

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4
Q

Absolute threshold of a sensation

A

The intensity of a stimulus that allows an organism to just barely detect it

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5
Q

What is an individual presented with in a typical psychophysics experiment

A

With a series of trials in which a signal is sometimes presented and sometimes not, or in which two stimuli are presented that are either the same or different

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6
Q

Signal detection analysis

A

A technique used to determine the ability of the perceiver to separate true signals from background noise

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7
Q

What are the possible outcomes of a signal detection analysis

A
  1. You correctly say yes
  2. You respond yes to no signal
  3. You miss the sound and say no
  4. You correctly reject
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8
Q

Describe how sight occurs

A

Seeing begins when light falls on the eyes, initiating the process of transduction, once the information reaches the visual cortex, it is processed by a variety of neurons that detect colors shapes and motion and this creates meaningful perceptions out of the incoming stimuli

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9
Q

Where does light enter the eye through

A

The cornea

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10
Q

What is the cornea

A

A clear covering that protects the eye and begins to focus the incoming light

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11
Q

After light enter the cornea, where does it then pass through

A

The pupil

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12
Q

What is the pupil

A

A small opening in the center of the eye

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13
Q

What is the people surrounded by

A

The iris

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14
Q

What is the iris

A

The color part of the eye that controls the size of the pupil by constricting or dilating in response to light intensity

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15
Q

What happens to your iris when we enter a dark room

A

The muscles in the iris open the people and allow more light to enter

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16
Q

What lies behind the pupil of the eye

A

The lens

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17
Q

What is the lens

A

A structure that focuses the incoming light on the retina

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18
Q

What is the retina

A

The layer of tissue at the back of the eye that contains photoreceptor cells

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19
Q

What focuses the incoming light on the retina

A

The lens

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20
Q

What happens when our eyes move from near objects to distant objects

A

A process known as visual accommodation occurs

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21
Q

What happens when light falls on the retina

A

Receptor cells are activated, this activation then spreads to bipolar cells and then to ganglion cells

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22
Q

What are the receptor cells of the retina known as

A

Rods and cones

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23
Q

What cells gather together and converge like the strands of a rope, forming the optic nerve

A

Ganglion cells

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24
Q

What is the optic nerve

A

A collection of millions of ganglion neurons that sends vast amounts of visual information via the thalamus to the brain

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25
Q

What structure of the eye can be seen as an extension of the brain itself and why

A

The retina and the optic nerve because they are active processors and analyzers a visual information

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26
Q

What are rods

A

Visual neurons that specialize in detecting black, white, and gray colors

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27
Q

What are the limitations of rods

A

They do not provide a lot of detail about an image, they are sensitive to shortwaved (darker) and weak light

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28
Q

What are rods good for

A

Seen in dim light or at night and they are primarily active and peripheral vision

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29
Q

Why is it that rods are particularly active and peripheral vision

A

Because the rods are located mainly around the edges of the retina

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30
Q

Cones

A

Visual neurons that are specialized in detecting fine detail and colors

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31
Q

What do cones operate best in

A

Bright light

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32
Q

Where are the cones primarily located

A

In the fovea which is in the central point of the retina

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33
Q

Where does information from the eye go to after it leaves the optic nerve

A

Information is relayed through the thalamus to corresponding areas in the visual cortex located in the occipital lobe at the back of the brain

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34
Q

Does the right eye send information to the left side of the brain and vice versa

A

No, the left and right eyes each send information to both the left and right hemispheres and the visual cortex processes each of the cues separately and in parallel

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35
Q

What is the visual cortex made up of

A

Specialized neurons that turn the sensations they received from the optic nerve into meaningful images

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36
Q

What does hearing begin with

A

Transduction

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37
Q

What is transduction

A

Sound waves that are collected by our ears are converted into neural impulses which are sent to the brain where they are interpreted as sounds

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38
Q

Where sound waves sent to be transmitted

A

To the auditory cortex where the sounds are compared to stored knowledge of other noises and then identified

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39
Q

Sound waves

A

Vibrating objects that cause air molecules to bump into each other and produce sound waves, which travel from their source as peaks and valleys just like ripples in water

