Sensation and Perception Flashcards
What is Transduction?
the process of converting physical energy into electrical signals
bottom up processing is…
build up from the smallest pieces of sensory information
top down processing is…
when the brain applies what is knows and expects to perceive sensory information
what is absolute threshold?
the point where you notice that a stimulus is present
what is difference threshold?
the point where you can detect a difference in stimuli
what is sensory adaptation
reduced sensitivity to a stimulus after constant exposure to it
what is the cocktail party effect?
the ability to focus on a particular sound while partial filtering out other sounds (ability to eavesdrop)
what is inattentional blindness?
when you focus on one stimulus which leads to blindness to another stimulus (like someone talking to me while I am watching a softball game,, you tune it out)
what is a perceptual set?
a predisposition to perceive things in a certain way (I have a perceptual set to observe pitching mechanics of a player but I would probably ignore their outfielder mechanics)
what are rods?
receptor cells in the eye responsible for vision at low lights
what are cones?
receptor cells in the eye that are are responsible for vision at higher light levels and capable of color vision
(color cones)
what is the blind spot?
the area in the eye that has no receptor cells (rods or cones)
what are binocular cues?
depth perception using two eyes
what are monocular cues?
depth perception using one eye
what is perceptual organization?
ways that humans organize information
what is figure ground?
the ability to differentiate an object from its background
what is grouping?
the tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups
what are ways that information can be organized?
proximity, similarity, continuity, closure, area, and symmetry
what is a visual cliff?
a laboratory device that tests depth perception in infants
what are shape and size constancies?
the tendency to perceive the form of familiar objects as constant even while our retinas receive changing images of them
what is sensorineural hearing loss?
damage to the inner ear
what is conduction hearing loss?
an anatomical structure in the ear that blocks the passage of sound (earwax)
what travels through the cochlea?
sound waves, they run through the cochlea fluid trigger nerve
what is gate-control theory?
the theory that the spinal chord contains a neurological gate hat blocks pain signals or allows them to pass to the brain (your spinal chord is a gate) (why tightening my back relieves pain)
what is kinesthesia?
our movement sense
what is vestibular sense?
our sense of body movements and position that enables our sense of balance
(vesti-bal-sense)
