Sensation And Perception

Question 1

absolute threshold

Answer 1

originally defined as the lowest level of a stimulus - light, sound, touch, etc. - that an organism could detect.

Question 2

accommodation

Answer 2

adapting our current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information

Question 3

additive color theory

Answer 3

the combination of two of the standard three primary colors in equal proportions produces and secondary color

Question 4

Auditory Canal (Ear Canal)

Answer 4

the area that sound waves pass through to reach the eardrum

Question 5

basilar membrane

Answer 5

area within the cochlea where hair cells are located

Question 6

binocular depth cues

Answer 6

clues about distance based on the differing views of the two eyes

Question 7

bipolar cells

Answer 7

specialized cells which connect rods and cones to the ganglion cells of the optic nerve

Question 8

brightness constancy

Answer 8

recognition that an object maintains the same color, even when different amounts of light fall on it

Question 9

closure

Answer 9

the tendency to complete figures that are incomplete

Question 10

cochlea

Answer 10

a snail-shaped structure in the inner ear that enables one to hear

Question 11

color constancy

Answer 11

we understand that colors do not change despite different conditions of light

Question 12

cones

Answer 12

neurons in the retina that are responsible for color vision

Question 13

Constancy

Answer 13

the ability to maintain a constant perception of an object despite changes in direct appearance

Question 14

Continuity

Answer 14

we perceive smooth, continuous patterns rather than discontinuous ones

Question 15

Convergence

Answer 15

the occurrence of two or more things coming together

Question 16

Cornea

Answer 16

the transparent outer covering of the eye

Question 17

Depth perception

Answer 17

ability to judge distance and three-dimensional relations

Question 18

Ear drum

Answer 18

a tightly stretched membrane at the end of the ear canal that vibrates when hit by sound waves

Question 19

False alarm

Answer 19

occurs when people “remember” an item that was not originally presented

Question 20

Feature detectors

Answer 20

neurons that respond selectively to very specific features of more complex stimuli

Question 21

Figure-ground

Answer 21

refers to our ability to distinguish foreground from background in visual images

Question 22

Fovea

Answer 22

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

Question 23

Frequency

Answer 23

the number of complete wavelengths that pass a point in a given time (for example, per second)

Question 24

Frequency theory

Answer 24

The view that the basilar membrane vibrates at the same frequency as the sound wave

Question 25

Ganglion cells

Answer 25

specialized cells that make up the optic nerve, receive signals from bipolar cells

Question 26

Gate control theory

Answer 26

spinal cord contains a gate that either allows or blocks pain signals

Question 27

Gestalt

Answer 27

an organized whole that is perceived as more than the sum of its parts.

Question 28

Hair cells

Answer 28

specialized auditory receptor neurons embedded in the basilar membrane

Question 29

hammer, anvil, stirrup (malleus, incus, stapes)

Answer 29

Middle ear

Question 30

Inner ear

Answer 30

the innermost part of the ear, containing the cochlea, semicircular canals, and vestibular sacs

Question 31

Interposition

Answer 31

if one object partially blocks our view of another, we perceive it as closer

Question 32

Iris

Answer 32

colored part of the eye

Question 33

Just noticeable difference

Answer 33

the smallest change in the intensity of a stimulus that we can detect

Question 34

Kinesthesis

Answer 34

the system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts

Question 35

Lens

Answer 35

the transparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to help focus images on the retina

Question 36

Linear perspective

Answer 36

the tendency for parallel lines to appear to converge on each other

Question 37

Monocular cues

Answer 37

depth cues, such as interposition and linear perspective, available to either eye alone

Question 38

Motion parallax

Answer 38

involves images of objects at different distances moving across the retina at different rates

Question 39

Selective attention

Answer 39

Focus of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus (“cocktail party effect”). Ability to attend to one voice among many.

Question 40

Inattentional blindness

Answer 40

Failure to notice visible objects when our attention is diverted elsewhere (gorilla video)

Question 41

Change blindness

Answer 41

Failing to notice a visual change when our attention is devoted elsewhere (Person Swap example).

Question 42

Gestalt Psychology

Answer 42

Focused on how our minds group things together and tend to look at the big picture.

Question 43

Gestalt is focused on these five things:

Answer 43

Figure/ground, proximity, similarity, continuity, closure

Question 44

Depth perception

Answer 44

Ability to see objects in three dimensions enables us to judge depth

Question 45

Visual cliff

Answer 45

Once babies are old enough to crawl, they have developed depth perception and will not crawl off a cliff.

Question 46

Monocular cues (five)

Answer 46

Linear perspective, interposition, relative size, relative height, light and shadow

Question 47

Retinal disparity

Answer 47

A binocular cue in which our eyes each see a part of the image: The closer the image, the greater the disparity.

Question 48

Convergence

Answer 48

As an object nears our faces, our eyes cross.

Question 49

Phi phenomenon

Answer 49

Illusion of movement when two or more lights adjacent to one another blink on and off in quick succession.

Question 50

Perceptual constancy

Answer 50

Perceiving objects as the same even as illumination and retinal image change color, shape, size.

Question 51

Perceptual set

Answer 51

A mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another

Question 52

Human factor psychology

Answer 52

Explores how people and products/machines interact

Question 53

Parapsychology

Answer 53

The study of paranormal phenomena

Question 54

Extrasensory perception

Answer 54

Controversial claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input