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40
Q

What is it that we detect in sound waves

A

Wavelengths and amplitude

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41
Q

What is the wavelength of a sound

A

Is a frequency measured in terms of the number of waves that arrive per second

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42
Q

What is frequency determine

A

Our perception of pitch

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43
Q

What is pitch

A

The perceived frequency of a sound

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44
Q

Longer sound waves have _________ frequency and produce a _______ _______

A

Lower frequency and produce a lower pitch

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45
Q

Shorter waves have ________ frequency and a ________ ______

A

Higher frequency and a higher pitch

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46
Q

Amplitude

A

Height of a sound wave

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47
Q

What does amplitude determine

A

How much energy a sound wave contains and it is perceived as loudness

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48
Q

How is the amplitude of larger waves perceived

A

As louder

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49
Q

How is loudness measured

A

By decibel

50
Q

What is the absolute threshold for human hearing below which we cannot hear sound

A

Zero decibels

51
Q

Where does sound begin

A

In the pinna

52
Q

What is the pinna

A

The external and visible part of the ear, shaped like a funnel to draw in sound waves

53
Q

After the peanut where are the sound waves guided to

A

Into the auditory canal

54
Q

After the auditory canal where are the sound waves carried to

A

The tympanic membrane or eardrum

55
Q

What is the tympanic membrane

A

Tightly stretched, highly sensitive membrane where sound waves vibrate

56
Q

From the tympanic membrane where are the resulting vibrations relayed into

A

The middle ear through three tiny bones

57
Q

What are the names of the three tiny bones in the ear

A

These ossicles are the malleus, incus, and stapes

58
Q

Which ear bone is hammer-shaped

A

The malleus

59
Q

Which ear bone is shaped like an anvil

A

Incus

60
Q

Which ear bone is shaped like a stirrup

A

Stapes

61
Q

After leaving the three bones of the middle ear where do the sound waves carry

A

To the cochlea

62
Q

What is the cochlea

A

A snail shaped liquid filled tube in the inner ear

63
Q

What part of the cochlea are the sound waves vibrated on causing the fluid inside the cochlea to be disturbed

A

The oval window

64
Q

What is the oval window

A

The membrane covering the opening of the cochlea

65
Q

What happens in the cochlea

A

Movements of the fluid bend the hair cells of the inner ear, this triggers nerve impulses in the attached neurons, which are sent to the auditory nerve and then the auditory cortex in the brain

66
Q

How many hair cells are contained in each cochlea

A

About 16,000 hair cells

67
Q

What do the 16,000 hair cells contain

A

A bundle of fibers known as cilia on the tip

68
Q

How sensitive are the cilia

A

They can detect a movement that pushes them the width of a single atom

69
Q

How is the loudness determined

A

By the number of hair cells that are vibrating

70
Q

How is pitch detected

A

By two different mechanisms

  1. The frequency theory of hearing
  2. The place theory of hearing
71
Q

The frequency theory of hearing

A

This proposes that whatever the pitch of us sound wave, nerve impulses of a corresponding frequency will be sent to the auditory nerve

72
Q

What is the problem with the frequency theory of hearing

A

The problem is with high pitched sounds because the neurons cannot fire fast enough, so to reach the necessary speed, the neurons work together in a sort of rolling system in which different neurons fire and sequence, this allows us to detect sounds of up to 4,000 Hertz

73
Q

What structure in the ear relays information about the specific area or place that is most activated by the incoming sound

A

Cochlea

74
Q

What is the place theory of hearing

A

This proposes that different areas of the cochlear respond to different frequencies. Higher tones excite areas closest to the opening of the cochlea, near the oval window. Lower tones excite areas near the narrow tip of the cochlea at the opposite end.

75
Q

Pitch is determined in part by

A

the area of the cochlear firing the most frequently

76
Q

Which sense do we use the most

A

Sight

77
Q

What two sensations are the most important in humans

A

Vision and hearing

78
Q

What are the different senses

A

Scene, hearing, touch, taste, smell and proprioception

79
Q

What is proprioception

A

Our sense of body position and movement

80
Q

Other than enjoying food why is taste crucial

A

Because it leads us towards food that provide energy and away from food that could be harmful

81
Q

Where does our ability to taste begin

A

Taste receptors on the tongue

82
Q

How many taste sensations does our tongue detect

A

6

83
Q

What are our different taste sensations

A

Sweet, salty, sour, bitter, piquancy (spicy), umami (savory)

84
Q

Taste buds

A
  • Contain taste receptors
  • Designed to sense chemicals in the mouth
  • Most located on the top outer edge of the tongue, some in the back and on the walls of the mouth and at the back of the throat
85
Q

How are nerve impulses triggered for taste

A

When we chew food and it dissolves and enters the taste buds nerve impulses are triggered and are transmitted to the brain

86
Q

How many taste buds does a human tongue have

A

2000 to 10,000 taste buds

87
Q

How many taste receptors does each taste bud contain

A

50 to 100 taste receptor cells

88
Q

What happens to our taste buds as we get older

A

Are taste buds are replaced less frequently and therefore make us less sensitive to taste

89
Q

What sensory cortex is responsible for our response to taste

A

It is very similar to our location that responds to smell and that is why they both contribute to our experience of the things we eat

90
Q

Where is the olfactory membrane located

A

The upper nasal passage

91
Q

How many receptor cells are located in the olfactory membrane

A

10 to 20 million

92
Q

Describe olfactory receptor cells

A

They are topped with tentacle like protrusions that contain receptor proteins

93
Q

What happens when an odor receptor stimulated

A

The membrane sends neural messages of the olfactory nerve to the brain

94
Q

How many voter receptor cells do we have

A

Approximately 1,000 types

95
Q

Can any odor receptor cell detect any type of smell

A

The receptors come in different shapes and respond selectively to different smells, like a lock and key. Photo molecules find two different combination of receptors and these combinations are decoded in the olfactory cortex

95
Q

Can any odor receptor cell detect any type of smell

A

The receptors come in different shapes and respond selectively to different smells, like a lock and key. Photo molecules find two different combination of receptors and these combinations are decoded in the olfactory cortex

96
Q

Do men or women have a more acute sense of smell

A

Women do

97
Q

What is the largest organ in the body and what sensory organ is it

A

The skin, it is a sensory organ for touch

98
Q

What four basic sensations do the nerve endings in the skin respond to

A

Pressure, hot, cold, and pain

99
Q

Which sensation has its own specialized receptors

A

Sensation of pressure

100
Q

What are other sensations created by

A

A combination of the other for basic sensations

101
Q

Experience of a tickle is caused by the stimulation of

A

Neighboring pressure receptors

102
Q

The experience of heat is caused by the stimulation of

A

Hot and cold receptors

103
Q

Experience of itching is caused by

A

Repeated stimulation of pain receptors

104
Q

The experience of wetness is caused by

A

Repeated stimulation of cold and pressure receptors

105
Q

What other important sense does the skin provide

A

Proprioception

106
Q

How is proprioception accomplished

A

By specialized neurons located in the skin, joints, bones, ears, and tendons. They send messages about the compression and the contraction of muscle throughout the body

107
Q

What would happen if we didn’t have the feedback from our bones and muscles for our sense of proprioception

A

We would be unable to play sports, walk, or even stand up right

108
Q

What system helps keep track of where the body is moving

A

The vestibular system

109
Q

What is the vestibular system

A

A set of liquid filled areas in the inner ear that monitors the head’s position and movement, maintaining the body’s balance

110
Q

What is included in the vestibular system

A

Semicircular canals and vestibular sacs

111
Q

What do the vestibular sex connect the semicircular canals with

A

Cochlea

112
Q

What do the semicircular canal sense

A

The rotational movements of the body

113
Q

What do the vestibular sacs sense

A

Linear accelerations

114
Q

Where does the vestibular system send signals to

A

The neural structures that control eye movement and to the muscles that keep the body upright

115
Q

What is the point of experiencing pain

A

It informs the body that we are in danger, preventing further damage to our bodies

116
Q

What is the gate control theory of pain

A

It proposes that pain is determined by the operation of two type of nerve fibers in the spinal cord

117
Q

What are the two types of nerve fibers in the spinal cord that determine pain

A

One set of smaller nerve fibers carries pain from the body to the pain, a second set of larger fibers is designed to stop or start the flow of pain

118
Q

Why is it when an area that feels pain is massaged, it helps to alleviate the pain

A

The massage activates the larger fibers that block the pain signals of the small nerve fibers

119
Q

What factors or activities help reduce our pain

A
  1. When we are busy focusing on a challenging activity
  2. When we are distracted by humor
  3. When the brain releases endorphins
120
Q

What does research suggest about our evaluation of good and bad things

A

Within 1/4 of a second of seeing it we decide whether or not we like something. We also make snap judgments and they are usually accurate

Psychology (7 decks)

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